William G. Morgan William G. Morgan William George Morgan (January 23, 1870 – December 27, 1942) was the inventor of volleyball, originally called "Mintonette", a name derived from the game of badminton which he later agreed to change to better reflect the nature of the sport. He was born in Lockport, New York, US. He met James Naismith, inventor of basketball, while Morgan was studying at Springfield College in 1892. Like Naismith, Morgan pursued a career in Physical Education at the YMCA. Influenced by Naismith and basketball, in 1895, in Holyoke, Massachusetts, Morgan invented "Mintonette" a less vigorous team sport more suitable for
William Albert Morgan by Congress. Morgan was involved with the Grand Army of the Republic, serving as commander of the Department of Kansas 1908-9. He was a long-time member and director of the Kansas Historical Society. Morgan married Wilhelmina Yoast (1843-1910) in 1864. She was active in many social and political organizations, working for woman suffrage and prohibition, and was elected mayor of Cottonwood Falls in 1885 on a prohibition platform. They had two children, Anna Morgan Coe (1871-1953) and William Yoast Morgan (1866-1932), lieutenant governor of Kansas from 1915-1919. William Albert Morgan William Albert Morgan (born Bandon, County Cork, Ireland, March 6,