Ashland Favorite 1917
A Favorite before Fame
Manuf.:
Model:
Spec.:
Year *:
Ashland (Wilson)
Favorite
Solid wood
1917
*documented or estimated
Background facts:
The Ashland Favorite was produced in 1917, during the transitional years before Wilson Sporting Goods began using its corporate name on racquets. At the time, tennis equipment was still marketed under the Ashland label – a name derived from Ashland Avenue in Chicago, near the company’s early factory sites.
The origins of Wilson Sporting Goods trace back to Sulzberger & Sons, a major meatpacking business that sought to repurpose animal by-products in the sporting goods industry. By 1914, the company had begun producing strings, racquets, and other equipment – first under Ashland, then as Ashland Manufacturing Company.
In 1915, Thomas E. Wilson, former president of meatpacking firm Morris & Co., was brought in to lead the newly formed company. Although his name would later define the brand, racquets like this one were still released under the Ashland label during his early tenure. This unused Favorite racquet features a solid wood frame with convex wedge – a construction consistent with the time. The preservation of the surface and stringing offers a rare glimpse into the company’s pre-Wilson identity.
