The Hall's Museum features over 50 exhibits exploring the achievements of Rome's gifted athletes with pictures, trophies, uniforms, and equipment. The inclusive descriptions on the 126 Inductee Plaques give visitors a capsule review of the milestones in the inductees' sports careers.
The museum offers exhibits.
The Hall displayas photos of each of the hall inductees and the National Championship Trophies for University of Miami Football and Baseball, along with the Heisman Trophies of Vinnie Testaverde and Gino Torretta. A basketball and memorabilia from the Rick Barry years are on display, along with memorabilia from all sports. Also on display is the Seminole War Canoe which was for many years the prize for the winner of the University of Miami vs. Florida Football games. The Trophies for all of the University's Bowl Appearances are on display from the Palm Bowl (the first and original Orange Bowl) to this year's Rose Bowl. The unusual is also on display, including a picture of the University's first collegiate national championship team, the 1931 National Collegiate Polo Championship Team.
The hall offers exhibits.
The Museum is a 7,200-square-foot facility located on the main level of the Sommet Center. The Museum features interactive games such as a virtual reality, one-on-one basketball game; strength training apparatus used by Olympic swimmers; college football and basketball exhibits; NASCAR video games, two 30-seat theaters with sports videos; and more.
The hall offers exhibits, tours, film screenings, and educational programs.
The Museum seeks to preserve the culture of yachting by fostering education and enjoyment of yachting history through the presentation of vessels, artifacts, literature, events, and regattas. The Museum explores the many ways in which yachting demonstrates human achievement in the arts, technology, and design. Educational programs offer opportunities for sailors, non-sailors, adults, and children alike.
The museum offers exhibits, tours, research library access, and occasional recreational and educational events.
This Electronic Field Trip takes a look at the song, "Take Me Out to the Ball Game," written by Jack Norworth and Albert Von Tilzer a century ago. Today, "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" is synonymous with a baseball game's seventh-inning stretch, but the song was originally written to be performed on home pianos and the vaudeville stage.
Broadcast from Brooklyn, NY, this presentation explores not only the history of "Take Me Out to the Ball Game", but also the influence of various musical styles of the past 100 years from vaudeville and swing to rock and hip hop.
Unpublished, as the page no longer exists.
Over 30 years, beginning in 1876, football evolved from a slight variation on rugby into (roughly) its present-day form. Along the way, spectators saw some plays that would baffle today's football fans. Choose the answer that best describes each play below.
1. a. Mass Plays, such as the "flying wedge" pictured here (invented in 1892 by a Harvard fan), were tremendously brutal and were soon outlawed. The rules were changed in 1894 so that no more than 2 players could go in motion before the start of the play. Also, the ball carrier's teammates were forbidden to push or pull him.
2. b. For a long time, goals scored more points than touchdowns. Touchdowns were more valuable as a means of getting a favorable placement for an unimpeded try at kicking a field goal. The defense would play in order to prevent a goal rather than defending against a touchdown, making the "dribble" a possible offensive strategy until it was made illegal in 1887. Note that the player holding the ball for the kicker (lying on the ground) in the illustration here had to keep the ball off the ground as the kicker prepared himself because as soon as the ball touched the ground, it was in play.
3. b. This method of putting the ball in play (known as a "fair," as opposed to the play known as a "fair catch," described in the other possible answer), proved too unruly and prone to "slugging" as the players massed together near the sideline. It was eliminated by requiring the referee to bring the ball out from the sideline and place it in the middle of the field.
4. True. When tackling below the waist down to the knees was allowed in 1888, the defense was strengthened and the offense therefore needed to be bolstered by the rules to keep the game balanced. To do this, the teammates of the ball carrier were allowed to "interfere" with (that is, move and block) the opposing team with their bodies (but not their hands and arms—note the illegal use of hands by the blockers in the picture) even after the ball had been snapped. Because these offensive players were in front of the ball after it had been snapped, any movement by them had previously been disallowed as "offsides play." The rule meant that the ball carrier could now run behind his teammates (who would block for him), and not (as in rugby) in front of them, ready to pass the ball back when he was about to be tackled.
