The history of Lacrosse began among North American Indian tribes. As early as the 1400s, the Iroquois, Huron, Algonquin and other tribes were playing the game. In its beginnings lacrosse, then called baggataway, was a wide-open game that was part religious ritual and part military training.
A Whole Lot
of Sticks
The game has always required tremendous
athletic skill. In early games, just
running up and down the field was
a great feat. Goals could be as far
as 500 yards to half a mile apart
and no sidelines limited the playing
area. Games lasted two to three days
with “time outs” between
sundown and sunup. Teams had as many
as 1,000 players vying to move a small,
deerskin ball past their opponent’s
goal. Players used three- to four-foot
long sticks with small nets on the
end to throw, catch and carry the
ball. With all of those sticks and
only one ball, a lot of extra-curricular
activity occurred.
Lacrosse had spiritual significance for the Native Americans. A match started with a face off during which players would hold their sticks in the air and shout out to get the gods’ attention. Games were sometimes played to appeal to the gods for healing or to settle disputes between tribes. A game of lacrosse was even once used as a military ploy.
The Lacrosse
Ambush
The Sauk and Ojibway Indian Tribes
staged a lacrosse match outside the
gates of Fort Michilimackinac in what
is now Michigan. The Indian women
stood near the fort with weapons hidden
under their shawls and blankets. The
men moved the action of the game toward
the fort and, whoops, sent the ball
over the wall. The Indians threw down
their lacrosse sticks, took up the
weapons and stormed the fort.
French missionaries are responsible for giving the sport its name. Missionaries thought the stick used by Canadian Indian tribes looked like the crosier, or le crosse, carried by bishops.
A National
Pastime
In the 1840s, French settlers in Canada took up the game. A match between a French
team and Indian team was played at Montreal’s Olympic club in 1844. The
Montreal Lacrosse Club was founded in 1856 and established the first written
set of rules. These rules set standard field dimensions (no more 880-yard fields)
and team size. (Hundreds of players were just a few too many for umpires to keep
track of. Ten per side worked better.)
