Dwight F. Davis
Dwight Filley Davis Sr. (July 5, 1879 – November 28, 1945) was an American tennis player and politician. He is best remembered as the founder of the Davis Cup international tennis competition. He was the Assistant Secretary of War from 1923 to 1925 and Secretary of War from 1925 to 1929.
Born~Died Jul 5, 1879 ~ Nov 28, 1945Last edited Oct 15, 2026, 2:49 PM
Details
- Born ~ Died
- Jul 5, 1879 ~ Nov 28, 1945
- President
- Herbert Hoover
- Preceded by
- Eugene Allen Gilmore (acting)
- Succeeded by
- George C. Butte (acting)
- President
- Calvin Coolidge
- Preceded by
- John W. Weeks
- Succeeded by
- James Good
- Appointed by
- Calvin Coolidge
- Preceded by
- Mayhew Wainwright
- Succeeded by
- Hanford MacNider
- Died
- November 28, 1945(1945-11-28) (aged 66), Washington, D.C., U.S.
- Party
- Republican
- Spouse(s)
- Helen Brooks (m. 1905; died 1932), Pauline Sabin (m. 1936)
- Education
- Harvard University (BA), Washington University (LLB)
- Turned pro
- 1895 (amateur tour)
- Retired
- 1902
- Plays
- Left-handed (one-handed backhand)
- Int. Tennis HoF
- 1956 (member page)
- Highest ranking
- No. 5 (1900)
- US Open
- F (1898)
- Olympic Games
- 2R (1904)
- Wimbledon
- F (1901)
- US Open
- W (1899, 1900, 1901)
- Olympic Games
- QF (1904)
- Location
- 38.6264, -90.1994
Contents
Dwight Filley Davis Sr. (July 5, 1879 – November 28, 1945) was an American tennis player and politician. He is best remembered as the founder of the Davis Cup international tennis competition. He was the Assistant Secretary of War from 1923 to 1925 and Secretary of War from 1925 to 1929.1
Early life
Dwight Filley Davis was born in St. Louis, Missouri, on July 5, 1879. His grandfather, Oliver Dwight Filley, was mayor of St. Louis from 1858 to 1861.2 A cousin, Chauncey Ives Filley, served as mayor of St. Louis from 1863 to 1864.3
Tennis
He reached the All-Comers final for the singles title at the U.S. Championships in 1898 and 1899. He then teamed up with Holcombe Ward and won the doubles title at the U.S. Championships for three years in a row from 1899 to 1901. Davis and Ward were also doubles runners-up at Wimbledon in 1901. Davis also won the American intercollegiate singles championship of 1899 as a student at Harvard College.
Davis Cup
In 1900 Davis developed the structure for, and donated a silver bowl to go to the winner of, a new international tennis competition designed by him and three others known as the International Lawn Tennis Challenge, which was later renamed the Davis Cup in his honor. He was a member of the US team that won the first two competitions in 1900 and 1902, and was also the captain of the 1900 team.
This page is based on “Dwight F. Davis” from English Wikipedia, (r1379945922) CC BY-SA 4.0 used under the license. The original authors are listed in its page history.
Last edited Oct 15, 2026, 2:49 PM · r73826 · Text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.