Women in History: Senda Berenson

When Senda Berenson was seven years old, her family immigrated from Lithuania and settled in Boston, Massachusetts.

As a child, Berenson was more interested in art and piano than she was in sports. She was attending the Boston Conservatory of Music when back problems forced her to give up playing the piano.

Berenson was determined to strengthen herself physically, so she entered the Boston Normal School of Gymnastics. She learned about anatomy and physiology during her training to become a gymnastics teacher. She began to enjoy the physical activity, especially when it alleviated her back toruble.

Berenson became a staunch supporter of physical exercise and lauded its benefits with every opportunity.

When Berenson was recommended for a physical education position at Smith College, she accepted the offer. Berenson attended a physical education conference at Yale University. It was there she met the inventor of the "Basket Ball" game, Dr. James Naismith. The game itself had been invented only two months prior to Berenson's appointment at Smith. The first game was played in Jan. 1892 and Berenson had seen a game at a YMCA Training Center. Naismith proved to be very encouraging about the sport of Basket Ball being played by women, even if it meant the rules had to be adapted for the safety of the players.

Berenson set to work modifying the rules for the game. Her foremost concern was for the safety of the players as Basket Ball could be a rough sport.

Rules such as no stealing the ball, dribbling limited to three bounces and holding the ball for no more than three seconds were implmented to cut down on the physical competitiveness of the game as well as rough play.

These rules for women's basketball were approved by the American Association for the Advancement of Physical Education and most of them were standard rules for women's basketball until the 1960's.

In 1893, the first women's basketball game was held at Smith College, pitting the Sophomores against the Freshman. Berenson organized and officiated the game.

Up until this time, women had not competed in team sports. They participated in activities such as rowing, archery, horseback riding, swimming and other individual sports.

Berenson served as Chairperson on the American Association for the Advent of Physical Education for twelve years. The primary purpose of this committee was to study interpretations of women's basketball rules.

She was editor of A.G. Spalding's first Women's Basketball Guide and also adapted volleyball for women

Berenson served as the first Director of Physical Education at Smith College for 19 years. When she met her husband, Herbert Vaughan Abbott, she left her post at Smith and became director of Burnham School. She remained in that post for ten years.

Berenson died on February 16, 1954. Thirty years later in 1985 she was the first female inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame.

Model Marisa Berenson (Natalia Landauer in "Cabaret" 1972 and Lady Lyndon in "Barry Lyndon" 1975) and photographer Berry Berenson are the great-great nieces of Senda Berenson. Berry Berenson, wife of actor Anthony Perkins, was killed in the September 11, 2001 attack on American Airlines Flight 11. She was returning to her home in California from a holiday in Cape Cod.

Sources:

Jewish Women's Archives