James Naismith and was also remembered as a Freemason. Maude Naismith died in 1937, and on June 11, 1939, he married his second wife Florence B. Kincaid. On November 19 of that year, Naismith suffered a major brain hemorrhage and died nine days later in his home located in Lawrence, Kansas. Naismith was 78 years old. Coincidentally, Naismith died eight months after the birth of the NCAA Basketball Championship, which today has evolved to one of the biggest sports events in North America. Naismith is buried with his first wife in Memorial Park Cemetery in Lawrence, Kansas. Florence Kincaid died in 1977
James Naismith Instead, he was more interested in his physical education career, receiving an honorary PE Masters degree in 1910, patrolled the Mexican border for four months in 1916, traveled to France, published two books ("A Modern College" in 1911 and "Essence of a Healthy Life" in 1918). He took American citizenship in 1925. In 1909, Naismith's duties at Kansas were redefined as a Professorship; he served as the "de facto" athletic director at Kansas for much of the early 20th century. In 1923, Dr. Naismith was a founder of the Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity at the University of Kansas. Naismith was