Alberta Sports Misc Bibliography Abstracts

AB: This research study utilizes newspapers and secondary sources to piece together and analyze the development of sports in Alberta from 1900 to 1918. The thesis is prefaced with an introduction, comments on the Albertan setting and a brief overview of sports in the province prior to 1900. From then on, each chapter is dedicated to a specific subset of sports in Alberta: aquatic, association football, baseball, basketball, billiards, bowling, boxing, cricket, curling, equestrian, golf, ice hockey, ice skating, lacrosse, lawn tennis, minor sports [including gymnastics, table tennis and horseshoes], rugby, shooting and track and field.

The concluding chapter analyzes the various factors affecting sports in Alberta during the study's focus period and explores the trend of impressive growth followed by destabilizing effects of the First World War and the arrival of the Spanish flue epidemic. This thesis is a highly recommended source for information on the sports history of turn of the century Alberta. Contents include:
Chapter 4, Aquaplaning, p. 38 AB: First reported in July 1914 as an event at the second Seba Boating Club (Seba Beach, Alta) regatta.
Chapter 4, Boating, p. 39-41, AB: A variety of boating events have been held across Alberta as early as 1900 with motorboat racing being introduced in 1910.
Chapter 4, Swimming, p. 42-48, AB: Outdoor swimming was a popular pastime during this era reinforced by indoor pools constructed in Edmonton, Calgary and Lethbridge.
Chapter 4, Water Polo, p. 48-49,AB: In 1906 and 1908 a team from Banff played matches against their Regina competitors at the pools of the Cave and Basin.
Chapter 5, Association Football, p. 54-77, A popular summer sport since 1862 with dozens of clubs founded by 1900.
Chapter 6, Baseball, p. 78-110, With a vast influx of American settlers, baseball was incredibility well organized and supported during this period. Chapter 7, Basketball, p. 111-124, AB: Newly invited, basketball did not evolve in Alberta but was carefully introduced through schools and community organizations like churches and the Y. M. C. A..
Chapter 8, Billiards, p. 125-128, AB: Pool halls were constructed in nearly every settlement in Alberta and billiards were widely played by the adult male population.
Chapter 9, Bowling, p. 129-139, AB: Bowling overcame its unsavory reputation by 1904 and a team from High River even competed nationally in 1907.
Chapter 10, Boxing, p. 140-164, AB: Professional boxing in Alberta was popular in this period until the tragic death of Luther McCarty in 1913 prohibited prize fighting until the onset of the war.
Chapter 11, Cricket, p. 165-174, AB: This popular British pastime was widely enjoyed and many clubs were started with local North West Mounted Police detachments often forming their own teams.
Chapter 12, Curling, p. 175-193, AB: Curling was well established in the province by 1900 and quickly became one of the largest forms of interprovincial competition.
Chapter 13, Gymkhana, p. 194-195, AB: Oftentimes used as a sideshow to other events, gymkhanas were used during the war to raise funds. Chapter 13, Horse and Harness-Horse Racing, p. 196-204, AB: One of the most popular sports in Alberta at the turn of the century with the fist Turf club being formed at Pincher Creek in 1882.
Chapter 13, Rodeo, p. 216-220, AB: The hallmark of the cowboy on Alberta sports history; the fist organized rodeo took place at Raymond in 1903 and was dubbed "the Stampede" by its director, Ray Knight.
Chapter 14, Golf, p. 230-238, AB: In 1900, this game was primarily played by women with the Alberta Golf Association holding official yearly tournaments since 1908.
Chapter 15, Ice Hockey, p. 239-273, AB: In Alberta, the first games of this much beloved sport were played at the Star Skating Rink in Calgary during the winter of 1892-1893.
Chapter 16, Ice Skating, p. 274-282, AB: With skating as popular pastime, speed skating slowly evolved into a competitive sport with province wide meets being held at Calgary as early as 1910.
Chapter 17, Lacrosse, p. 283-300, AB: Support for lacrosse lagged across much of Alberta with few clubs able to keep active members with only minor success at Calgary in 1907.
Chapter 18, Lawn Tennis, p. 301-307, AB: Since its invention in 1873, tennis rapidly spread and was brought to Alberta with the first settlers. On July 1st, 1900 a tournament in Lethbridge drew 150 spectators.
Chapter 20, Rugby, p. 368-391, AB: Rugby was brought to Alberta by members of the North West Mounted Police in 1890 and an Edmonton-Calgary rivalry began in 1895.
Chapter 21, Shooting, p. 388-409, AB: A popular means of hunting, shooting for accuracy was encouraged and funded by the Federal Department of Militia and Defense in the pre-war years.
Chapter 22, Track and Field, p. 410-426, AB: Athletic events were a popular and a common feature at sports days, picnics and other celebrations at the turn of the century.

