Origins of Hockey - A Cornucopia from the 16th~19th Centuries in the US & Canada

[James Laverance]

An early description of the how hockey was played in New York in 1895.

The Anaconda Standard, 26 Dec 1895, Thu, Page 12

 

[James Laverance]

Wisconsin

Here's what I've dug up regarding information on hockey from Wisconsin.

Apparently the History of the sport dates back to 1887 on the Schlitz Park Skating Rink(Outdoors) as a demonstration of Ice Polo.
http://wisconsinhockeyhistory.com/2016/04/28/history-milwaukee-hockey/
Then in the 1890's the game was supposed to have been played when the Superior Club was to play Duluth and Two Harbours clubs.
http://wisconsinhockeyhistory.com/2016/04/22/the-history-of-wisconsin-hockey/
I've posted here the earliest date I could find from late 1896 and a few others up to 1899.
Unfortunately I wasn't able to get the results any of these games.I don't think much was recorded in the state until the 1910's.

Date: Thursday, December 10, 1896 Paper: Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (Milwaukee, Wisconsin) Page: 8

Date: Tuesday, December 15, 1896 Paper: Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (Milwaukee, Wisconsin) Page: 8

Date: Thursday, January 7, 1897 Paper: Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (Milwaukee, Wisconsin) Page:8

The Oshkosh Northwestern, 19 Dec 1899, Tue, Page 6

 

[James Laverance]

This is the earliest hockey reference I could find in Wisconsin from early 1893.

Janesville Daily Gazette, 03 Feb 1893, Fri, Page 3

 

[James Laverance]

Ohio

This comes from Warren Ohio in 1866.

Western Reserve Chronicle, 31 Jan 1866, Wed, Page 2

 

[James Laverance]

Hartford

Hartford Courant, 29 Dec 1859, Thu, Page 2

 

[James Laverance]

https://books.google.ca/books?id=4TkFAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA779&dq=bandy+on+ice&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjB55_K3qzXAhUDwYMKHbWpCasQ6AEIODAD#v=onepage&q=bandy on ice&f=false

 

[James Laverance]

This is actually referring to Boston, Lincolnshire/England, not to Boston, Massachusetts/USA. In the very first column, a Dutch engineer and "his Roman predecessors" are mentioned as constructors of the local "dykes and drains...which intersect the fens". The Fens (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fens) are an area in eastern England and Roman constructors might be found or assumed in Old England, but not in New England. There is more evidence throughout the text.

I've edited the thread title accordingly.

Thanks Theo I had no idea this was from England.

 

[James Laverance]

The Brooklyn Skating Club playing Shinny in 1860...

The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, 24 Dec 1860, Mon, Page 3

 

[James Laverance]

Playing Shinny on Christmas Day in 1852.

Hartford Courant, 25 Dec 1852, Sat, Page 2

 

[James Laverance]

Thanks for the replies glad you are reading my posts.

 

[James Laverance]

This is a letter written in the 1850's found in the book
Hammersmith: His Harvard Days by Mark Sibley Severance from 1878.

Mr. Tom Hammersmith to his Mother

Cambridge, Feb. 3,185-.

"Dear Mother,—Your letter of inquiry about uncle Gayton came to me a week ago, and I should have answered it instanter; but, fact is, I've had a little accident. Don't go and worry, now, for I'm all right again; or how could I be sitting here writing to you? I had a pretty narrow squeak of it, though, as you'll see when I tell you how it happened.
It was last Saturday afternoon, and I had been dining at Mrs. Fayerweather's. She's a mighty nice old lady,—a little older than you are, — and lives out near Mount Auburn. Jack Fayerweather is in my class. Well, you see we had finished dinner, and Were playing a game of billiards (Jack and I), when Jack proposed that we should go up to Fresh Pond for some skating. So I borrowed a pair of his brother's skates, — rockers they were, and mighty nice, — and we started to go. His sister Miss Edith wanted to go, though: so we waited for her, and were driven over in their double sleigh in fine style. She's a mighty pretty girl, no end ol accomplishments, and goes out to all the parties in Boston and Cambridge. I'm almost scared to talk to her, she is such a friend of the seniors and juniors. But I shall never get on at this rate.We found a lot of fellows that we knew, — Penhallow ana Goldie and Freemantle, and lots of others; and Miss Darby and a pretty Miss Summerdale were with Tweedy, and a young Barlow, some relation to Miss Darby. Jack knew them all, and introduced me; and I found myself sailing round with them, pretty soon, as chipper as if we had been friends all our lives. The girls about here skate mighty well, most of them; and Mabel would be rather surprised to see them doing the outward roll, cross-cut backwards and forwards, and many things I can hardly do myself. And they have such a nice way of joining hands inside their muffs with a fellow they're skating with: it's mighty nice.
Well, we'd been skating about a good deal, changing our sets now and then, getting very jolly; and as Goldie and most of the college-men were playing a game of hockey,rushing about like mad, and knocking the ball in our way, we went over towards the Belmont side; that's the west — but then you don't know it: so it doesn't matter. It was quieter here; only some juniors cutting fancy figures on the ice, —figure-eights, circles, initials, and so on: so we had a nice time."
Hammersmith: His Harvard Days

