History of Canadian cricket

British and French settlers spread into Canada during the 17th century when the first permanent settlements were established. An uneasy co-existence came to a head in 1756 with the outbreak of the Seven Years' War. By the terms of Treaty of Paris in 1763, which ended the war, Britain gained control of all of France's North American territory east of the Mississippi River, except for the remote islands of St. Pierre and Miquelon.

The earliest reports of cricket in Canada date from 1785 where games seem to have taken place in Montreal.

The first reference to cricket being played on an organized basis is in 1834 when a club was founded in Toronto and there are reports of matches being played in Hamilton and Guelph.

In 1840, there was a game between the Toronto and New York clubs. Similar strength teams played each other in 1844 as Canada v United States and this has been called the first-ever cricket international.

The British Columbia Mainland Cricket League was founded in 1914, and is now the second-largest cricket league in North America.[1]

• CricInfo on Canadian cricket

• Rowland Bowen, Cricket: A History of its Growth and Development, Eyre & Spottiswoode, 1970