Colonial America Almanac | Sports and Recreation

• European sports and recreation
• A Native American Football Game
• Laws Against Sledding
• Elite Fishing Clubs
• An Unenthusiastic Hunter
• Cards Cause Social Problems
• Slaves, Servants, and Gambling

By the time Europeans began arriving in North America during the late sixteenth century, Native Americans already had a long tradition of individual contests and team sports. Both men and women engaged in competitive recreation, especially various kinds of ball games. Southwestern native peoples played a form of basketball, and northern tribes competed in a version of modern-day lacrosse. (In...