�����԰

On Saturday, April 4, five Norwich students and myself spent the day in Cooperstown, New York, as part of a field trip for History 262, History of Baseball. They saw first-hand the recent renovations to the building, including new exhibits on baseball card collections and American-Japanese baseball diplomacy. The permanent exhibits on the history of the sport underscored themes discussed in class, including labor-management conflict, race and gender exclusion and inclusion, technological innovation, and the marketing of athletes as celebrities. — Dr. Rowly Brucken

Cadets in Cooperstown

By Georgie Goich '29

Cooperstown, New York, is home to the most revered institution in all of American sports, the Baseball Hall of Fame. Made in 1939, inspired by the mythical origin of baseball within Cooperstown thanks to the Abner Doubleday myth, to support the floundering lakeside town that was hit hard by the depression, it has over time become a beloved institution not only by the baseball players who are enshrined within it, but also by baseball historians who have dedicated their lives to the sport which has defined America across the world. The History of Baseball (HI262) class is lucky enough to visit the Halls of Cooperstown officially, and here are my experiences.

The first part about the Hall of Fame is its location. The last time I personally visited the Hall of Fame was in 2017, when I was 10 years old. Arriving there, we found that, aside from the Hall of Fame, Cooperstown is like any other small town in the Northeast. It has a downtown with very late 19th- and early 20th-century buildings and old, faded painted theater signs. Of course, instead of normal businesses, the stores are filled to the brim with Baseball souvenirs, knick-knacks, and other baseball merchandise to fill up Lake Otsego. The area around the town is also beautiful, with high hills covered with trees. It makes sense why, even without the Doubleday myth, to put the Baseball Hall of Fame in a serene place such as Cooperstown.

Initially, we had to deal with the second worst part of the trip, the drive. �����԰ to Cooperstown in North Central New York is at least four hours and fifteen minutes of driving.
Thankfully, our professor planned 2 rest stops along the trip, the first in Rutland, Vermont. We stopped for some breakfast at Dunkin' Donuts, which was really nice, as the rest of the two to three hour trip was a long one. Granted, thanks to the lovely scenery, it didn’t feel nearly as bad. I had made the mistake of not bringing my water bottle and only getting one donut, so I was starving by the time we reached Cooperstown. The drive home was a bit better, with us stopping for snacks, the restroom, and McDonald's on the way back, so we were getting all the food we needed. Aside from that, though, the drive was great; all of us had plenty of great baseball and
non-baseball-related conversations, so it was worth dealing with.

When we reached Cooperstown, we parked in the Doubleday field parking lot and headed straight to the Hall of Fame. We discovered that all active-duty, reserve, and National Guard members get in for free, which was super nice. Then we got our wristbands and began exploring. We started from the third floor at the top and slowly traveled our way through the Hall of Fame. The most memorable part for me on the third floor was two things: First, the Hank Aaron exhibit, which documented his career, and his most famous achievement of breaking Babe Ruth’s all-time home run record with 755 home runs in total. Second, the modern teams exhibit. I enjoyed it because it documented the aspects of baseball that are more well-known and discussed today, which was nice, and I was able to send pictures of my parents’ favorite teams to them. The second floor covered the history of baseball overall. The exhibit on Babe Ruth was amazing and definitely one of the highlights of my visit. Alongside that, we watched the movie “Generations of Baseball” where we saw a bunch of Hall of Fame inductees talk about their careers and baseball as a whole. Then there was the first floor, where the hall of plaques was. It is still the best part of the entire institution, and seeing all of those plaques, the inscriptions, and accomplishments is awe-inspiring to this day.

After we toured the Hall of Fame for a while, we then had lunch. recommended Sal’s pizza, and it could not have been a better choice. The slices were huge and tasted amazing. Then we were free to do anything till 4:00 p.m. when we would meet up, take a picture in front of the Hall, and then head home.

That was when the worst part of the trip was revealed to me: the merch prices. I love being able to buy and use shirts, hats, and other items, but at a reasonable price. The cheapest hat I could find was a Red Sox hat for $42. It is outrageous what they charge. However, that did not stop me from buying a Mets shirt for $38 and a retro White Sox hat for $42, both from a nearby store instead of the Hall of Fame store.

The History of Baseball class may seem, at first glance, a non-serious “underwater basket weaving” type of course. But that is far from the truth. Throughout the course, it has challenged me to become a better writer and historian, and, most of all, has given me a new appreciation for baseball not only as a sport but as a feature of American history. As such, the trip to the
Baseball Hall of Fame has only cemented that fact. It was fun to spend time with Professor Brucken and my classmates talking about baseball on the way to and at Cooperstown. It was
fascinating to learn about the various baseball facts and stories throughout the second and third floors. It was mesmerizing to view all the plaques in the Hall of Inductees. Therefore, if anyone can, take HI262 History of Baseball, as not only is it a great class, but because the visit to the Hall of Fame is worth all the work on its own.