Early British Ice Hockey

The origins, development, and history of ice hockey in Great Britain is long and complex. This article will overview many of the key events that led to the modern version of ice hockey we see today.

Timeline
This timeline concisely details some key dates in the development of hockey in Great Britain.
 * 1174 - First definitive mention of ice skating (with bone skates).
 * 1607-1608 - Chimiare (shinty) was played on the ice at the Firth of Fourth in Scotland.
 * Circa 1713-1714 - The supposed start of the Bluntisham-Cum-Earith club's 100+ year unbeaten streak.
 * 1740 - The first documentation of hurling being played on the ice in Ireland.
 * 1773 - The first contemporary use of the word "hockey" (referring to field hockey).
 * 1797 - First documented use of a bung/puck. The oldest contemporary evidence of a puck/bung being used on the ice is the Joseph Le Petit engraving from 1797 (London).
 * 1813-1814 - Legend had it that Bluntisham-Cum-Earith had been undefeated for a century.
 * 1822 - First use of the word hockey on ice. Previous references to shinty and hurling being played on the ice exist, but the first contemporary reference to hockey being played on the ice comes from 1822, when the drowning of Fred Leatherbarrow in St. James’s Park in London was reported.
 * 1827/1858 - First use of a referee/official. Richard Brown recounted to Charles Goodman Tebbutt many years later that he had been a referee as early as 1827. The first contemporary reference to referees came from George Frederick Pardon in the 1858 book Games for All Seasons. Pardon described the game on the ice with an umpire calling play.
 * 1827/1871 - First identified goaltender. John Jackson from Earith played goaltender in 1827, according to interviews of participating players conducted by Charles Goodman Tebbutt many years later. The first contemporary reference of a goaltender is from 1871, when one of the Tebbutt brothers was in goal for a match played in Bury Fen.
 * 1827/1871 - First identified captains. William Leeland was the first known captain in 1827. Once again, this was a recollection conveyed to Charles Goodman Tebbutt. The first contemporary reference of captains is from a game played on January 3, 1871 with William Meadows (Bluntisham) and Christopher Smith Billups (Chatteris) as captains of their respective sides.
 * 1831 - First documented game planned in advance. The first such game was played on a field of ice in Colne Fen between nine-aside teams from Bluntisham and Colne on February 4, 1831.
 * 1847 - First stick manufacturer. John Owen Byles in London advertised hockey sticks in Bells Life in 1847. They were primarily made for field hockey, but undoubtedly could have been used for playing ice hockey too.
 * 1850 - First recorded medical injury. In 1857, the Medical Chronicle published a clinical lecture by prominent London surgeon Dr. William Lawrence, who recalled an ice hockey-related injury that he had treated in England seven years earlier. "In the winter of 1850, it appears, the patient was playing on the ice; while engaged in some game, the precise nature of which I do not understand, and termed 'hocky' -- a game, as I learn (and you will correct me if I'm wrong,) where there is hard hitting of a ball, or hard hitting of a hard ball, which struck the side of the leg, or tibia, of this poor young man. He says he did not make anything of it at the time, nor did he interrupt his playing; he even went on in the excitement of the game till he unluckily got a second blow, but this time with the 'hocky' stick, on the identical same spot."
 * 1868 - First written rules for ice hockey. In 1868 the Boy’s Own Book listed six rules, stating that "with a party of good skaters, this game affords fine sport, but of course can only be played on a sheet of ice of great extent."
 * 1870 - First game with rosters and goalscorers. The ice hockey game between Spetchley and Worcester on December 27, 1870 is the first game with all players identified (ten aside), as well as the goalscorers. Spetchley won the game 4-3.
 * 1871 - First documented assist in a game. Neville Goodman (Chatteris) in a game against Bluntisham.
 * 1871 - First documented hat-trick. The seven-aside game between Moor Park and Oxfordshire on February 2, 1871 is the earliest known game where a player scored a hat-trick. Algernon Henry Grosvenor scored three goals for Moor Park, who won, 5-2.
 * 1871 - First documented account of a timed game. In 1871, Elsham Club and Brigg Club played an eight-aside game were the time of the goals was noted.
 * 1881 - First hockey skate. Skates were of course used to play hockey before this, but the "Standard Hockey Skates" were authorized to be used by the National Skating Association in 1881. They were manufactured in Sheffield by Colquhoun & Cadman and the Marsden Brothers and were the first specific ice hockey skates. They had the letters S.H. (Standard Hockey), upon the blade and upon the straps, they also had a symbol of two crossed sticks and a ball.
 * 1883 - First rules published by an official governing body. The National Skating Association (NSA) published a set of rules. Separate rules were given for the Fens and theMetropolitan District (London).
 * 1896 - First book written specifically about ice hockey. It was A Handbook of Bandy; or Hockey on the Ice by Arnold and Charles Goodman Tebutt. The book was published on January 15, 1896.
 * 1897 - First organized tournament. The New Niagara Challenge Cup was played at Niagara Ice Rink in March 1897.
 * 1898 - First national champion crowned. This was Niagara Ice Hockey Club, who won the Admiral Maxse Challenge Cup.