Western Pennsylvania Hockey League
Encyclopedia
The Western Pennsylvania Hockey League (WPHL), was a semi-professional ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...

 league from the early 1900s. Based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

, the league was the pre-eminent ice hockey league at the time in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. It was the first league to openly hire and trade players.

The Original WPHL

Prior to 1900 the city of Pittsburgh was one of the first cities in North America to have an artificial ice surface, located in the Schenley Park Casino
Schenley Park Casino
The Schenley Park Casino was Pittsburgh’s first multi-purpose arena. The facility was considered the envy of the sports and entertainment world during the early 1890's, with amenities that were unsurpassed anywhere on the globe. It was built at the entrance to Schenley Park in Oakland near the...

. The city quickly realized that to make money they would have to have more events than just speed skating
Speed skating
Speed skating, or speedskating is a competitive form of ice skating in which the competitors race each other in traveling a certain distance on skates. Types of speed skating are long track speed skating, short track speed skating, and marathon speed skating...

, family skates and costume parties to make money. They decided that since hockey was a relatively new game, it could catch on in Pittsburgh. Games began in the 1895–96 season between local teams. The following season, two leagues were formed - the interscholastic league and the "big league", what would become the Western Pennsylvania Hockey League. The first "big league" championship (season) game was November 17, 1896 between Duquesne Country & Athletic Club and the Pittsburgh Athletic Club, won by Duquesne 2–1. At the Casino, the hockey goals used wire cages. This was prior to the innovation of netting.

The league played its first season in 1896–97
1896–97 WPHL season
The 1896–97 WPHL season was the first season of championship hockey of Pittsburgh's Western Pennsylvania Hockey League. The season opened on November 17, 1896 and was well underway when brought to an end by the destruction of fire of the league's facility, the Schenley Park Casino ice rink on...

 at the Casino, with four teams, the Pittsburgh Athletic Club (PAC), the Duquesne Country & Athletic Club(DCAC), Western University of Pennsylvania and a team known as Pittsburgh, or the 'Casino' team. The PAC was managed by Charles S. Miller, who became the league's president. A fire at the Casino in December 1896 destroyed the only ice hockey rink in Pittsburgh and ended the season without a championship. It was not until the erection of a hockey rink at the Duquesne Gardens
Duquesne Gardens
Duquesne Gardens was the main sports arena located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA during the first half of the 20th century. It opened 3 years after a fire destroyed the city's prior sports arena, the Schenley Park Casino, in 1896. The arena was the first hockey rink to use glass above the dasher...

 in 1899 that the league was revived. The league was revived with the PAC, DCAC and Western participating. The PAC won the league's first championship. The following season the Pittsburgh Bankers were admitted, while PAC repeated as champions. In 1900–01, the Keystone Bicycle Club was admitted, replacing Western University. The Keystones were instrumental in changing the league from amateur to professional, and were the first to import players from Canada. PAC repeated as champions, although the Keystones were instantly competitive.

The 1901–02 season is considered the first season whereby the league was recognized as professional, the first professional ice hockey league. The league had three teams in 1901-02
1902 WPHL season
-Final standings:The standings at the end of the season:Source: Fitzsimmons, p. 414...

: Pittsburgh Bankers
Pittsburgh Bankers
The Pittsburgh Bankers were a Pittsburgh hockey club that consisted of a group of local men from Pittsburgh that were employeed by local banks during the early 1900s. The Bankers began as the amateur Banker's League. The league later merged into one team which became members of the Western...

, Pittsburgh Athletic Club
Pittsburgh Athletic Club
The Pittsburgh Athletic Club or Pittsburgh PAC was a professional hockey team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania from around 1895 until 1910. The Club was an affiliate of the Pittsburgh Athletic Association. The team was a member of the Pittsburgh Hockey League, which was formed in 1896 and became...

 and the Pittsburgh Keystones
Pittsburgh Keystones (hockey team)
The Pittsburgh Keystones were a Pittsburgh ice hockey club that consisted of a group of local men from Western University and Carnegie Tech during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The Keystones began as an amateur hockey team which played on Saturday afternoons at the Schenley Park Casino...

