Margaret Katherine Majer
| Margaret Katherine Majer | |
|---|---|
| Born |
December 13, 1898 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Died | January 6, 1990 (aged 91) Linwood, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Spouse(s) | John B. Kelly Sr. (m. 1924–60) |
| Children | Margaret Katherine Conlin John Brendan Kelly, Jr Grace Patricia, Princess of Monaco Elizabeth Anne Levine |
| Parent(s) | Carl Majer Margaretha Berg |
Margaret Katherine Majer (December 13, 1898 – January 6, 1990) was an American Instructor of physical education for women and first coach of women's teams at Penn. She was the wife of Jack Kelly, three-time Olympic Gold Medal winner in Rowing, and mother of Grace Kelly, actress and Princess of Monaco (thus maternal grandmother of Albert II, Prince of Monaco), and of John B. Kelly Jr., an accomplished rower.
Margaret Katherine Majer was born on December 13, 1898 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the daughter of German immigrants, Carl Majer (1863-1922) and Margaretha Berg (1870-1949). Margaret and her two siblings grew up in the Strawberry Mansion section of the city. Margaret, an outstanding athlete, excelled in intercollegiate swimming as an undergraduate at Temple University. Her beauty brought her jobs as a model and cover girl.
After earning her B.A. from Temple University in 1921, Majer succeeded Ethel Loring as Instructor in Physical Education for Women at the University of Pennsylvania's College for Women. She led the undergraduate women in athletic pursuits at the Kingsessing facility used as a gymnasium by Penn's female students. While teaching at Penn, Majer became the first coach of women's athletic teams at the University, organizing and training a women's basketball team and scheduling the first intercollegiate competitions for women. The women's basketball team played eight opponents in its first year, including Bryn Mawr College, Drexel University, and Temple University. Teams in gymnastics, softball, swimming, and tennis were planned for the next year. Majer also led a successful fundraising campaign to build women's tennis courts on what, for a few years, was a vacant lot on the southeast corner of Thirty-Fourth and Walnut Streets. After only three years at Penn, Majer's achievements brought her well-earned celebrity as the founder of women's athletics at Penn.
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