Ancient American Ball Games

People have played games across cultures and history all the way back to ancient times. American history, before Europeans descended, saw ancient Americans playing a variety of games. Games served both a religious and practical purpose. Men trained for war by playing games, and disputes were often settled by competing in a game. Several games involved using different types of balls either made from animal skins or fashioned from stones.

  1. Ball in Hole

    • Children of the Penobscot tribe, now present-day Maine, played this game by trying to toss a small ball attached to a string into a slightly larger hole. The hole rested in the center of a triangle-shaped piece of birch tree bark. The builder of the game attached a string to one corner of the bark, then attached the other end of the string to the ball, which could be a round stone or sewed-up ball made from animal hide. The child grasped the triangle on the opposite end of the string and tossed the ball in the air, trying to make it land in the hole.

    Lacrosse

    • Tribal men mainly living in wooded areas played this game. Players used a racket made from a three-foot sapling, with the bent end made into a circular hoop, then filled with leather netting. Players would throw and catch a ball with the racket across a field. Teams attempted to toss the ball between the opponents' goal posts, usually poles made from trees. The game carried much religious symbolism for the tribes. They never set a limit on the number of players who could compete in a game, signifying the infinite number of stars in the night sky.

    Chunky

    • Competitors rolled a large chunky stone over the ground or ice while other players threw spears in an attempt to guess where the stone would stop rolling. The closest spear to the chunky, without hitting it, won. Chunky stones have been discovered by archaeological sites dating back between 1300 and 1600 AD.

    Double Ball

    • Women played this game, resembling lacrosse. Various tribes,such as the Cheyenne, Cree and Pawnee competed in Double Ball. Players used curved sticks and a double ball, composed of two deerskin bags joined to each other by a deerskin thong. Players tried to toss the double ball with their sticks over the opponents' goal.