Sports in America from Colonial Times to the Twenty-First Century: An Encyclopedia: An Encyclopedia

A sweeping perspective of sports in the United States from the colonial era to the present day, this work explores the subject from a variety of perspectives--society, business, economics, law, politics, psychology, and others. Unlike traditional sports encyclopedias, Sports in America is not an almanac of teams, athletes and statistics. Instead, the focus is on history, explaining the process by which sports and institutions have developed over the centuries, especially in the context of major social developments such as industrialization, urbanization, and immigration. The first section of the encyclopedia includes a series of chronological essays analyzing the historical development of American sports over the past four centuries. Following this nearly 400 A-Z entries focus on the relationship between sports and society, culture, economics, and public affairs. Topics include psychological issues affecting athletic performance and spectatorship; race and ethnicity; law and ethics; professionalism versus amateurism; nationalism, regionalism, and urbanization; and artistic expression. The encyclopedia also includes biographical entries on major contributors to sports in America: athletes and owners, promoters and union leaders, journalists and broadcasters, and innovators of other kinds, as well as entries on individual sports--major and minor--from air racing and archery to wrestling and yachting.