. To fill these teams many business and organizations imported young Canadians like George Lamb and Bill Hamilton and set up teams. The league lured players from Canada with promises of high-paid employment and small cash incentives. At this time, all hockey leagues in Canada were amateur, and they were able to get many great players such as future Hall of Famers
Hockey Hall of Fame
The Hockey Hall of Fame is located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Dedicated to the history of ice hockey, it is both a museum and a hall of fame. It holds exhibits about players, teams, National Hockey League records, memorabilia and NHL trophies, including the Stanley Cup...

 Alf Smith
Alf Smith
Alfred Edward Smith was a Canadian professional ice hockey forward who played for the Ottawa Senators, and Kenora Thistles. He had two brothers who played senior-level hockey Harry Smith and Tommy Smith...

, Hod Stuart
Hod Stuart
William Hodgson "Hod" Stuart was a Canadian professional ice hockey cover-point who played nine seasons for several teams in different leagues. He also played briefly for the Ottawa Rough Riders football team...

 and Riley Hern
Riley Hern
William Milton "Riley" Hern was a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender. He was the first professional goaltender to play on a Stanley Cup-winning team....

.

However in the summer of 1902
1902 in sports
1902 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-American football:College championship* College football national championship – Michigan Wolverines and Yale Bulldogs Events...

 Harry Peel
Harry Peel (ice hockey)
Harold Peel was an early professional ice hockey player with the Pittsburgh Keystones of the Western Pennsylvania Hockey League. He was a member of the Keystones 1902 WPHL championship team. He was also one of the first openly professional hockey players. In the summer of 1902, one of th Peel...

, a Keystones player in 1901-02
1902 WPHL season
-Final standings:The standings at the end of the season:Source: Fitzsimmons, p. 414...

, admitted that he was paid $35 a week to play in the so-called amateur league and so no amateur teams would play against these teams again without being suspended by either Canadian, or U.S. officials. Peel was suspended by the Ontario Hockey Association
Ontario Hockey Association
The Ontario Hockey Association is the governing body for the majority of Junior and Senior level ice hockey teams in the Province of Ontario. The OHA is sanctioned by the Ontario Hockey Federation along with the Northern Ontario Hockey Association. Other Ontario sanctioning bodies along with the...

 and an appeal was rejected on December 10, 1903 and again on November 30, 1904. According to Peel, "They (the teams) make no bones whatever about paying men. If they do not pay them they give them fake (business) positions". However by the start of the 1902-03 season
1903 WPHL season
-Final standings:Source: Fitzsimmons, p. 414-References:...

 the WPHL was now a fully professional league with the Pittsburgh Victorias
Pittsburgh Victorias
The Pittsburgh Victorias were an ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and were members of the Western Pennsylvania Hockey League. The team lasted until 1904, when the WPHL disbanded its teams to form the Pittsburgh Pros. In the 1902 the WPHL became the first professional ice hockey...

 making a fourth WPHL team. More great stars were enticed to come to Pittsburgh as they could accept pay for play. Bruce
Bruce Stuart
Bruce Stuart was a Canadian amateur and professional ice hockey forward who played for the Quebec Bulldogs, Ottawa Senators and Montreal Wanderers from 1899 to 1911...

 and Hod Stuart
Hod Stuart
William Hodgson "Hod" Stuart was a Canadian professional ice hockey cover-point who played nine seasons for several teams in different leagues. He also played briefly for the Ottawa Rough Riders football team...

 became major stars in 1902-03
1903 WPHL season
-Final standings:Source: Fitzsimmons, p. 414-References:...

. While players like Fred Lake
Fred Lake (ice hockey)
Fred Edgar Lake was a Canadian professional ice hockey player. He was one of the first professional players and he played 181 games in various professional and amateur leagues, including the National Hockey Association, Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association, and International Professional...

, were already well known to hockey fans.

The champion of this league competed against Houghton, Michigan's
Houghton, Michigan
Houghton is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan's Upper Peninsula and largest city in the Copper Country on the Keweenaw Peninsula. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 7,708. It is the county seat of Houghton County...

