them may not be new, but this great activity is as challenging and engaging today
as it was in the past. Archaeologists have found evidence of bowling-type games
from as long as five thousand years ago. This makes bowling one of the oldest
sports on record, dating all the way back to the civilization of the ancient
Egyptians. Every time you pull on your bowling shoes and head for your favorite
lane to try and hit a few strikes, you are participating in a ritual that has amused
and challenged humans since the year 3200 BC.
modern America’s favorite family pastimes, the truth remains that the game is
roughly ninety percent derived from ancient Egypt and ten percent derived from
nineteenth century law dodgers. Add a splash of turn of the century technology,
and you have the modern game of bowling.
From what historians have been able to piece together, the basic game of bowling
did not change very much between its inception at the dawn of human culture
and the middle of the nineteenth century. At that time, the ancient game of
ninepin bowling had caught on all over Europe and had made its way to the
United States where it was a very popular sport in the underworld community and
became a favorite target for gamblers. This led the government of the state of
Connecticut to pass an 1841 law that prohibited owning a ninepin bowling alley.
This was an attempt to fragment the gambling community by making it impossible
for them to meet in the bowling alleys where they usually gathered.
To get around this law, the gamblers in the area simply changed the rules of the
game. They added an extra pin to the bowling setup; thereby making their alleys
into tenpin bowling alleys. The tenpin bowling alleys were technically legal to own
and operate simply because they hadn’t existed when Connecticut banned the
game of ninepins. The game of tenpins proved to be more fun than its
predecessor, and ten is the number of pins that we still play with today.
About the Author:
Gray Rollins is a featured writer for BowlingSuccess.com. To learn more about
bowling equipment and bowling shoes, visit us.
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