Picture of Dr. Naismith and His Wife Practicing Basketball, 1928

James A. Naismith (November 6, 1861 – November 28, 1939), known as "The Father of Basketball," was born in Almonte, Ontario. When he was nine, both of his parents died of typhoid fever and he was raised by his uncle, who later financed Naismith's way through college. He earned his theological degree from McGill University and graduated from Springfield College, then the YMCA Training School, in 1891. After graduation, he was hired as a faculty member, where he taught for five years. It is in his first year as a faculty member at Springfield College that he created the game of Basketball as an activity for an unruly class. In 1895, Naismith enrolled at the Gross Medical School in Denver and received his M.D. in 1898. In that same year, Naismith took the position of department head of physical education at the University of Kansas, where he remained until his death.

Is part of a scrapbook of Naismith materials, collector unknown, that has been taken out of its binding and the pages separated by archival paper. It is the 4th item in the scrapbook.

A newspaper photograph from the Des Moines Sunday Register depicting Dr. Naismith's wife shooting a ball into a peach basket that Dr. Naismith is holding.