 Portage Lakes Hockey Club
Portage Lakes Hockey Club
The Portage Lakes Hockey Club was one of the first professional ice hockey clubs. Based in Houghton, Michigan, the club played at the Amphidrome from 1904 until 1906...

 for the "Pro Championship of the United States" prior to the formation of the International Professional Hockey League
International Professional Hockey League
The International Professional Hockey League was the first fully professional ice hockey league, operating from 1904 to 1907. It was formed by Jack 'Doc' Gibson, a dentist who played hockey throughout Ontario before settling in Houghton, Michigan. The IPHL was a five team circuit which included...

 for the 1904-05 season
1904–05 IPHL season
The 1904-05 WPHL season was played by teams of the International Professional Hockey League.-Final standings:-References:* Compiled by Ernie Fitzsimmons...

. Portage Lakes played off with the Pittsburgh Bankers. Portage Lakes won 2-1 with a game tied, but they were outscored 11-6. The next season, Portage Lakes continued to play Pro exhibition games, but raided Pittsburgh’s teams for top players like Riley Hern
Riley Hern
William Milton "Riley" Hern was a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender. He was the first professional goaltender to play on a Stanley Cup-winning team....

 and Bruce Stuart
Bruce Stuart
Bruce Stuart was a Canadian amateur and professional ice hockey forward who played for the Quebec Bulldogs, Ottawa Senators and Montreal Wanderers from 1899 to 1911...

.

Despite these losses the WPHL started with the same four clubs, but the Keystones withdrew from the league on January 17, 1904. The team's players were then dispersed to the other three teams. Many other promising young players took their place and three different Pittsburgh teams challenged Portage Lakes for the U.S. Pro title that year. The league champion Victorias put up the best battle, losing two games to one.

International Professional Hockey League

In 1904, the first inter-city professional league was formed called the International Professional Hockey League
International Professional Hockey League
The International Professional Hockey League was the first fully professional ice hockey league, operating from 1904 to 1907. It was formed by Jack 'Doc' Gibson, a dentist who played hockey throughout Ontario before settling in Houghton, Michigan. The IPHL was a five team circuit which included...

 (IHL). The Pittsburgh Pros joined Portage Lakes, Calumet, Michigan Soo and Canadian Soo as the five teams.

Over half of the players in the league had played in Pittsburgh at one time, so those early leagues were key pioneers in the development of professional hockey. However, the Pittsburgh team didn’t fare too well during the first season. But in 1905-06
1905–06 IPHL season
The 1905–06 WPHL season was played by teams of the International Professional Hockey League.-Final standings:-References:* Compiled by Ernie Fitzsimmons...

, they were part of a great three team race with Portage Lakes and the Michigan Soo Indians for first place.

Professional leagues were now popping up all over Canada and most of the great players went back home for a better pay day, so the IHL folded. It was decided to revive the four team WPHL for the 1907-08 hockey season
1908 WPHL season
-Final standings:Source: Fitzsimmons, p. 415* Games that resulted in a tie were replayed and are not reflected in total points-Exhibition:The Bankers played a "World's Series" with the Montreal Wanderers. The Wanderers won the series two games to one....

, which started several weeks before the Canadian leagues, since there were no artificial ice rinks in Canada until 1911
1911 in sports
1911 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-American football:College championship* College football national championship – Penn State Nittany Lions and Princeton Tigers -Association football:England...

.

WPHL revived

The WPHL was revived in 1907. The league consisted of the Pittsburgh Lyceum, Pittsburgh Athletic Club, Pittsburgh Bankers and the newly formed Pittsburgh Pirates (WPHL)
Pittsburgh Pirates (WPHL)
The Pittsburgh Pirates were a hockey club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania that became members of the Western Pennsylvania Hockey League for the 1908 WPHL season. When the WPHL was revived in 1907, the only two original teams to return to the league after operations were suspended in 1904 were the...

.

The revived league still had some great stars like Albert Kerr and Art Throop, but many of the players got better offers from the Canadian leagues in late December and the team lineups were patched together at best to complete the season.

In what might have been the first trade involving professional hockey players, the Pirates sent James MacKay, Edgar Dey
Edgar Dey
Edgar Ernest Dey was an early amateur and professional ice hockey player and athlete in canoeing. A member of the Dey family of Ottawa, known for canoe building, athletics and arena operation, he died in 1912 from an injury while playing hockey. He was a canoeing champion of Canada...

 and Dunc Taylor to the Bankers for Josephy Donnelly, Cliff Bennest and a player named McGuire on January 28, 1908.

