This was How Volleyball was Introduced –
Facts and Information About the Game
The game of volleyball, originally called “mintonette,” was invented in 1895 by William G.
Morgan after the invention of basketball only four years before. Morgan, a graduate of the
Springfield College of the YMCA, designed the game to be a combination of basketball,
baseball, tennis, and handball.
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The first volleyball net, borrowed from tennis, was only 6’6″ high (though you need to remember
that the average American was shorter in the nineteenth century).
The offensive style of setting and spiking was first demonstrated in the Philippines in 1916. Over
the years that followed, it became clear that standard rules were needed for tournament play, and
thus the USVBA (United States Volleyball Association) was formed in 1928.
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Two years later, the first two-man beach volleyball game was played, though the professional
side of the sport did not emerge until much later. Not surprisingly, the first beach volleyball
association appeared in California (1965), and the professional players united under the auspices
of the AVP (American Volleyball Professionals) in 1983.
During the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, American men and women took gold and silver medals
in indoor volleyball competitions. Four years later at the Olympics in Korea, the men once again
scored gold. Starting in 1996, two-man beach volleyball was officially introduced to the
Olympics. Today, there are more than 800 million volleyball players worldwide, 46 million of
them in the U.S.
Timeline of Significant Volleyball Events
In 1900, a special ball was designed for the sport.
In 1916, in the Philippines, an offensive style of passing the ball in a high trajectory to be struck
by another player (the set and spike) were introduced.
In 1917, the game was changed from 21 to 15 points.
In 1920, three hits per side and back row attack rules were instituted.
In 1922, the first YMCA national championships were held in Brooklyn, NY. Twenty-seven
teams from 11 states were represented.
In 1928, it became clear that tournaments and rules were needed, so the United States Volleyball
Association (USVBA, now USA Volleyball) was formed. The first U.S. Open was staged, as the
field was open to non-YMCA squads.
In 1930, the first two-man beach game was played.
In 1934, national volleyball referees were approved and recognized.
In 1937, at the AAU convention in Boston, action was taken to recognize the U.S. Volleyball
Association as the official national governing body in the U.S.
In 1947, the Federation Internationale De Volley-Ball (FIVB) was founded.
In 1948, the first two-man beach tournament was held.
In 1949, the initial World Championships were held in Prague, Czechoslovakia.
In 1964, volleyball was introduced to the Olympic Games in Tokyo.
In 1965, the California Beach Volleyball Association (CBVA) was formed.
In 1974, the World Championships in Mexico were telecast in Japan.
In 1975, the U.S. National Women’s team began a year-round training regime in Pasadena,
Texas (moved to Colorado Springs in 1979, Coto de Caza and Fountain Valley, CA, in 1980, and
San Diego, CA, in 1985).
In 1977, the U.S. National Men’s Team began a year-round training regime in Dayton, Ohio
(moved to San Diego, CA, in 1981).
In 1983, the Association of Volleyball Professionals (AVP) was formed.
In 1984, the U.S. won their first medals at the Olympics in Los Angeles. The men won the gold,
and the women the silver.
In 1986, the Women’s Professional Volleyball Association (WPVA) was formed.
In 1988, the U.S. men repeated the gold in the Olympics in Korea.
In 1990, the World League was created.
In 1995, the sport of volleyball was 100 years old!
In 1996, two-person beach volleyball became an Olympic sport.
Volleyball, game played by two teams, usually of six players on a side, in which the players use their
hands to bat a ball back and forth over a high net, trying to make the ball touch the court within the
opponents’ playing area before it can be returned. To prevent this a player on the opposing team bats
the ball up and toward a teammate before it touches the court surface—that teammate may then volley
it back across the net or bat it to a third teammate who volleys it across the net. A team is allowed only
three touches of the ball before it must be returned over the net.
History
Volleyball was invented in 1895 by William G. Morgan, physical director of the Young Men’s
Christian Association (YMCA) in Holyoke, Massachusetts. It was designed as an indoor sport
for businessmen who found the new game of basketball too vigorous. Morgan called the sport
“mintonette,” until a professor from Springfield College in Massachusetts noted the volleying
nature of play and proposed the name of “volleyball.” The original rules were written by Morgan
and printed in the first edition of the Official Handbook of the Athletic League of the Young
Men’s Christian Associations of North America (1897). The game soon proved to have wide
appeal for both sexes in schools, playgrounds, the armed forces, and other organizations in the
United States, and it was subsequently introduced to other countries.
In 1916 rules were issued jointly by the YMCA and the National Collegiate Athletic Association
(NCAA). The first nationwide tournament in the United States was conducted by the National
YMCA Physical Education Committee in New York City in 1922. The United States Volleyball
Association (USVBA) was formed in 1928 and recognized as the rules-making, governing body
in the United States. From 1928 the USVBA—now known as USA Volleyball (USAV)—has
conducted annual national men’s and senior men’s (age 35 and older) volleyball championships,
except during 1944 and 1945. Its women’s division was started in 1949, and a senior women’s
division (age 30 and older) was added in 1977. Other national events in the United States are
conducted by member groups of the USAV such as the YMCA and the NCAA.
Volleyball requires a minimum of equipment and space and can be played indoors or outdoors.
The game is played on a smooth-surfaced court 9 metres (30 feet) wide by 18 metres (60 feet)
long, divided by a centre line into two equal areas, one of which is selected by or assigned to
each of the two competing teams. Players may not step completely beyond the centre line while
the ball is in play. A line 3 metres (10 feet) from and parallel to the centre line of each half of the
court indicates the point in front of which a back court player may not drive the ball over the net
from a position above the top of the net. (This offensive action, called a spike, or kill, is usually
performed most effectively and with greatest power near the net by the forward line of players.)
