Native Americans In The 14-1500's Era

The Native Americans of the 14-1500’s era played a variety of ball games throughout the continent before the appearance of the Europeans. All ball games took place on a surface sometimes stretching over a mile long. The events consisted always of a man carrying a stick with a webbed pocket, passing a ball to one another to a goal. Each Indian tribe in different regions of the country had unique features on how the game was played, but all traced back to the same concept. The Natives were very focused and driven by war, and used the game as a way to keep their men healthy and strong. The constant running, hitting and stick work were conditioning for the men, making them compatible for war.

Although the games were specifically played as a

But, the games kept there traditional purposes. Changes in the life of the tribes, by contact of the Europeans, were reflected in the playing of the games. The European explorers, soldiers, and missionaries gave their most descriptive accounts of the games they witnessed by the Natives. Not long after, the games made way into popularity in regions of Europe. Though these games were played in the Eastern woods before the Europeans showed up, it was the Anglo-Canadians from Montreal and Mohawk Indians who led the birth of “lacrosse”. Though the European explorers mentioned the Native American games since the 1500’s, the first match was recorded on August 29, 1844 between the Mohawk Indians and the white men. At that point, the Iroquois Confederacy had been crumbled for six decades, and the white man truly ruled the western world. While the earliest lacrosse matches took place between the Indians and white men, the sport soon strictly moved between just whites. The sports involvement was disorderly, just as a pastime, until the formation of the Montreal Lacrosse Club in 1856. The sport had lost its traditional religious views, and developed into a modernized white sport. These athletes had made a technological advancement in the shape of the stick and net used to pass the ball more effectively to each teammate. No matter what kind of stick was used, the white men still used the same

Normally the Anglo-American society discouraged Americans of having relations or interest in any Native ball game, but the sport of lacrosse was so interesting, the white men organized the game to their own standards. After a royal visit from the Prince of Wales to witness the game, a man by the name of William George Beers aspired to standardize and popularize lacrosse. He wrote all the rules and regulations that we see in modern lacrosse. At that time, lacrosse was played generally in a “box” as if a skating rink or hockey rink. Box lacrosse and field lacrosse games both have a duration of 60 minutes (4 quarters of 15 minutes) without pausing time for penalties and in between quarters. A “faceoff” at the center circle or center field starts each game and quarter, as well as after each goal that is scored. A box lacrosse faceoff is different to field lacrosse in which each team surrounds one of the circles lined on the floor, and two players wait in the center to go for the ball after the whistle is blown. In field lacrosse, faceoffs consist of two players at the center of the field, and two others one on each side of the center field. Once the whistle is blown and a player has gained possesion of the ball, the rest of each team can cross the restraining lines and finish the play. Offensive players must stay out from inside of the “crease”, which