LeBaron Russell Briggs College Athletics Papers

Collection

Identifier: MSSP10034

Staff Only
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Scope and Contents

The LeBaron Russell Briggs College Athletics Papers comprises eight folders of speeches and typescripts written by LeBaron Russell Briggs about college athletics. The collection primarily focuses on the ethics of good sportsmanship, the role of coaching, athletics at Harvard University, and the role of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Notably, some drafts contain annotations and edits. Formats include drafts and final copies of speeches.

Dates

Creation: circa 1912-1925

Creator

Briggs, Le Baron Russell, 1855-1934 (Person)

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Copyright status for collection materials is unknown. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.) beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owners. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user.

Biographical / Historical

A native of Salem, Massachusetts, LeBaron Russell Briggs (1855-1934) was a professor and administrator at Harvard University and an early leader of the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA). Briggs received bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Harvard and was first hired as an instructor in English by the University in 1885. Over the next forty-seven years, Briggs held several powerful positions at Harvard. He served as Dean of Harvard College (1891-1902), Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences (1902-1925), and President of Radcliffe College (1903-1923).

Briggs was also heavily involved in college athletics both at Harvard and in national organizations. For nearly two decades, he was the Chairman of the Harvard Athletic Committee (1906-1924), the campus body that oversaw sports at Harvard. At the same time, he served as President of the NCAA (1912-1917) during a time when the organization tried to exert more administrative control over the governance of college sports. During his time as NCAA President, Briggs advocated for “clean” sportsmanship and for higher ethical standards in college sports. He argued that sports could build character and promote moral behavior, and he argued there was too much emphasis on individual success and too much focus on winning.

Briggs retired from Harvard in June 1925 and died on April 24, 1934, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.