Bancroft, Jessie (1867–1952)

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Bancroft, Jessie (1867–1952)

American physical-education expert. Name variations: Jessie Hubbell Bancroft or Jessie H. Bancroft. Born Jessie Hubbell Bancroft, Dec 20, 1867, in Winona, Minnesota; died Nov 13, 1952, in Pittsfield, Massachusetts; dau. of Edward Hall Bancroft and Susan Maria (Hubbell) Bancroft.

Pioneer of NY gymnastics, helped create 1st public school gymnasium and used anthropometric measurements of children to provide them with appropriately sized school furniture; influenced fields as varied as shoemaking, manufacture of furniture, and design of subway-train seats; began traveling through Iowa and Illinois conducting classes in, and giving demonstrations of, physical exercise (1889–91); taught physical education at schools and colleges in NYC (1891–93); served as director of physical training at Brooklyn Public Schools (1893–1903) and as assistant director of NYC Schools (1904–28); was founder and president of American Posture League; was 1st woman to earn Gulick Award for distinguished service in physical education (1924); authored School Gymnastics with Light Apparatus (1897) and The Posture of School Children (1913); was 1st woman to be a member of American Academy of Physical Education.