Julia Anna Norris

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Leading Women’s Health at UMN

Dr. Anna Norris was born into an active family in Dorchester, Massachusetts. She played tennis in her early years and became interested in the corrective aspects of physical education after learning of a spine curvature from an exam during a high school post-graduate course. In 1895, Norris accepted a position as Director of Physical Training and stenographer for the Cortland Normal School in New York. Since women were not admitted to either Harvard or Tufts for medical school, she attended Northwestern University to get her degree instead, graduating in 1900. After graduation, she held teaching roles in Chicago and Massachusetts, before being hired in 1912 by the University of Minnesota to teach phys ed and direct the women's physical education department. During her time there, she advocated greatly for women's sports, securing a building equipped with a pool, two gymnasiums, and classroom spaces, exclusively for women. She helped establish the university's student health services, as well as a teacher training program for women's phy ed.

Dr. Norris’ passion for women’s health gained attention at both state and national levels. In a publication from the Star Tribune, Norris debunked the prevailing assumption that “athletic women make the worst mothers”, reminding readers of the pioneer women who built houses and fences and worked in the fields alongside men, who were never accused of being masculine. She also advocated for dance as a form of expression and exercise for women, stating that “They [girls] love it [dancing] for its own sake, not for the sake of the accompanying partner dressed in conventional black. In a manless world girls would continue to dance. …”. In 1926, Dr. Norris was invited by the Hoover administration to create resolutions for women’s sports and help improve the Health Education Program for the Girl Scouts. 

Dr. Anna Norris held many impressive titles during her professional career including President of the Midwest Physical Education Association and Cofounder of the Women’s Division of the National Amateur Athletic Federation. The former Norris Hall at the UMN was named in her honor. 

Connections to Cedar Creek

Dr. Norris bought 40 acres of land in East Bethel. This land, including her cabin, was donated to the University of Minnesota after her death, becoming part of Cedar Creek property. Some sources say she may have conducted scientific research on the property, but details of this research are unclear. Nevertheless, land donations like Norris’ are a driving factor allowing ecological research to be conducted at Cedar Creek. 

Later Years

After 29 years of service within the UMN physical education department Dr. Norris retired in 1941. She enjoyed gardening at her home in Minneapolis and also took up weaving in her later years. Despite experiencing vision loss in her later years, she created many articles for the Veterans Hospital. 

Select Publications

Norris, J. A. (1914). Medical and Physical Examination for Women. American Physical Education Review, 19(6), 435–444. https://doi.org/10.1080/23267224.1914.10651419 

Norris, J. A. (1941). The Challenge of the Field of Health and Physical Education. Pi Lambda Theta Journal, 20(2), 45–47. http://www.jstor.org/stable/42915707 

Norris, J. A. (1955). History of the Department of Physical Education for Women at the University of Minnesota, 1912-1940. https://hdl.handle.net/11299/122985 

References