The United States Lawn Tennis Association started at the Newport Casino in 1881, in Newport, Rhode Island. It is one of the few remaining grass courts today. The first American championship held there was won by Harvard graduate, R.D. Sears.
Women were allowed to compete in the championship six years later, when the association changed its name to The United States Tennis Association.
To promote international competition, the first Davis Cup was played in 1900 at the Longwood Cricket Club in Boston, Massachusetts.
