In the nineteenth century sports
became largely popular in the United States. This was mainly due to the
introduction to bat-ball sports when New England started to migrate west. The
biggest of those sports was cricket, which became vastly popular within the
middle states. Americans changed around the format of this game to create the
game of baseball which was just a more organized and “sophisticated” way of
playing. It quickly rose to fame in the United States and was unofficially
reputed as our national past time.
Another reason that sports became
so highly integrated into Americans’ lives was the rise of boxing and the invention
of basketball and football. Boxing before the nineteenth century was largely
despised because of the violence and gambling that came along with it. However,
after the Marquess of Queensberry Rules called to have the boxers wear gloves
when they fought the sport rose to national fame almost immediately. With the
invention of football and basketball everyone in America had a sport of their
choosing to watch and love. Football first began in 1869, while basketball was
created later on in 1887. These two sports – although new – were vastly popular
in America. People flocked to the games to watch how they were played and to
see the athletes who played them. This new fascination led to the sports being
incorporated into the collegiate level.
Speaking of collegiate sports –
they first began in 1852 with the first rowing match between Harvard and Yale.
This was followed by the first baseball game in 1859 between Williams and
Amherst, and later followed by the first football game in 1869 between
Princeton and Rutgers. Harvard University is actually where the football that
Americans play today was created. Beforehand football was more like soccer – a kicking
sport. However, Harvard wanted it to be closer related to that of rugby and
thus the IFA (Intercollegiate Football Association) adopted the rules to fit
Harvard’s version.
It was also during the nineteenth century
where Vaudeville shows came to be as the main form of mass entertainment. The
first Vaudeville Theater began in 1881 in Manhattan by Tony Pastor. New York
was pretty much the Vaudeville capital of the United States soon after as they
had ten theaters there (New York is still the capital of theater with Broadway
taking over). For the younger generations, “the greatest show on Earth” was
invented by Phineas Barnum and James Bailey. It was a three-ring circus with a
vast array of acts for the kids – and it is still very popular in today’s
society.
The nineteenth century was also
dubbed the “age of the bicycle.” The invention of the velocipede – the bike
with the really big wheel – was in 1885. The bicycle than became safer with
equal sized tires and became a much better way of exercise for everyone. It
also helped improve women’s fashion as they were unable to ride with the
Victorian hoop dresses, so designers had to come up with a freer and less
constrictive style.
Ryan, Everett and Spencer I really enjoyed your post this week. It is always interesting learning about the history of sports, especially when they were first founded. The fact that I found most intriguing was the one that talked about the first rowing and baseball games. It’s even more fascinating to see the big name Ivy League schools back in those days. I was also impressed with how you guys talked about more than just sports and brought up entertainment, because sports is just a form of entertainment. Shows till this day are still a huge part of worldwide entertainment. Overall this was a great post and contained many good facts. This response was brought to you by TEAM WHY: Joshua Zaborowski and Savanah Atabelo.
ReplyDeleteI thought this was very fascinating finding out more about how different sports began in America, especially when sports are so popular for us here in college (even if we struggle in them). I actually didn't know that baseball was created from cricket which is really interesting and I am actually not even sure of how cricket works so I'll have to look that up. I am glad that you brought up other forms of entertainment of the time period as well like the theater and the bicycle. Both are also very intriguing to learn about. However I have liked to maybe hear about the musical entertainment of the time period, just as a personal curiosity! But overall, I really enjoyed reading about this topic. Good job! - Sydney Bushnell, Emily Epker, Hayley Turner
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed hearing about sports back then, too. Boxing was just gaining respectability, as you say, and bicycles for women were a controversial topic.
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