Ethel Sutton Bruce (January 22, 1881 — June 18, 1957) was an English-born American tennis player.

Early life

Ethel Mathilda Godfray Sutton was born in

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

, England, the daughter of Adolphus DeGrouchy Sutton and Adeline Esther Godfray Sutton. Adolphus Sutton was a naval captain. The family moved to

Pasadena, California Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district. I ...

when Ethel was a girl. Three of her sisters,

May Sutton May Godfrey Sutton (September 25, 1886 – October 4, 1975) was an American tennis player who was active during the first decades of the 20th century. At age 16 she won the singles title at the U.S. National Championships and in 1905 she became ...

Florence Sutton Florence E. Sutton (September 2, 1883 – October 16, 1974) was an American tennis player. Biography She was born on September 2, 1883, to Adolphus De Gruchy Sutton and Adelina Esther Godfray. She was the sister of tennis champion May Godfrey Su ...

, and Violet Sutton, were also competitive tennis players.

Career

Ethel Sutton often played against her sisters; together, the Suttons won every Southern California women's singles championship between 1899 and 1915. Ethel won the title in 1906, 1911, 1912, and 1913. Ethel also won titles in doubles and mixed doubles events. Ethel Sutton Bruce wrote a series of articles about tennis for the ''San Francisco Call'' newspaper in 1913. She later co-authored a book, ''Tennis, Fundamentals and Timing'' (1938) with her husband. She also taught tennis in physical education classes for women at the

University of California Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...

. In 1947, all four Sutton sisters wore 1890s-style tennis costumes to play at a Santa Monica fundraiser for

Children's Hospital Los Angeles Children's Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) is a nationally ranked, freestanding acute care children's hospital in the East Hollywood district of Los Angeles, on Sunset Boulevard at the corner of Vermont Avenue. The hospital has been academically affi ...

Personal life

Ethel Sutton married Robert O. Bruce; they had a son, Robert. She died in

Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...

in 1957, aged 76 years. Ethel Sutton Bruce's brother-in-law was tennis player

Tom Bundy Thomas Clark Bundy (October 8, 1881 – October 13, 1945) was a tennis player from Los Angeles, California, who was active in the early 20th century. With Maurice McLoughlin, he won three doubles titles at the U.S. National Championships. Bundy D ...

. She was the aunt of several tennis players of a younger generation, including Dorothy Cheney and

John Doeg John Thomas Godfray Hope Doeg (December 7, 1908 – April 27, 1978) was a male tennis player from the United States. In August 1929 Doeg won the singles title at the Seabright Invitational defeating Richard Norris Williams in three straight sets. ...

. In 1976, Ethel Sutton Bruce, Violet Sutton Hope-Doeg, and Florence Sutton were inducted into the Southern California Tennis Association Hall of Fame."Women’s History Month From A Tennis Perspective"
''Southern California Tennis News'' (March 1, 2016).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sutton Bruce, Ethel 1881 births 1957 deaths American female tennis players British emigrants to the United States Sportspeople from Portsmouth