A Night at the Gardens

Class, Gender, and Respectability in 1930s Toronto

Russell Field

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English

University of Toronto Press
26 April 2023

Ice hockey

A Night at the Gardens examines the history of hockey through the experiences of spectators at the famed Maple Leaf Gardens.

When Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens opened in 1931, manager Conn Smythe envisioned an arena that would project an aura of middle-class respectability. In A Night at the Gardens, Russell Field shares how this new arena anticipated spectators by examining varying spectator behaviours, who the spectators were, and what the experience of spectating was like.

Drawing on archival records, the book explores the neighbourhood in which Maple Leaf Gardens was situated, the design of the arena's interior spaces, and the ways in which it was operated in order to appeal to respectable spectators at a particular intersection of class and gender. Examining a ticket ledger compiled by arena staff for the 1933-34 National Hockey League season, the book reveals that the average subscriber purchased more than two tickets, suggesting that attending hockey games was a social experience. It also shows that while ticket subscribers were overwhelmingly middle-class men, women were also present. Oral history interviews with twenty-one former spectators at the Maple Leaf Gardens detail the experience of watching the spectacle that unfolded on the ice during each hockey game.

A Night at the Gardens tells the fascinating story of how one prominent public building became such an important part of Toronto society.

By: Russell Field
Imprint: University of Toronto Press
Country of Publication: Canada
Dimensions: Height: 231mm, Width: 156mm, Spine: 19mm
Weight: 338g
ISBN: 9781487547080
ISBN 10: 1487547080
Pages: 248
Publication Date: 26 April 2023
Audience: College/higher education , Professional and scholarly , Primary , Undergraduate
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

List of Figures and Tables 1. Historicizing the Hockey Spectator 2. Constructing the Preferred Spectator 3. Filling the Stands 4. Community in the Stands 5. The State of Smythe’s Respectability Project Conclusion Index

Russell Field is an associate professor in the Faculty of Kinesiology and Recreation Management at the University of Manitoba.

Reviews for A Night at the Gardens: Class, Gender, and Respectability in 1930s Toronto

"""A Night at the Gardens is a fascinating look into the 1930s sports community in Toronto. It brilliantly takes us on a historical voyage into the passion, dedication, and fury of loving hockey for men, and for women, during this time. This book is a fantastic read about how the culture of hockey has been shaped in Toronto by what we know is a profound fan experience.""--Shireen Ahmed, Sports Journalist, Senior Contributor with CBC Sports, and Co-creator of Burn It All Down ""Russell Field cleverly shifts the spotlight from the playing surface to the stadium seats. He expertly paints what watching sport looked like in this era, and how it became a disciplined performance of respectability. His perspective is fresh, and his argument is convincing.""--Andrew C. Holman, Professor of History and Director of Canadian Studies, Bridgewater State University ""A Night at the Gardens brilliantly enriches Canadian hockey histories, taking readers to the edge of their metaphorical seats and into the lives of the spectators and the emotional economies of sport spectatorship.""--Carly Adams, Professor and Co-director of the Centre for Oral History and Tradition, University of Lethbridge"