The 1883 Women's tennis season was a tennis circuit composed of 25 national, regional, county, and regular tournaments. The season began in May in Dublin, Ireland, and ended in October in Staten Island, United States.[1]
1883 sees a decrease in the number women's singles events being held as the tennis circuit continues to form.[5] In May 1883 at the first major event of the year the Irish Championships[6] in Dublin, Ireland. In the women's Ireland's May Langrishe wins the singles title defeating her sister Beatrice Langrishe, she also picks up the mixed doubles title with Ernest Browne.[7] In terms of draw size the West of England Championships was the largest tournament of the year with a draw of 46 across three events.
In June 1883 at the second major tournament of the year the Northern Championships in Manchester featured a full schedule of events the singles title going to Edith Coleridge, she also picks up the doubles title with Rose Collier, whilst the mixed event is won by the pairing of Clara Fletcher and Ernest Browne (himself winning both mixed titles at both major tournaments).[7]
At the 1883 Wimbledon Championships the world's first major tennis tournament, it still remained an all men's event, no women's events were staged. At the U.S. National Championships there was still no women's championship events held. In October 1883 the first official event for women is held at the Staten Island Cricket Club organised by the Brighton Ladies Club for Outdoor Sports, the event is known as the Camp Washington Ladies Tournament a Miss Goodwin defeats Adeline Robinson in the singles final, however she wins the doubles title with a Miss Grandy.[8] In 1913 the International Lawn Tennis Federation was created, that consisted of national member associations. The ILTF through its associated members then became responsible for supervising women's tour events.
Season results
Notes 1: Challenge Round: the final round of a tournament, in which the winner of a single-elimination phase faces the previous year's champion, who plays only that one match. The challenge round was used in the early history of tennis (from 1877 through 1921),[9] in some tournaments not all.
