The History of Volleyball

By: Sarah Mahan

Where It All Began

Created by William G. Morgan in
1895
Originated in the United States
Started in the YMCA gym of Holyoke,
Massachusetts

The Founder
Born in the state of New York
Gone down in history as
inventor of volleyball
Graduated from Springfield
College of the YMCA
In 1895, he then became a
director of physical
education at the YMCA of
Holyoke, Mass.

Why Did He Create It?

His classes of all males were growing in
numbers
He decided he needed a competitive
recreational game to vary his program.
Basketball was already invented, but he
wanted a less violent alternative for
older members.

Beginning of Volleyball
It was originally called Mintonette
The first net was borrowed from
tennis

How did the name change?

Morgan had a demostration game for
people to observe and learn the game
Someone said to Morgan that the
players seemed to be volleying the ball
back and forth
Volley ball seemed like a more
descriptive name for it
In 1952 the USVBA voted to make into
the one word we use today Volleyball.

Where did the ball come

from?
Basketball?

Basketball bladder?

The First Volleyball

First Rules
Two of Morgans friends, Dr. Frank Wood and
John Lynch drew up the basic concepts of
the game with the first 10 rules.
Of course these were based upon Morgans
suggestions.
The first rules were based on the game,
inning, court, net, ball, server and service,
scoring, net ball, line ball, play and players.
The game was originally played with
unlimited players.

The Rules Have Changed

In 1918 the number of players on the
court at a time was limited to 6 and
that is what we use today.

In 1922 the number of strikes per

side was limited to 3 which we also
still use today

Volleyball Today
Volleyball is 119 years old!
More than 46 million Americans, and
800 million players worldwide that
play at least once a week
Both men and women play

Exam Question
Which of the following is not a
contributing sport to volleyball?
A: Basketball
B: Soccer
C: Handball
D: Tennis

ANSWER!
The answer is B: Soccer
The sports that contributed to the
design of volleyball were basketball,
tennis, baseball, and handball