U.S. Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division

Althea Gibson with her Harry C. Lee tennis racquet

Here's tennis star Althea Gibson in 1958, holding one of her Harry C. Lee racquets. A 2023 article by Bloomberg said that Gibson "earned $75 a month ($760 in today’s dollars) to use a Harry C. Lee racquet. The sponsorship was decidedly subpar compared with those of her white peers."

This photo was taken by Carl Van Vechten. The image is now in the collections of the U.S. Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division.

See our biography of Althea Gibson