James Naismith - Early Years

Early Years

Naismith was born in 1861 in Ramsay Township (now part of Mississippi Mills, Ontario). Struggling in school but gifted in farm labour, Naismith spent his days outside playing catch, hide-and-seek, or duck on a rock, a medieval game in which a person guards a large drake stone from opposing players, who try to knock it down by throwing smaller stones at it. To play duck on a rock most effectively, Naismith soon found out that a soft lobbing shot was far more effective than a straight hard throw, a thought which later proved essential for the invention of basketball. Orphaned early in his life, Naismith lived with his aunt and uncle for many years and attended grade school at Bennies Corners near Almonte. Then he enrolled in Almonte High School, from which he graduated in 1883.

James Naismith never had a middle name and never signed his name with the "A" initial. The "A" was added by someone in the administration at the University of Kansas. Dr. Naismith's only surviving child in 1982 also stated that his father never had a middle initial "A". The Basketball Hall of Fame also clarifies this as does other members of his family and personal friends of his. Noted historian Curtis J. Phillips has done extensive research on the subject.