Richard N. Williams II

Before he won the Intercollegiate singles titles for Harvard in 1913 and ’15, or the doubles titles in 1914-15, Dick Williams survived the sinking of the Titanic in 1912. He and his father, Charles, were traveling on the ship, and both men leapt off the ship before it went down, with only Williams surviving. Just 12 weeks later, Williams and another survivor, Karl Howell Behr, played in the fourth round of a tournament near Boston. Williams won the U.S. Nationals singles championship in 1914 and ’16, the mixed doubles title in 1912 with Mary K. Browne, and more than a decade later, won the doubles championship with Vinnie Richards in 1925 and ’26. He also won the Wimbledon doubles title in 1920 with partner Chuck Garland. As a member of the U.S. Davis Cup team, Williams helped the Americans win the cup five times. He also teamed up with Hazel Hotchkiss Wightman to win the mixed doubles at the 1924 Olympics in Paris. He was ranked in the top 10 in the world in singles from 1912-14 and 1919-23. Inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1957, Williams died in 1968.