Houghton is the largest city and county seat of Houghton County in the U.S. state of Michigan. Located on the Keweenaw Peninsula, Houghton is the largest city in the Copper Country region. It is the fifth-largest city in the Upper Peninsula, with a population of 8,386 at the 2020 census. Houghton is the principal city of the Houghton micropolitan area, which includes all of Houghton and Keweenaw counties. Houghton lies upon the Keweenaw Waterway, a partly natural, partly artificial waterway connecting at both ends to Lake Superior. Across the waterway from Houghton lies the city of Hancock.
Copper Island is a local name given to the northern part of the Keweenaw Peninsula, separated from the rest of the Keweenaw Peninsula by Portage Lake and the Keweenaw Waterway.
Dee Stadium, also called The Dee, is an ice hockey arena in Houghton, Michigan, that replaced, and is located on the same site as, the Amphidrome. It is regarded as the birthplace of professional hockey, and is the seventh oldest indoor ice rink in the world.
The International Professional Hockey League (IPHL) 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 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, Calumet, Michigan and Houghton. The IPHL was instrumental in changing the nature of top-level senior men's ice hockey from amateur to professional.
John Liddell MacDonald "Jack" Gibson was a Canadian-born ice hockey player and executive. Known as the "father of professional hockey", Gibson founded the International Professional Hockey League in 1904, the first fully professional hockey league in history. He was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame as a builder in 1976.
Professional ice hockey (hockey) is the competition of ice hockey in which participants are paid to play. Professional competition began in North America in the United States—in Pennsylvania and Michigan—and in Canada around 1900. Professional ice hockey expanded across Canada and the United States and eventually to many other countries. There are major leagues around the world, including the National Hockey League in North America, the Kontinental Hockey League in Europe and Asia, and the Swedish Hockey League in Europe, as well as minor leagues such as the American Hockey League and ECHL in North America, and the Ligue Nord-Américaine de Hockey in Canada. High-level professional hockey is also present in Germany, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Finland and Switzerland; professional hockey is also played in many other countries, as diverse as Ukraine, the United Kingdom, Austria, Australia and Japan. The major professional women's league is the Professional Women's Hockey League, which began play in 2024.
John "Goldie" Cochrane was a Canadian professional ice hockey player.
Bernard "Barney" Holden was a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman who played 146 games in various professional and amateur leagues, including the National Hockey Association and International Professional Hockey League. Amongst the teams he played with were the Montreal Shamrocks and Quebec Bulldogs.
Frederick 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 Hockey League. Amongst the teams he played with were the Ottawa Senators and Toronto Ontarios. He won two Stanley Cups in 1909 and 1911 with Ottawa.
The Western Pennsylvania Hockey League (WPHL) was an originally amateur and later professional ice hockey league founded in 1896 and existing through 1909. Based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the league became the pre-eminent ice hockey league in the United States. It was the first league to openly hire and trade players.
Horace Joseph Gaul was a Canadian professional ice hockey and lacrosse player who played from 1904 until 1913 most notably with the Pittsburgh Professionals, Haileybury Comets, Ottawa Senators and Toronto Tecumsehs. As a lacrosse player he was a member of the Ottawa Capital Lacrosse Club.
The Pittsburgh Keystones were a semi-professional ice hockey club, located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and was a member of the Western Pennsylvania Hockey League, the first league to openly hire hockey players, from 1900–1904. The team played all of its games at the Duquesne Garden, and was involved in allowing Harry Peel become the first admitted professional hockey player in 1902.
The Pittsburgh Bankers were one of the earliest professional ice hockey clubs. The club was based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and was a member of the Western Pennsylvania Hockey League, the first league to openly hire hockey players, from 1899–1904 and 1907–1909. The team played all of its games at Duquesne Garden, and was involved in the first known trade of professional hockey players.
The Pittsburgh Victorias were one of the earliest professional ice hockey teams. The club was based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and were members of the Western Pennsylvania Hockey League, the first league to openly hire hockey players, from 1902–1904. The team folded in 1904, when the WPHL disbanded its teams to form the Pittsburgh Professionals and compete in the International Professional Hockey League.
The Pittsburgh Professional Hockey Club, also referred to as the Pittsburgh Professionals and Pittsburgh Pros, were a professional ice hockey team that participated in the International Professional Hockey League (IPHL) from 1904 until 1907. The team was based in the Duquesne Garden and was the first inter-city professional hockey team in the city of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The Pros' line-ups included several important early professional hockey players, the most notable being Hod Stuart, who was considered, in certain hockey circles, to be the "greatest hockey player in the world."
Charles Albert Liffiton was an early professional ice hockey player. Over the span of his career he played for the Montreal Hockey Club, the professional Pittsburgh Bankers of the Western Pennsylvania Hockey League, the Toronto Professionals of the Ontario Professional Hockey League and the Portage Lakes Hockey Club of the International Professional Hockey League.
The Michigan Soo Indians, also known as the American Soo Indians, was a professional ice hockey team from Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, United States. The team played for three seasons in the International Professional Hockey League, the first fully professional hockey league in North America, from 1904 to 1907. The league was formed in November 1904 and consisted of five teams; three from Michigan, one from Pennsylvania and one from Ontario in Canada.
The Calumet Miners, also known as the Calumet-Laurium Miners and the Calumet Wanderers, was a professional ice hockey team from Calumet & Laurium, Michigan. The team played for three seasons in the International Professional Hockey League, the first fully professional hockey league in North America, from 1904 to 1907. The league was formed in November 1904 and consisted of five teams; three from Michigan, one from Pennsylvania and one from Ontario in Canada.
The Hancock Infants was the only moniker of the minor league baseball teams based in Hancock, Michigan. Between 1890 and 1906, Hancock teams played as members of the 1890 Upper Peninsula League, 1905 Copper Country Soo League and 1906 Northern-Copper Country League. The Hancock Infants hosted home minor league games at Sack's Park.
The Lake Linden Lakers were a minor league baseball team based in Lake Linden, Michigan. The 1904 and 1905 Lakers were followed by the 1906 Lake Linden "Sandy Cities," as the Lake Linden teams played as members of the 1904 Copper Country League, 1905 Copper Country Soo League and 1906 Northern-Copper Country League, winning the 1905 league championship. Lake Linden hosted home games at the Lake Linden Ball Park.
