Ice skating, in one form or another, has existed for thousands of years. Evidence suggests that as long ago as 1000 B.C. Scandinavians were fashioning crude blades from the shank or rib bones of elk, oxen, and reindeer and strapping them onto boots. A game played on ice between teams has been recorded as early as the second century A.D.In the Netherlands, both men and women skated on the canals during the Middle Ages. Scottish history recounts tales of armies crossing frozen marshes on skates to attack enemy territories. Ice skating became so popular in Scotland that the first skating club was established in Edinburgh in 1742. In 1848, E.W. Bushnell invented the first all-iron ice skate that could be clipped onto a boot.

During the 1800s, the popularity of ice skating skyrocketed. Skating clubs opened in London, Vienna, and New York. Rinks were built...