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“Yankees” And “Bluenosers” At The Races: Harness Racing, Group Identity, And The Creation Of A Maine-New Brunswick Sporting Region, 1870-1930, Leah Grandy

Maine History

Borders, divisions, and connections can be physical or intellectual, and the borders and regions created by the sport of harness racing were large and small, geographical and social. The eastern North American origin and focus of the sport demonstrated the character of the region; the sport had grassroots origins in the region, and expanded to the level of a major spectator sport by the last decades of the nineteenth century. Harness racing in the Maritimes and New England in the nineteenth century demonstrated the social and economic cohesion of the region and helped to solidify group and personal identities. Maine …