AB: This book contains a section on sports that highlights key aspects and moments in Alberta sport history including information on hockey and Wayne Gretzky, football, skiing, rodeos, the Olympics as well as the 1988 Winter Olympic Games.

AB: This book provides a sampling of outstanding Albertans throughout history. It contains very brief accounts of sports figures such as Pearl Borgal (p. 123), who pioneered women's sports broadcasting, and Neil 'Scotty' Munro (p. 152), a hockey visionary who helped develop the Western Canada Junior Hockey League. It also includes Alberta Sports Hall of Fame and Museum inductees Jimmy Fitzsimmons (p. 175), one of Canada's top racehorse jockeys who twice won the Queen's Plate, and Joe 'Justice Joe' Kryczka (p. 186), notable for his contributions to the Prague negotiations for the eight-game hockey series between Canada and the Soviet Union and for playing a key role in bringing success to the 1988 Olympic Winter Games in Calgary.

AB: This book briefly describes the lives and successes of 60 accomplished Albertans, including four athletes. Melvin 'Fritz' Hanson (p. 118), played for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and the Calgary Stampeders in the Canadian Football League in the 1930s and 1940s. Bob 'Badger' Johnson (p. 187) is considered the most popular man to coach the Calgary Flames. With him, they began their journey to the top. The other two are Alberta Hall of Fame and Museum inductees: Johnny Bright (p. 185), who travelled from Oklahoma to Alberta to play football for the Calgary Stampeders, then the Edmonton Eskimos in the 1950s, and Glen Gorbous (p. 182), a southern Albertan baseball player who played for the Cincinnati Reds, the Philadelphia Phillies, and the St. Louis Cardinals, where set the record for the longest baseball throw.

AB: Contains photographs and accompanying information on diverse aspects of Alberta's history from early fur traders and missionaries to the second World War and the Calgary Exhibition and Stampede. Specifically dealing with Alberta's budding sports and recreation community, there are several chapters which discuss topics such as the different manners in which Albertans entertained themselves in the early 1900s in the chapter, "The Days of Real Sport" as well as a separate chapter on the Calgary Stampede and a chapter entitled, "Roar of the Twenties (Roar of the Crowd)" which briefly looks at the Commercial Graduates basketball team as well as the Edmonton Eskimos football team with coach Deacon White. In the final part of the book there is a brief glimpse of the Edmonton Commonwealth Games held in 1978.

AB: This study looks at a wide variety of sports played in Canada from 1868 to 1900 with a brief look at the state of pre-Confederation sports history. Although the study is national in scope, there is mention of Alberta in most sections gleamed from selected local newspapers and primary sources. Information on the earliest inception of the following sports and activities in Alberta can be found: baseball, bicycling, cricket, football, golf, lacrosse, lawn bowling, lawn tennis, track and field, basketball, boxing, curling, hockey, ice boating, ice skating, skiing and tobogganing, snowshoeing, wrestling, aquatic and equestrian.

AB: This research study traces the organizational development of sport and recreation in Alberta from pre-European contact to the early 1950s. Each historical period studied is further organized by sport, with archery, horse racing, games, lacrosse, dancing, lacrosse, football, cricket, baseball, curling, hockey, shooting, tennis, golf, polo, track and field, basketball, rugby football and bowling all receiving mention. Important institutions are studied and include: the role of missionaries, the Y.M.C.A., service clubs before the First World War and the growth of professionalism after the Second. Physical education is used as a unifying theme throughout the paper and serves to demonstrate the process by which the education system has helped to develop sports in Alberta.

