By James Laverance
As far back as the 1500's and prior to European contact Native Americans have been playing various stick and ball games on dry land. The game shinny, played with a curved stick and knocking a ball between two wooden posts or over the goal lines, had been first observed by European settlers circa. 1500. (1)
From frozen ponds to the present indoor game ,hockey has really been an evolution and tapestry of different elements which can't be traced to one specific time or period. Through out it's history though are some very interesting accounts of information and dates which have helped develop the game into what it is today
Lacrosse was another game played on dry land which was first observed in the St. Lawrence valley area by the French Jesuit missionaries in 1636. Played with a netted stick but tossed around in the air instead of ground by the Iroquois and Huron Indians. (1)
In South Dakota around the early 1700's the Lakota Sioux were playing a stick-ball on ice game using bone skates. They would use a bent tree branch as a stick and buffalo shoulder bone as blade to glide on. Usually played along the village winter river ways. (2)
On tufts cove in Dartmouth Nova Scotia in 1749 the Mik'maq natives were discovered playing a similar game to lacrosse but on ice.
They used a hitting stick to strike the ball as well as a gliding stick to hold as they were using skates made of animal jawbone. (3)
In new York city in 1783 during the revolutionary war British loyalists living there played a game of ice Hurley on collect pond using steel pole skates.
After the war had ended they came up to Halifax and brought their game with them. (4)
1788 is the conventional birthplace of hockey as kings college Windsor ns (renamed after king's college New York) opened up and there the students played the game on long pond. (5)
Birthplace of early hockey games began on long pond Windsor,Nova Scotia around 1800.Where students from Kings college began playing ice hurley. From there different stick-ball games were developing. Like ice bandy, wicket, break shins, ice lacrosse, shinny, rugby, etc.(6)
The first hockey stick called the William Dilly Moffatt stick was carved around 1838 in Cape Breton Nova Scotia. Made by the Mi'kmaq native Indian.
The modern skates were invented by EV Bushnell of Philadelphia in 1848.(8)
While playing in the Windsor-Halifax-Dartmouth area the Mik'maq provided wooden pucks cut from tree branches around 1860. (9)
The name Hockey
While stationed at Fort Edward, Nova Scotia circa.1855 a certain Colonel John Hockey conditioned his troops by playing the game shinny and renaming it after him. Referring to these workouts as hockey's games. (10)
The first indoor and semi-organized game was played with 9 players per side in the Victoria skating rink Montreal on March 3rd,1875.Organized by James Creighton using previous Halifax rules. (11)
The number of players were reduced to 7 in 1883 at the Montreal Winter Carnival. Positions were now named. Goalkeeper, Point, Cover point, Rover, Left wing, Right wing, Center.(12)
Skating Rinks
First natural indoor ice rink was the Quebec Skating Rink 1851,1852. (13) The first indoor rink in the US was the Great Chicago Skating Rink in 1860. (14)
The first artificial indoor skating rink was built by William Newton in New York City using Matthew Bujac's method of ice-making built in 1870. (15)
First international match.In 1886 Burlington Vermont held a winter carnival and Montreal sent 2 teams to form a 3 team tournament. A local team called the Van Ness House Club from Vermont played The Montreal HC in first ever match between to countries. Montreal won 3-0. (16)
Other sorts of leagues and scheduled games were being organized around this time. Later in 1886 the Amateur Hockey Association was formed in Montreal. Making it the first organized hockey league in Canada. (17)
The first professional league was organized in Portage,Michigan in 1904 called the International Professional Hockey League.Local business man James Dee and Canadian dentist Doc Gibson formed a five team league. (18)
Earliest known arrival of the modern game in the USA was 1856. It shows that St. Paul High School in Concord New Hampshire opened that year. They were playing shinny to ice field hockey to ice polo. (19)
James Conover a schoolmaster at St.Paul's School visited Montreal in 1880-81 discovered the modern rules and brought back sticks, pucks and rules. (20)
Early 6 on 6 version of game was played at Washington Park Brooklyn in 1908.The Brooklyn Crescents beat Yale 4-1. (21)
Hockey net.1890-91 first goal nets were invented from ice polo at Storrs Agricultural School now Uconn. Early goalie like pads were worn same time there. (22)
The helmet was first worn by Frank Goheen from Minnesota in 1915.. (23)
Modern goalie pads worn at Duluth central high school in 1903-04.Maybe earlier there. (24)
The goalie trapper was invented out of a baseball mitt by Mike Karakas from Minnesota in the mid - 1930's. (25)
Blocker invention Lorne Chabot from Canada 1920's. (26)
Early hockey pants were worn in 1896-97 at Detroit Medical College. (27)
1959 Jacques Plante invents full face mask. (28)
Harvard
Harvard has had a rich history to the development of the game. In 1911-12 coach Alfred Winsor would change the defense positions. Instead of having one in front of the other, he switched to a parallel formation. Called the Winsor System. (29)
In 1923 coach William Claflin and George Owen invents the full 3 man line change. (30)
These are just some accounts and data on early hockey evolution.
References
(1) Hockey as a native sport - News Articles - Active Circle
(2) Ice Hockey | HockeyGods
(3) False Gods and Profits - Society of North American Hockey
(4) Now You Know Big Book of Sports - Page 11
(5) Kings College | Birthplace of Hockey
(6) Origin Overview | Birthplace of Hockey
(7) Oldest Hockey Stick
(8) First Pair of Ice Skates
(9) Wooden Pucks | Birthplace of Hockey
(10) Hockey History - TMLFever.com
(11) First Indoor Ice Hockey Game
(12) Ice Hockey
(13) Quebec Skating Rink
(14) Central Plan Skating Rinks
(15) Hockeycentral | NHL | Other Facets | Early Artificial Ice
(16) The 1st International Ice Hockey Game 1886 | HockeyGods
(17) Who Invented Ice Hockey
(18) Ice Hockey
(19) Ice Hockey History
(20) Ice Hockey Archives
(21) Crescent Athletic Club
(22) Roller Polo Players
(23) Frank Goheen
(24) Minnesota Hockey
(25) Blackhawk Legends
(26) Ranger Legends
(27) Detroit Medical College Hockey
(28) Hockey Masks
(29) Harvard Hockey Dr. Goodridge was captain of the first two hockey teams Harvard* had, and directed the teams as coach for several years *...* the parallel-forward and parallel defense formation, when well *played*, is *easily superior to the Canadian style of play. Winsor 1912
No comments :
Post a Comment