Althea Gibson was born in Silver, North Carolina on August 25, 1927. She became the first black person to win major titles in tennis. She attended Florida A& M University on a tennis scholarship. In 1957 and 1958, she won the championship at Wimbledon, England and the U.S. Open ranking her as the number one female tennis player both years. Later she became a successful professional golfer and was the first black woman to join the Ladies Professional Golf Association.