A tightly stretched net is placed across the court exactly above the middle of the centre line;
official net heights (measured from the top edge of the net to the playing surface—in the middle
of the court) are 2.4 metres (8 feet) for men and 2.2 metres (7.4 feet) for women. Further
adjustments in net height can be made for young people and others who need a lower net. A
vertical tape marker is attached to the net directly above each side boundary line of the court,
and, to help game officials judge whether served or volleyed balls are in or out of bounds, a
flexible antenna extends 1 metre (3 feet) above the net along the outer edge of each vertical tape
marker. The ball used is around 260 to 280 grams (9 to 10 ounces) and is inflated to about 65 cm
(25.6 inches) in circumference. A ball must pass over the net entirely between the antennae. A
service area, traditionally 3 metres (10 feet) long, is marked outside and behind the right one-
third of each court end line. At the 1996 Olympic Games the service area was extended to 9
metres (30 feet). The service must be made from within or behind this area. A space at least 2
metres (6 feet) wide around the entire court is needed to permit freedom of action, eliminate
hazards from obstructions, and allow space for net support posts and the officials’ stands. A clear
area above the court at least 8 metres (26 feet) high is required to permit the ball to be served or
received and played without interference.
William G Morgan - Father of Volleyball
William G. Morgan, 1896 - Courtesy of Springfield College Archives and Special Collections
Born in 1870 at Lockport, New York, William George Morgan spent his childhood years
attending public school and working at his father’s boat yard on the banks of the Old Erie Canal.
In 1891 Morgan entered Mt. Hermon Preparatory School in Northfield, Massachusetts, and it
was there he developed a friendship with James A. Naismith, who was destined to be the
originator of basketball.
Naismith was impressed with young Morgan’s athletic skills and encouraged Morgan to continue
his education at the International Young Men’s Christian Association Training School in
Springfield, Massachusetts (now called Springfield College). While at Springfield, Morgan
participated on the college’s famous football team which played championship ball under the
leadership of Alonzo A. Stagg, one of the “Grand Old Men of Football.” In 1894, after
graduation, Morgan accepted the position of physical director of the Auburn, Maine YMCA.
The following year he accepted a similar post in Holyoke, Mass., and it was here the story of
Volleyball began.
At the Holyoke YMCA, Morgan had the opportunity to establish, develop and direct a vast
program of exercises and sport classes for male adults. His leadership was enthusiastically
accepted and his classes grew in numbers. He came to realize he needed a certain type of
competitive recreational game in order to vary his program. Basketball suited young people but
seemed to be too fast paced for many participants in his businessmen class. At that time,
Morgan knew of no similar game to volleyball which could guide him.
He developed a new game from his own sports training methods and his practical experience in
the YMCA gymnasium. Describing his first experiments he said, “In search of an appropriate
game, tennis occurred to me, but this required rackets, balls, a net and other equipment, so it was
eliminated – but the idea of a net seemed a good one. We raised it to a height of about 6 feet 6
inches from the ground, just above the head of an average man. We needed a ball; and among
those we tried was a basketball bladder but this was to light and too slow. We therefore tried the
basketball itself which was too big and too heavy.” In the end, Morgan asked the firm of A. G.
Spalding & Bros. of Chicopee, Massachusetts to make a ball. The result was quite satisfactory.
And a new sport was born.
Early in 1896 a conference was organized at the YMCA Training School – Springfield College –
bringing together all the YMCA Directors of Physical Education. Morgan was invited to give a
demonstration of his game at the new college stadium. He too two teams, each made up of five
men to Springfield. The captain of one team was J.J. Curran and the other John Lynch who
were, respectively, Mayor and Chief of the Fire Department of Holyoke. Morgan explained the
new game, which he called “Mintonette”, was designed for gyms or exercise halls but could also
be played in the open air. The object of the game was to keep the ball in movement over a high
net from one side to the other.
After seeing the demonstration and hearing the explanation, Professor Alfred T. Halstead
suggested the name be changed to “Volley Ball” since the object of the game was to “Volley”
the ball. Morgan agreed and provided the conference delegates with a copy of his handwritten
rules as a guide for the use and development of the game. A brief report of the new game and its
rules was published in the July 1896 edition of “Physical Education” and the rules were included
in the 1897 edition of the first official handbook of the North American YMCA Athletic
League. In 1917 the rules appeared in the Spalding Athletic Library Publication.
Morgan, top left, pictured with the first volleyball team. Courtesy of the International Volleyball
Hall of Fame Archive
Although Morgan left his YMCA career and later was associated with General Electric and
Westinghouse, he maintained a keen interest in the game he conceived and stated in a 1932
article for the “Winged Acorn”, published by the Athens Athletic Club, Oakland, California, “It
seems like a dream to me when I think of the origin of Volleyball and its development...I hope its
usefulness will continue."
Morgan lived to see volleyball become one of the most popular sports in the world. In 1928 he
witnessed the establishment of the United States Volleyball Association. In 1938 he was
honored at the Springfield College Alumni Dinner as the inventor of Volleyball.
William G. Morgan died at his home in Lockport, New York on December 28, 1942, yet the
game he invented continues to draw attention to this modest, inventive, and generous man. In
1951 the United States Volleyball Association, at its 23rd annual meeting, presented a scroll to
George Morgan, William’s son, in memory of his father’s contribution to the world sport. In
1985, William G. Morgan was honored with the distinction of being the first inductee of the
Volleyball Hall of Fame in Holyoke, Massachusetts