5. True. The forward pass was not legal until 1906. Until then, a "pass" always meant the ball carrier's passing backwards. The extensive 1906 rule changes aimed to reduce violence and injury on the field, which had become pronounced, especially in the clash at the line of scrimmage. The changes were meant to "open up" the play. Most notable among the changes was the increase in the number of yards the offense had to advance in a series of downs from 5 to 10, and the allowing of forward passes, which was meant to spread out the players more. Oddly, many football pundits, when the rule was changed and for some time afterwards, did not think the forward pass would be popular. This was partly because, at first, the new rule stipulated that if the pass was incomplete, the ball had to be turned over to the opposing side, and partly because no one had figured out how to throw an effective, spiraled forward pass. The shape of the ball then evolved to make passes easier, becoming a little smaller and more pointed.
American football evolved from the English game of rugby. In 1876, a small group of athletic enthusiasts from Ivy League colleges met and agreed on a set of rules that allowed scoring for touchdowns as well as goals (rugby scored only goals), and established a line of scrimmage (giving one team clear possession of the ball).
Each new rule affected the game, sometimes in unpredictable ways, as revealed during play. This led to additional changes to balance the game. In 1882, for example, the team in possession of the ball was required to turn it over to the other team if they had not advanced the ball 5 yards in 3 downs (soon increased to 10 yards). This rule eliminated the "block game," in which a team held the ball for an entire half. A series of incremental changes over the decades increased the importance of touchdowns and decreased the importance of kicked goals.
Have you ever considered using sports as a window into local history? Your area might have a sports hall of fame or museum to explore, for field trips or primary and secondary sources. Type "sports" into the "Keyword" field in Museums and Historic Sites, or choose "Sports Museum" from the "Type of Museum Site" drop-down menu. Remember to also type in your state in the "State" field.
Baseball has been popular in the U.S. for more than 150 years and many things have changed over that period. Are the following statements about African American baseball players and the Negro League true or false?
The "national game" was long played in parallel nations, existing side by side in America.
1. An African American played semi-professional baseball on a white team shortly after the game became "the national pastime" following the Civil War.
True. In 1872, Bud Fowler joined a white semipro team in New Castle, Pennsylvania.
2. By 1887, about 30 African Americans were playing on minor league teams with whites.
True. But by the turn of the century, African Americans found themselves no longer able to play on white teams--although black teams continued to frequently play white teams in exhibition games.
3. Jackie Robinson was the first African American to play on a professional major league baseball team.
False. Moses Fleetwood Walker, an Oberlin College star, played for one season, in 1884, with the Toledo team of the American Association, before he was forced out the following year because of racism.
4. When Brooklyn Dodgers president and general manager Branch Rickey signed Jackie Robinson to play, Robinson had already demonstrated that he was the best player in the Negro Leagues.
False. Robinson, although generally regarded as an excellent player, was not seen as even the best player on his team, the Kansas City Monarchs. Rickey signed him because of a combination of qualities--not only his proven and potential talent and skill at the game, but also his personal integrity and his likely strength (as Rickey saw it) at withstanding the abuse that Rickey thought Robinson would face on and off the field for breaking the color barrier in major league baseball.
5. Professional baseball's night games, played under lights, first appeared in the Negro Leagues as a way to cope with the heavy scheduling demands of barnstorming play.
True. The Kansas City Monarchs' owner, J. L. Wilkinson, developed a portable light system consisting of light towers on truck beds in 1929-30. The light trucks traveled with his team and allowed them much more flexibility in scheduling their games. White major leagues did not have night games (with lights) until 1935 in Cincinnati.
This Electronic Field Trip looks at pioneering women baseball players, owners, umpires, and teams from as early as 1866, all the way up to present day women playing and working in baseball. The common thread running through the stories examined is the efforts of women and girls to be a part of America's national pastime: baseball.
Many Americans are surprised to learn that women once played professional baseball in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL), from 19431954. Founded by Chicago Cubs owner Phil Wrigley as a method to entertain Americans and keep ball parks full during World War II, the league provided an unprecedented opportunity for young women to play professional baseball, see the country, and aspire to careers beyond the traditional female roles of teacher, secretary, nurse, librarian, or housewife.
This entry is a repeat of node #19119.
Professor Gerald L. Early discusses cultural observations on Jackie Robinson, a staunch civil rights activist, successful businessman, and the first African-American to play in Major League Baseball. Early focuses on the significance of sports as a public arena and form of performance and on African-American perception of baseball.
This lecture is no longer listed on WGBH Boston.
Does not have a public display space.