Bell’s Billiards Was Famed Newmarket Pool Hall

One of the pastimes of the past that resonates for many is the pool hall.

Whether one played the game of billiards, pool or snooker, it was generally played in a parlour, room or club that was often referred to as a pool hall or billiards room.

These establishments would commonly offer additional forms of entertainment such as arcade games, slot machines, darts, and perhaps the odd card game. I remember some of the local billiard/pool halls were combined or integrated with a bowling alley.

Let us begin with a short look at where the game of pool and billiards originated. When I was doing my research on the topic, I found the two terms used interchangeably.

The word pool room comes from the 1800s. Then, a pool room was a place to make bets during horse races. Participants needed a way to occupy themselves between races, so the owners of these establishments installed billiards tables to keep their patrons entertained. The connection between billiards and pool rooms stuck, and people began referring to billiards as pool.

It got its start as an indoor substitute for games such as croquet that were being played on lawns. In the 19th century, we saw dedicated venues appearing, and by the early 20th century, billiard and pool halls became common.

The film The Music Man portrayed the 1950s and 1960s, when pool halls were seen as a social ill by many, and laws were being passed in many jurisdictions to set age limits at pool halls and restrict any gambling and the sale of alcohol. The song Trouble from the 1957 hit musical The Music Man lampooned this labelling of the playing of pool as a sure gateway to laziness, gambling, smoking, and philandering. With the arrival of the 1990s, we had become far less critical.

By the 2000s, with competing entertainment venues and the availability of online gambling, revenue from the operation of billiard halls declined significantly.

You may also remember pool halls being featured prominently in several films, including The Hustler and The Color of Money.

The game was a popular pastime in Newmarket and area. Teens enjoyed visiting the local pool hall for a few games after school, and young people would challenge each other to a game or two at a local establishment as part of a night out.

I also remember watching professionals display their skills on television during international championships. The game was a popular form of entertainment for friends and family members in one’s home with some friendly competition. They tell me the game has evolved today, perhaps more refined.

We don’t really know who invented the game of pool, but we do know how and where billiards originated. It got its start during the 15th century in France and northern Europe, where people enjoyed playing lawn games such as croquet. People decided to take the game indoors and create a tabletop version, eliminating any weather worries.

Early players would construct bordered, wooden tables covered in green cloth to simulate the look of grass for their tabletop croquet. During play, they’d take a wooden stick called a mace and use it to shove balls across the surface of the table. The table contained six pockets, two balls and a hoop reminiscent of a croquet wicket with an upright stick as the target.

Most of what we know about the game of billiards from this period comes from the accounts of people of royal and noble upbringing. Yet, it’s likely people from all upbringings and social statuses played and enjoyed the game.

Billiards got a mention in Shakespeare’s Antony and Cleopatra, which indicates the game’s widespread familiarity and popularity during the 17th century.

It did not take long before the game evolved because of player preferences and innovation. Those who participated streamlined the game. The Industrial Revolution of the 19th century brought new opportunities for production and innovation.

In the 1800s, players began using chalk to increase the friction between the cue and ball. Companies began developing dedicated tips for cue sticks, including options made of leather, allowing players to practise new ways of striking balls to achieve spin. With the invention of the two-piece cue in the first half of the 1800s, the cue stick took on today’s form.

Proper pool tables were invented around this time as well. Wooden tables warped over time, so people started using slate in place of wood for tabletops. This ensured a smooth, even surface that would last. With the popularization of rubber during this time, companies developed billiard cushions to put around the edges of tables. By the middle of the 19th century, the modern billiard table began to appear.

Billiards was popular in European culture, but how did it get to Canada? The most logical answer is settlers brought billiards with them to the New World in the 17th and 18th centuries. These settlers would have played billiards in their home countries, leading them to build billiards tables to play in their new homes.

The game spread in the 1700s with cabinet makers beginning to build fine billiards tables on the side. Once the 1800s arrived, public billiards rooms sprang up, a shared pastime for people.

Michael Phelan devised the rules we follow today and several inventions, adding diamonds to the table to help players and developing new designs for tables and cushions to streamline the game.

