The Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award was an annual college basketball award in the United States intended to honor shorter-than-average players who excelled on the court despite their size. The award, named in honor of James Naismith‘s daughter-in-law, was established for men in 1969 and for women in 1984. The men’s award was presented to the nation’s most outstanding senior who is 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) or shorter, while the women’s award was presented to the top senior who is 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) or shorter. Early in the women’s award’s history, the cut-off height was 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m). The men’s award was selected by a panel from the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC), while the women’s was selected by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA). The award was discontinued following the 2013–14 season READ more here..
A photograph of Annie Naismith, the sister of Dr. James Naismith, outside the old family house and birthplace of James Naismith. Clayton Historian Rose Mary Sarsfield-—Here is the real story according to Marilyn Snedden who has done years of research in this area. The house pictured above where James Naismith first lived as a child, “was where Kay Grace and now Dianna Nanne live-the bungalow to the north of the Naismith House. There was a Peter Naismith in the Cheryl Patterson house early on and James’ father John worked there before he went to Fort Coulonge. I think Peter was an uncle of John but the family of course had all the same names.” The family moved to Fort Coulonge where James’ father started a sawmill but the mill burned down and then the father got typhoid fever and died.