 

[James Laverance]

Thanks C58 unfortunately I don't have any pictures of Miss Edith.
I find it interesting though how much of a long standing tradition Hockey is at Harvard.
If anyone knows an even earlier example of Harvard hockey please let me know.

 

[James Laverance]

Wide Awake

In 1884 Montreal held It's second winter carnival festival and hockey was played on the McGill Skating grounds.
Montreal Winter Carnival ice hockey tournaments https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montreal_Winter_Carnival_ice_hockey_tournaments

Inside this book they describe how Hockey was played at the time.

 

[James Laverance]

Hockey in New York and New England 1871.

The Titusville Herald, 02 Dec 1871, Sat, Page 1

 

[James Laverance]

Shinny Games on skates in Indianapolis from 1843.

The Indianapolis News, 28 Feb 1879, Fri, Page 3

 

[James Laverance]

Thanks Killion. You wouldn't think that a town like Indianapolis played shinny games way back in 1843.

 

[James Laverance]

This is out of the Muncie morning news from March 8th 1900...

Explains more about early roller polo in Indiana in this book.Playing as early as 1885.
Hard at Play

 

[James Laverance]

Early Shinny games from New York and Philadelphia.

The Kingston Daily Freeman, 09 Dec 1873, Tue, Page 3

The Times
(Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)
Times, 30 Dec 1878, Mon, Page 1

 

[James Laverance]

Clipped from Boston Post, 22 Dec 1895, Sun, Page 14

 

[James Laverance]

Shinny on the ice in 1882.

Harper's Round Table

 

[James Laverance]

I think this was recorded in 1777-1778.

At the time the British possessed Philadelphia, in the winter of '77 and '78, the woods were so freely taken for the use of the army, that it was deemed most politic in the agent to cut them down and sell them. This was the business of one Adam Poth, a German of much self-consequence, well known to the city lads as a vigilant frustrater of many of their schemes to cut saplings, shinny-clubs, &c., in his woody domains.
Annals of Philadelphia and Pennsylvania, in the olden time

 

[James Laverance]

Toronto Based Hockey teams for 1892-93.

Dominion Illustrated Monthly

Also I found this photo from 1893.

Outing

 

[James Laverance]

This is a lecture written by Samuel Robert Calthrop in 1858 then a teacher at the "School for Boys" in Bridgeport,Connecticut since 1851.
In this lecture he talks about when growing up in England(1830's and 1840's) he used to play all kind of sports including Shinney, or Hockey, and Skating.He used this as physical development education for his student's at the school in Bridgeport, CT.
Making it perhaps the first school to play Ice-Hockey in the United States in 1851.
Annual meeting of the American Institute of Instruction
Rev. Dr. Samuel Robert Calthrop

 

[James Laverance]

This is a lecture written by Samuel Robert Calthrop in 1858 then a teacher at the "School for Boys" in Bridgeport,Connecticut since 1851.
In this lecture he talks about when growing up in England(1830's and 1840's) he used to play all kind of sports including Shinney, or Hockey, and Skating.He used this as physical development education for his student's at the school in Bridgeport, CT.
Making it perhaps the first school to play Ice-Hockey in the United States in 1851.
Annual meeting of the American Institute of Instruction
Rev. Dr. Samuel Robert Calthrop

 

[Killion]

Interesting. According to his bio, he attended St.Pauls School in London which backs onto the Thames River, which did freeze during what has been called "The Little Ice Age" between the 15th & early 18th Centuries.... so yes, entirely probable, and the Man a Minister so "not lying" that he did play hockey on skates while attending St.Pauls, which is noted for Rowing, Cricket & Rugby.... Indeed, going back to the 1500's, the Thames freeze up's resulted in annual ice fairs, winter carnivals called "Frost Fairs", skating, "bear baiting" - whatever that is - gambling, you name it... very likely the most rudimentary forms of "shinney" or hockey with stick and ball, stick and bung or "puck" played, some old lithographs and paintings depicting such, and even long before The Little Ace Age when the Thames did freeze over.... hasnt frozen over however for well over a hundred years, landfill, its banks built up, global warming, but it has gotten beyond cold enough for it to freeze at various times, ice forming from the shore out a bit but certainly not thick enough to even think about walking on much less skating.