Wrestling and the Sporting Culture in the Prairies

Patrice Dutil talks with C. Nathan Hatton of Lakehead University about the evolution of wrestling in Winnipeg and Manitoba from the 1880s to the 1930s. Hatton is the author of Thrashing Seasons Sporting Culture in Manitoba and the Genesis of Prairie Wrestling (University of Manitoba Press). The conversation covers the evolution of the sport from its indigenous origins and how it reflected the tensions between amateurs and professionals. They also discuss the enduring popularity of the sport. Hatton explores wrestling as a social phenomenon intimately bound up with debates around respectability, ethnicity, race, class, and idealized conceptions of masculinity. This podcast was produced by Jessica Schmidt. If you like our work, please consider supporting it: https://bit.ly/support_WTY. Your support contributes to the Champlain Society’s mission of opening new windows to directly explore and experience Canada’s past.