History of a Trampoline

While one day attending a circus, a man by the name of George Nissen, was fascinated by seeing how a trapeze jumper would fall into a safety net at the end of an act and bounce back up performing a somersault. By seeing that, a light came onto Nissen's head, thinking why can't he built something that can allow continuous non-stop jumping. In 1935, George Nissen and Larry Griswold attempted their first creation of a trampoline inside of Nissen's garage. First, they bolted together a set of iron frames. Next, with a large piece of canvas with grommets along the outer ends, they attached springs to it and connected to the iron frame. At that moment, our first trampoline was born.

At first, this unit was used mainly for gymnastic tumbling training. Soon after, it took on its own life. While in Mexico on a tour for his trampolines, Nissen had heard of a phrase trampolin meaning diving board. Thus, the term trampoline came into fruition. In 1942, Nissen and Griswold setup their own company in Cedar Rapids Iowa and called it, Griswold-Nissen Trampoline and Tumbling Company. The two men started their manufacturing and selling of trampolines nationwide.

The industry blossomed during World War II when the Naval Aviation used it to train their pilots on aerial orientation and awareness. Pilots had to learn how to maintain their awareness and control while in midair and also conquering the fear of being out of control and revolving upside down. The NASA also used trampolines to train their astronauts by being in various body positions while in midair. After the war, trampolining has become a main competion at the collegiate and AAU gymnastic level. It made its first debut at the 2000 summer Olympics.

Today, many homes in America have a trampoline in their back yards. If used properly, it can be a great tool to have for many purposes. It can provide great physical training for the body as well as the mind. Like many sports, trampolining can be dangerous and fatal if used recklessly and without a net enclosure or without adhering to proper safety instructions. Studies have shown that most of the danger of a trampoline comes from 2 ways, without a net enclosure and having more than 1 jumper at once.

George Nissen and his friend Larry Griswold continues to have a major influence in the sport of gymnastic and trampolining. His vision was to have trampoline become a common event in the Olympics and it did. The 2 men founded the United States Tumbling and Trampoline Association (USTA). They have been honored in the sports by naming the Griswold-Nissen Cup to the outstanding trampolinist. In Switzerland, there is an international trampoline competition that honors the Nissen Cup after him for the best trampoline individual. And in the US, there is the Nissen-Emery award that goes to the best male collegiate senior gymnast.