Canadian troops brought billiards with them during both world wars. It was a favourite recreational activity, helping to keep up the troops’ spirits. The game remained popular after the First World War, but it was less relevant after the Second World War.

Troops returning from the Second World War weren’t in the mood to spend afternoons and evenings with their buddies around the pool table. Building careers, starting families, and buying houses were their goals.

Throughout the early 1900s, politicians were waging a moral war on activities such as gambling, and the drinking of alcohol, and a natural target was billiards and local pool halls. Politicians framed pool halls as harmful to a moral society, which soured people’s opinions of the game. People stopped playing billiards, forcing many local pool rooms to close their doors for good.

It is said the release of the 1961 movie The Hustler starring Paul Newman renewed the public’s interest in pool, and pool halls started opening again after nearly a decade of decline. This resurgence was short-lived. A rise in the popularity of outdoor activities caused billiards to shrink from public favour by the end of the 1960s.

More pool halls opened, but this time they chose a new look to appeal to a new generation of players, losing the shadier esthetic of pool halls for a more modern and approachable appearance. People still attached stereotypes to the game of pool, but these new pool halls helped dispel these opinions.

I would like to finish this article with a look at the local billiards/pool halls and reminisce a little. There was a plethora of places to play around town.

Many of the early local hotels had a room dedicated to the game. In 1930, a Mr. Cutting opened a pool hall on south Main Street and a second establishment was opened in 1932 by Mr. Mallory. In 1936, a third pool hall was opened by Joseph Smith and he was in business until the mid-1950s. Edward Adams opened a location in 1940 that was a combination barber shop and pool hall.

In 1946, the first pool hall at 14 Botsford St. (the old Met rail station) was opened by Don Smith. This location was taken over in 1952 by its most famous occupant, Harvey Bell. There were two locations on Davis Drive — one by Harry Goodman in 1948 and one in 1955 by George Simpson. I believe I remember pool tables at Counter’s bowling alley on Eagle Street around 1958.

The Harvey Bell pool hall, Bell’s Billiards, on Botsford Street, was by far the most famous venue of my time. It played host to several local billiards tournaments featuring the town’s best. The Newmarket Era covered an October 1968 tournament in which 16 participants played. The results had Murray Wilson defeating Jim Sheridan for the title.

Bell’s Billiards was famous for the quality of the pool played there with local pool wizards like Kerry Peters, Len Russell, Bill Pearce, Harold Farr and Henry VanZant, to name but a few, plying their trade there.

There were also several special appearances at Bell’s. A skills competition was presented by George Chenier, who, at the time, was the North American champ. He demonstrated his skills and then challenged two local lads, Moe Hall and Don Thomas, to a few games. The locals fared well, according to the newspaper report.

In July 1948, the town passed a bylaw to regulate the operations of pool halls and bowling alleys. The bylaw imposed a fee of $15 per alley for bowling establishments, and $20 for the first table and $10 for each additional table in pool halls. The bylaw also attempted to regulate language and betting in addition to restricting entry to those 16 and older. I leave it to those who frequented Bell’s establishment to comment on the effectiveness of the bylaw.

Bell was a bit of an inventor. In 1954, he came up with a timer that would record the usage of each table. Tables were usually rented by the hour, and Bell’s invention kept track of the usage of each table by the hour, day, month and year — a first for the industry, as I understand.

Whether you played, watched, or just hung out at one of these establishments, the billiard/pool hall most certainly holds a place in your memory.

Sources: Pool Gets Respect by Joe Chidley and Mary Nemeth, Maclean’s magazine; The Music Man (Warner Bros. Pictures); The Complete History of Billiards and Pool — A Quick History of Billiards from billiardbeast.com; Newmarket Era; Oral history interviews conducted by Richard MacLeod; previous articles published on NewmarketToday.

Newmarket resident Richard MacLeod, the History Hound, has been a local historian for more than 40 years. He writes a weekly feature about our town’s history in partnership with NewmarketToday, conducts heritage lectures and walking tours of local interest, and leads local oral history interviews.