Croquet: the Rules governing the game, as adopted by...

THE FIRST AMERICAN ATTEMPT AT NATIONAL STANDARDIZED RULES OF CROQUET

[CROQUET]. Croquet: the Rules governing the game, as adopted by the National American Croquet Association, October 4, 1882. 12mo, original printed wrappers, pp. 11, stapled. [New York: 1882].

Fine copy of the First Edition of the first standard American rules of the game; one of two variants, priority unknown. With a page-and-a-half description of the game, followed by 53 rules. The National Croquet Association was founded in 1879, but it wasn't until October 4, 1882, that representatives of twenty-five American croquet clubs met on the grounds of the New York Croquet Club and adopted a standard set of rules for the popular nine-wicket game. The association was active until the 1890s when the popularity of lawn tennis surged, and interest in croquet, viewed as a gambling game, diminished. "The necessity for a uniform Code of Rules governing Croquet Players throughout the country, has, for a long time been apparent. During the Fall of 1882, players from New York City, Boston, Philadelphia, and Norwich, Ct., joined in a call for a CONVENTION to organize a National Association, and adopt National Rules...the following Rules were adopted."-Introduction. Fine copy, with an almost imperceptible vertical crease, and nine wickets drawn in pencil on unprinted p. [12] by an early owner. Drazin, Croquet: A Checklist...2005 Update, A102. OCLC locates two copies (Univ. of Illinois & Notre Dame). 81576