AB: This book focuses on the social history of the western Canadian prairies during the roaring twenties with a chapter the golden age of sport. Canadians interest on sport increased through the newly invented radio. The chapter describes the many different games that gained popularity during this time period including golf, tennis, track and field, cricket leagues, British rugby and also soccer. In as much as the radio was heralded for bringing attention to sports it was also blamed for its demise as attendance to sporting events greatly declined with the onset of radio broadcasting. Leagues began to shut down all across Alberta due to financial hardship including the Western Canada Hockey League, a professional baseball league of prairie cities and also a soccer league. The decade that had once been considered the golden age of athleticism was beginning to fade as the thirties era was beginning.

AB: This research presents a broad overview of the principle developments for women in Canadian sport until the First World War and reconciles this data with the social climate of the times. Alberta sport does not feature until the 1860s and 70s alongside the first real stirrings of Canadian women participating in the sports and the steady settlement of the west. In the final years covered by the study, numerous reports on women's sport in Alberta appear: in 1912 with participation by women in the first Calgary Stampede, a 1914 horse show in Edmonton with 13 ladies competing [p118-120], the formation of the University of Alberta's Woman's Athletic Association in 1913 [p140] and the existence of ladies ice hockey teams in Edmonton dating to 1900.

AB: This chapter in the book on Alberta's landscape and social climate in the late 1970s deals specifically with the many sports and recreational activities. Aspects discussed in the chapter include the Grey Cup competitions, the Edmonton Oilers and the NHL, the Edmonton Grads basketball team as well as the development of Spruce Meadows, the equine sports centre in Calgary. There is some information on the Commonwealth Games hosted in Edmonton in the summer of 1978 and a section dedicated to the rodeos that have flourished throughout Alberta including the most recognized annual rodeo-, the Calgary Exhibition and Stampede. As well, mountain parks are discussed at length with a close examination of national treasurers such as Jasper National Park, Kananaskis and Banff National Park.

AB: This book, on the Black athletic experience in Canada is presented in a chronological sequence beginning with the pre-civil war era; individual sports are presented along with their leading athletes. Various mentions of Alberta are found.

● In the chapter about baseball in the early days, Black Oklahomans settled near Edmonton, Alberta and created a community mainly surrounding baseball (p 49). Also, in exchange for being taught northern survival skills, the Blacks taught the Métis of the region how to play baseball.
● John Ware, an immigrant from South Carolina, established near Calgary, Alberta and is a pioneer of modern day rodeo, with the invention of steer wrestling (p. 60).
● Joe 'Dad' Cotton fought heavyweight and opened a boxing club in Edmonton (p.62). He was considered a leader in Edmonton's boxing community.
● ASHFM inductee, Jillian Richardson (1997), is briefly mentioned as being part of the team to win the 4 X 400 meter relay at the 1982 Brisbane Commonwealth Games (p. 88).
● Another inductee, Grant Fuhr (2004) is the most successful Black hockey player (p. 111). He was the goaltender for the Edmonton Oilers and played with the Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier, Paul Coffey and Jari Kurri lineup.
● Calgary Flames' Jarome Iginla is mentioned in this book (p. 113). He captained the Flames to the Stanley Cup as well as helped Canada win gold at the 2002 Winter Olympic Games.

AB: This detailed article outlines early amateur sport in Alberta from 1910 to the early 1930's. By 1910, professional sport was waning in Alberta due to corruption and bribery tainting its reputation. During this same period, amateur sport became popular with memberships in associations such as the Young Men's Christian Association and the Alberta Amateur Athletic Association.  By 1913, Calgary boasted seven amateur baseball leagues and over thirty amateur hockey teams. Sports such as wrestling, curling and bowling became popular among the locals. "Canadian-style" football, a hybrid of British rugby and American football. attracted a large following after the Calgary Tigers beat the Winnipeg Rowing Club capturing the 1911 Western Canadian Championship. A strict "residence rule" was adopted by the A.A.H.A which stipulated that a player had to be a bona fide resident of the city in which he plays, leading Fred Gravelle, then-manager of the Calgary Athletic Club, to form the Southern Alberta Hockey League allowing unfettered access to players from across the province. As well, the war in Europe in 1916 made it difficult to recruit male athletes over the age of 18, causing the A.A.A.U. to relax its previously strict standards allowing for the intermingling of professional and amateur athletes in the leagues.

