Editor’s Note: Not exclusively baseball, but pertinent enough to include here.
The New Jersey Council for the Humanities, in partnership with the Smithsonian Institution Museum on Main Street Program and six host locations in New Jersey, welcomes the newest Smithsonian traveling exhibition, Hometown Teams: How Sports Shape America, to the Garden State in 2014.
What does it mean to be on a team? Why are we such fans? How can—and often do—sports impact our lives? Hometown Teams reveals how sports shape our culture, exploring the enduring connection between towns and the teams that play there. Shedding light on stories that unfold on the neighborhood fields and courts, celebrating the underdogs and legends, exploring fierce team rivalries, and cheering on both admirable victories and gut-wrenching defeats, Hometown Teams captures small town spirit all the way up to the big leagues.
The exhibition opened Jan. 29 at the Yogi Berra Museum and Learning Center in Little Falls, where it will be on display until March 16. Other venues include:
- Atlantic City Free Public Library/Museum, March 22-May 4
- Howell Living History Farm, Mercer County Parks, Titusville, May 10-June 22
- Municipality of Bridgeton/Bridgeton Public Library, Bridgeton, June 28-Aug. 10
- Hudson County Community College, Union City, Aug. 16-Sept. 28
- Morris Museum, Morristown, Oct. 4-Nov. 16
If we’re not playing sports, we’re watching them. Hometown Teams will capture the inextricable connection between towns and their teams, their coaches, their cheerleaders, marching bands and their fans. The exhibit will feature artifacts, stories, and special events that will provide audiences a chance to explore how historic upsets, championship runs, rivalries, traditions, individuals and teams can leave an indelible mark on a community. An exhibition national in theme and local in scope, the local history and sports heritage of each New Jersey community hosting the exhibition will be highlighted. As part of hosting the exhibit, each location hosting the exhibit will tell the stories of Hometown Teams from their communities, both through local exhibits and free public programs.
Hometown Teams is part of the Museum on Main Street (MoMS) program, a partnership between the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service and the New Jersey Council for the Humanities. MoMS brings Smithsonian-quality exhibitions to local museums, historical societies, libraries, and community centers around the country and state of New Jersey. Each exhibit celebrates and explores the local heritage within the context of a broad national theme.
is available on Amazon.com,
Comments on this entry are closed.