Health & Fitness
New display honors tennis great Nat Thornton
The Atlanta Athletic Club has dedicated a new permanent exhibit in its tennis center that honors the life and career of legendary tennis champion Nat Thornton.
Thornton won more than 50 singles tournament throughout the region from 1904-27 and combined with Bryan Grant, the father of Georgia Hall of Famer Bitsy Grant, to dominate the doubles circuit in the Southeast. Thornton and Grant finished second in men’s doubles at the 1907 U.S. National Championships, now known as the U.S. Open.
Remarkably in 1927, at age 44, Thornton won the Georgia singles championship. Later that year he was featured in an article on the front page of the Atlanta Constitution’s sports section; he was photographed with legendary golfers Bobby Jones and Watts Gunn in an article about “the best competitors in Atlanta.”
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The numerous trophies and thick scrapbook for the display were donated by Rose Mary Thornton Dennis, the only child of Nat and Rose Thornton. She donated the items to the Atlanta Athletic Club, where Thornton was a member until his death at age 90 in 1975, to help preserve her father’s legacy.
“He would be very happy to have his trophies in a permanent home here at the Athletic Club,” Mrs. Dennis said.
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Born in Columbus, Ga., in 1884, Thornton’s family moved to College Park and he attended the Georgia Military Academy (now Woodward Academy). He graduated from Georgia Tech in 1903 and went on to study dentistry at Emory at Oxford. Because of his love of athletics and his desire to be outside, Thornton spent most of his business career as manager of the John Smith Chevrolet truck department.
Thornton was a gifted athlete. In addition to his tennis prowess, he played on the Atlanta Athletic Club’s indoor baseball and basketball teams. He was inducted into the AAC’s Hall of Fame in 1998.
“This builds on our heritage and tradition,” general manager Kevin Carroll said. “It’s especially great to have these trophies on display at the tennis center.”
The collection’s display was conceived and developed by Margaret Almand, the club administrator, and Chris Borders, who retired last year as the club’s general manager.