AB: In this chapter the author recounts his experiences with sports in Alberta after his arrival to the province in 1882 as well as anecdotal accounts of sporting events from before his time. Included are brief accounts of horse racing, rodeos, gymkanas, polo, cricket, football, soccer, baseball, lacrosse, curling, hockey, dancing and even coyote hunting.

JAB: This thesis gives a comprehensive look at sport across Canada during the first two decades of the twentieth century with a focus on the changing nature of recreation imposed by the First World War. This is accomplished by giving a brief summery of the sport and social history of Canada from Confederation to the end of the study period, followed by detailed analysis of a variety of summer, winter, aquatic and equestrian sports and the important institutions and events that shaped or changed the nature of them.  The author has a decided focus on the important technological innovations of this period and takes the position that rather than hinder, the First World improved the role of sports in Canada, the increased presence of women being an example. Highlights of Alberta sport can be found in almost every sport covered, examples include: the construction of auto racing tracks in both Edmonton and Calgary by 1910 (p. 31), the growth of a popular modified girls' baseball game, similar to softball, played in Edmonton's public schools during the war (p. 55-56), the founding of the Big-Four football league in Alberta (p. 100-101), the Canadian championship victories of speed skater Okie B. Bush of Edmonton in 1909 (p. 291) and an account of the first years of the Edmonton Grads as an example of the growing presence of women in sports, particularly indoor variants (p. 411-412). Archival photos from Glenbow are used as illustrations throughout.

AB: In 1873, the government of Canada established the Royal Canadian Mounted Police to maintain law and order in the newly acquired areas of the Canadian West. Their police duties left the young men enough leisure time to engage in sports, in team competition both among themselves and with teams in the communities they served. The Mounties were responsible for introducing soccer, rugby, cricket, baseball, and other popular sports to frontier settlements of the Prairie Provinces. By 1905, largely through the sporting enthusiasm of the Mounties, sports flourished in the West.

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AB: In 1873, the government of Canada established the Royal Canadian Mounted Police to maintain law and order in the newly acquired areas of the Canadian West. Their police duties left the young men enough leisure time to engage in sports, in team competition both among themselves and with teams in the communities they served. The Mounties were responsible for introducing soccer, rugby, cricket, baseball, and other popular sports to frontier settlements of the Prairie Provinces. By 1905, largely through the sporting enthusiasm of the Mounties, sports flourished in the West.

AB: In this book on the relationship between Canadian media and sports is a chapter which on Alberta as centre of the Canadian sports universe during the years 1978, when Edmonton hosted the Commonwealth Games, to 1990, when the Edmonton Oilers recorded their fifth Stanley Cup in seven years. The author specifically mentions the jealousy felt by the Toronto media towards this sustained superiority from the West. This article mentions the World University Games (or Universiade, 1983) in Edmonton and details on the Edmonton Eskimos' Grey Cup reign which commenced in 1978. The Edmonton Oilers also dominated the ice along with Calgary Flames in the continuous Battle of Alberta.

AB: Examines the reform movement in sports in the Prairie and Atlantic Provinces as a rebellion against the domination of Quebec and Ontario; discusses social acceptance of hostility and aggression in sports, 1920-40.

AB: The growth of newspapers, telegraphy, and radio in the Prairie Provinces of Canada radically transformed people's connection to North American and world sport. Beginning in the early 20th century, sporting events were either re-created from telegraph reports or broadcast live, often to public gatherings in towns like Winnipeg and Calgary. Participation in this world of sport also gave inhabitants of the provinces a sense of belonging to the Canadian nation and its burgeoning popular culture. Despite the distances separating them from other Canadians, they could feel that they were part of a common set of popular entertainments, as they followed the successes and disappointments of Canadian and American hockey and baseball teams, as well as such sports as rowing and boxing. Based on newspapers and secondary sources

AB: This work examines a number of important themes across Canadian sports history through extensive research of newspapers, sports association records and other sources. Although the bulk of this history centers on sports in eastern Canada from 1807 until 1914, organized play moved west with the first settlers and mention is made of Alberta sport including soccer matches held in High River in 1915 (p. 77), the introduction of lacrosse to Calgary in 1899 (p. 208) and the rapid expansion of ice sports in the province during the 1890s (p. 145). Throughout the text are numerous black and white photos.