1908-09 brought great promise, with Alf Smith
Alf Smith
Alfred Edward Smith was a Canadian professional ice hockey forward who played for the Ottawa Senators, and Kenora Thistles. He had two brothers who played senior-level hockey Harry Smith and Tommy Smith...

, Art Sixsmith, Lorne Campbell
Lorne Campbell
Lorne Campbell was a Canadian professional ice hockey player who played 140 games in various professional leagues, including the National Hockey Association and International Professional Hockey League . Amongst the teams he played for were the Cobalt Silver Kings.-Playing career:Campbell first...

 and goalie James MacKay in charge of the four teams, but by late December fully one-third of the leagues players had accepted offers to play in different leagues and it was becoming obvious that many players used the WPHL to get a head start
Head start (positioning)
In positioning, a head start is a start in advance of the starting position of others in competition, or simply toward the finish line or desired outcome...

 on their season back home. Four of those players (Tommy Smith, Con Corbeau, Albert Kerr and Harry Smith) all jumped contracts again during the season, so local moguls must have gotten a chuckle out of that. Pittsburgh Lyceum folded on December 23 and because it was impossible to count on a line-up after December 20, it was decided to discontinue the WPHL after the season and stick with local hockey.

Legacy

  • The league may have been involved in the first trade involving professional hockey players.

  • The WPHL was the first league to openly hire hockey players.

Seasons

Teams that played in the WPHL include:
  • Pittsburgh Bankers
    Pittsburgh Bankers
    The Pittsburgh Bankers were a Pittsburgh hockey club that consisted of a group of local men from Pittsburgh that were employeed by local banks during the early 1900s. The Bankers began as the amateur Banker's League. The league later merged into one team which became members of the Western...

     (1899–1904, 1907–1909)
  • Pittsburgh Keystones
    Pittsburgh Keystones (hockey team)
    The Pittsburgh Keystones were a Pittsburgh ice hockey club that consisted of a group of local men from Western University and Carnegie Tech during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The Keystones began as an amateur hockey team which played on Saturday afternoons at the Schenley Park Casino...

     (1901–1904)
  • Pittsburgh PAC (1896–1904, 1907–1909)
  • Pittsburgh Victorias
    Pittsburgh Victorias
    The Pittsburgh Victorias were an ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and were members of the Western Pennsylvania Hockey League. The team lasted until 1904, when the WPHL disbanded its teams to form the Pittsburgh Pros. In the 1902 the WPHL became the first professional ice hockey...

     (1902–1904)
  • Pittsburgh Duquesne
    Pittsburgh Duquesne
    The Duquesne Country and Athletic Club or Pittsburgh Duquesne were an amateur and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and were members of the Western Pennsylvania Hockey League. The team played exhibition games of ice hockey in the 1895–96 season, before being...

     (1896–1901, 1908–1909)
  • Pittsburgh Lyceum
    Pittsburgh Lyceum
    The Pittsburgh Lyceum were a professional hockey team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and were members of the Western Pennsylvania Hockey League. After the WPHL was revived for the 1907-08 season, it was deteremined that two new teams would be needed so that the league could go back to its four...

     (1907–1909)
  • Pittsburgh Pirates
    Pittsburgh Pirates (WPHL)
    The Pittsburgh Pirates were a hockey club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania that became members of the Western Pennsylvania Hockey League for the 1908 WPHL season. When the WPHL was revived in 1907, the only two original teams to return to the league after operations were suspended in 1904 were the...

     (1907–1908)
  • Western University of Pennsylvania (1896–1900)

Season Teams Champion
1896–97
1896–97 WPHL season
The 1896–97 WPHL season was the first season of championship hockey of Pittsburgh's Western Pennsylvania Hockey League. The season opened on November 17, 1896 and was well underway when brought to an end by the destruction of fire of the league's facility, the Schenley Park Casino ice rink on...

