Kenneth Cohen is Associate Professor of History and Director of the Museum Studies Program at the University of Delaware

In this highly readable scholarly work, Cohen offers a descriptive study in power and hierarchy in American society from 1750 to 1860 and the evolving role of 'sporting culture' in their expression. Well-chosen and well-placed reproductions of period artwork illustrate socialization between social groups and the exclusionary divides that increasingly restricted participation by women, black slaves, and freemen.(Choice) They Will Have Their Game offers a compelling description of the process by which sporting culture emerged in eastern North America.... political and cultural historians should read it, and they should do so with care.(William & Mary Quarterly) The book is gracefully written, and a large number of well-chosen illustrations add to the narrative. They Will Have Their Game has many strengths. Perhaps most impressive is the research, especially in letters and legal records, which captures a level of detail I would not have thought possible.(Journal of the Early Republic)

• Introduction: The Meaning of SportPart One: The Colonial Period1. The Rise of Genteel Sport2. A Revolution in Sporting CulturePart Two: The Early National Period3. Sport Reborn4. Prestige or ProfitPart Three: The Antebellum Period5. A Mass Sporting Industry6. Sporting CulturesEpilogue: Change and Persistence

Kenneth Cohen is Associate Professor of History and Director of the Museum Studies Program at the University of Delaware

In this highly readable scholarly work, Cohen offers a descriptive study in power and hierarchy in American society from 1750 to 1860 and the evolving role of 'sporting culture' in their expression. Well-chosen and well-placed reproductions of period artwork illustrate socialization between social groups and the exclusionary divides that increasingly restricted participation by women, black slaves, and freemen.(Choice) They Will Have Their Game offers a compelling description of the process by which sporting culture emerged in eastern North America.... political and cultural historians should read it, and they should do so with care.(William & Mary Quarterly) The book is gracefully written, and a large number of well-chosen illustrations add to the narrative. They Will Have Their Game has many strengths. Perhaps most impressive is the research, especially in letters and legal records, which captures a level of detail I would not have thought possible.(Journal of the Early Republic)

• Introduction: The Meaning of SportPart One: The Colonial Period1. The Rise of Genteel Sport2. A Revolution in Sporting CulturePart Two: The Early National Period3. Sport Reborn4. Prestige or ProfitPart Three: The Antebellum Period5. A Mass Sporting Industry6. Sporting CulturesEpilogue: Change and Persistence

Kenneth Cohen is Associate Professor of History and Director of the Museum Studies Program at the University of Delaware

In this highly readable scholarly work, Cohen offers a descriptive study in power and hierarchy in American society from 1750 to 1860 and the evolving role of 'sporting culture' in their expression. Well-chosen and well-placed reproductions of period artwork illustrate socialization between social groups and the exclusionary divides that increasingly restricted participation by women, black slaves, and freemen.(Choice) They Will Have Their Game offers a compelling description of the process by which sporting culture emerged in eastern North America.... political and cultural historians should read it, and they should do so with care.(William & Mary Quarterly) The book is gracefully written, and a large number of well-chosen illustrations add to the narrative. They Will Have Their Game has many strengths. Perhaps most impressive is the research, especially in letters and legal records, which captures a level of detail I would not have thought possible.(Journal of the Early Republic)

• Introduction: The Meaning of SportPart One: The Colonial Period1. The Rise of Genteel Sport2. A Revolution in Sporting CulturePart Two: The Early National Period3. Sport Reborn4. Prestige or ProfitPart Three: The Antebellum Period5. A Mass Sporting Industry6. Sporting CulturesEpilogue: Change and Persistence