The History of Sports in Canada

Paper Summary:

This paper examines the impact that sport had on Canadian society since the rise of its popularity in the early 20th century. It examines both the social and economic angle of this phenomenon. It looks at how the increase in participation of new games led to the birth of new manufacturers that were devoted to the production of such items as sporting equipment and propaganda.

From the Paper:

"The early part of the twentieth century saw the growth and development of many new sports and games in Canada. However, not all of the games that took off in the twentieth century were brand new. One of the first events that signified the organization of a sport in Canada was the formation of the Montreal Curling Club in 1807 by twenty Scottish citizens.1 Lacrosse, which was originally played by native peoples, also held a significant place in sports history. On August 1, 1833, the Montreal Gazette reported the first reference to a game of lacrosse in an article that described an all-Indian game which was actually being used as an initiation ceremony for new chiefs.2 By late 1867, after Confederation, lacrosse was beginning to be enjoyed at a national level; it was referred to as the "the National Game" in some newspapers, and valued more than cricket, which was also popular at the time but was imported from Beaupre 2 Europe.3 In the spring of 1867, there were about ten lacrosse clubs in Canada; by the end of October there were eighty teams with some two thousand members.4 This led to the creation of the National Lacrosse Association which was a landmark in the history of Canadian sport and helped build a sense of unity and shared pride in the year of Confederation. The success and popularity of lacrosse continued into the 20th century, however, many players and fans found that the summer season was all too short for playing lacrosse. Because of this, some players experimented with lacrosse on ice to prolong the season, but when this proved to be unsuccessful more and more athletes turned to hockey for their winter sport and some never came back.5 By the year 1914, the glorious years of lacrosse were drawing to a close, partially because the battle between amateur ideology and commercial forces interfered with the promotion and development of the sport."

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