 
Pittsburgh PAC, Pittsburgh Duquesne, Western University, Pittsburgh Casino ended by Schenley Park Casino
Schenley Park Casino
The Schenley Park Casino was Pittsburgh’s first multi-purpose arena. The facility was considered the envy of the sports and entertainment world during the early 1890's, with amenities that were unsurpassed anywhere on the globe. It was built at the entrance to Schenley Park in Oakland near the...

 fire, by December 1896
1898–99
1898–99 WPHL season
The 1898–89 WPHL season was the second season of play of the Western Pennsylvania Hockey League, based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The Pittsburgh Atletic Club won 9 of 12 games to win the championship.-League business:...

 
Pittsburgh PAC, Pittsburgh Duquesne, Western University Pittsburgh PAC
1899–1900
1899–1900 WPHL season
The 1899–1900 WPHL season was the third season of play of the Western Pennsylvania Hockey League, based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Defending champion Pittsburgh PAC repeated as champions.-Final standings:...

 
Pittsburgh PAC, Pittsburgh Duquesne, Pittsburgh Bankers, Western University Pittsburgh PAC
1901
1901 WPHL season
The 1901 WPHL season was the fourth season of the Western Pennsylvania Hockey League.-Final standings:-References:* Orton, George W., Ice Sport Records for Season 1901, Outings, 1901 May, Vol XXXVIII No. 2, pg. 227...

 
Pittsburgh Keystones, Pittsburgh PAC, Pittsburgh Duquesne, Pittsburgh Bankers Pittsburgh PAC
1902
1902 WPHL season
-Final standings:The standings at the end of the season:Source: Fitzsimmons, p. 414...

 
Pittsburgh Keystones, Pittsburgh PAC, Pittsburgh Bankers Pittsburgh Keystones
1903
1903 WPHL season
-Final standings:Source: Fitzsimmons, p. 414-References:...

 
Pittsburgh Keystones, Pittsburgh PAC, Pittsburgh Bankers, Pittsburgh Victorias Pittsburgh Bankers
1904
1904 WPHL season
-Final standings:Source: Fitzsimmons, p. 414*The Keystones withdrew from the league on January 17, 1904.-References:...

 
Pittsburgh Keystones, Pittsburgh PAC, Pittsburgh Bankers, Pittsburgh Victorias Pittsburgh Victorias
1908
1908 WPHL season
-Final standings:Source: Fitzsimmons, p. 415* Games that resulted in a tie were replayed and are not reflected in total points-Exhibition:The Bankers played a "World's Series" with the Montreal Wanderers. The Wanderers won the series two games to one....

 
Pittsburgh Lyceum, Pittsburgh PAC, Pittsburgh Pirates, Pittsburgh Bankers, Pittsburgh Victorias Pittsburgh Bankers
1909
1909 WPHL season
-Final standings:Source: Fitzsimmons, p. 415* The Lyceum discontinued play on December 23, 1908.-References:...

 
Pittsburgh Lyceum, Pittsburgh PAC, Pittsburgh Duquesne, Pittsburgh Bankers, Pittsburgh Victorias Pittsburgh Bankers

Prominent Players

The following players are members of the Hockey Hall of Fame
Hockey Hall of Fame
The Hockey Hall of Fame is located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Dedicated to the history of ice hockey, it is both a museum and a hall of fame. It holds exhibits about players, teams, National Hockey League records, memorabilia and NHL trophies, including the Stanley Cup...

:
  • Riley Hern
    Riley Hern
    William Milton "Riley" Hern was a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender. He was the first professional goaltender to play on a Stanley Cup-winning team....

     (1962, Keystones)
  • Alf Smith
    Alf Smith
    Alfred Edward Smith was a Canadian professional ice hockey forward who played for the Ottawa Senators, and Kenora Thistles. He had two brothers who played senior-level hockey Harry Smith and Tommy Smith...

     (1962, Lyceum)
  • Tommy Smith (1973, Lyceum)
  • Bruce Stuart
    Bruce Stuart
    Bruce Stuart was a Canadian amateur and professional ice hockey forward who played for the Quebec Bulldogs, Ottawa Senators and Montreal Wanderers from 1899 to 1911...

     (1961, Victorias)
  • Hod Stuart
    Hod Stuart
    William Hodgson "Hod" Stuart was a Canadian professional ice hockey cover-point who played nine seasons for several teams in different leagues. He also played briefly for the Ottawa Rough Riders football team...

    (1945, Bankers)

External links

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