Frances "Fanny" Lucretia Davidson Noble (April 4, 1866 – May 22, 1940) was an American figure skater from Minnesota, described as "the champion lady skater of North America". She toured the United States, Canada, and Europe in the 1890s, 1900s, and 1910s.
Early life and education
Davidson was from Saint Paul, Minnesota, the daughter of John X. Davidson and Susan Havens Lamb Davidson. Her father was a newspaper editor and a state legislator. She and her siblings, Harley Davidson, Mabel, and John, learned to skate as children, and became noted skaters."Skating's history" St. Paul Pioneer Press (February 12, 1939): 45. via Minnesota Digital Newspaper Hub.McDaniel, Roy W. "Axel Paulsen and His Successors" Skating Magazine (1943), at US Figure Skating. Another brother, Albert, became a musical comedy star. Career Davidson taught at St. Nicholas Rink in New York and at the Winter Club of Montreal. She toured the United States, Canada, and Europe giving exhibitions with her brother John, including an appearance at the International Skating Competition in Westminster in 1900."Skating Competition" London Evening Standard (February 22, 1900): 10; via British Newspaper Archive She also gave skating exhibitions with Irving Brokaw.
Personal life Davidson married William Noble in 1884 and raised two children, William and Martha. She died in 1940, in New York City, in her seventies.
Notes
References
External links Ryan Stevens, "Mabel Davidson, Skating's First Female Star" Skate Guard (January 2015), a blog post about Fanny Davidson's sister Mabel