 | Ron Galliher
is the certified sales manager of Midwest Toyota, located at 1100 E. 30th Ave. in Hutchinson, KS. Aside from meeting the needs of clients from all over Kansas, Ron enjoys vacationing in Florida with his family. You can reach Ron, toll-free from the Wichita area at 448-0225 or email him at rong@midwestsuperstore.com |
Travel
2004-03-01 14:01:00
Negro Leagues’ Baseball Museum
Ron Galliher
Question: Can you give me some daytrip suggestions?Answer: Our neighboring state of Missouri, you'll find some of the richest baseball history ever at the Negro Leagues’ Baseball Museum.The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum opened in Kansas City, Missouri in January 1991, located in the Historic Lincoln Building (18th and Vine Historic District). It is now housed at 1616 E. 18th Street, in the Museums at 18th and Vine complex. The museum has been the subject of several television, radio, and print media feature stories.The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum features a 10,000 square-foot multi-media exhibit. It includes two film exhibits, two video exhibits, and 15 computer interactive stations. The gallery is arranged on a time line of African American and baseball history from the 1860s-1950s. The museum's centerpiece is the "Field of Legends" which features 12 life sized bronze cast sculptures of the most important players in Negro Leagues history. African-Americans began to play baseball during the Civil War. They eventually found their way to professional teams with white players. However, racism and "Jim Crow" laws would force them from white professional leagues by 1900. Thus, black players formed their own teams, "barnstorming" around the country to play anyone who would challenge them.In 1920, an organized league structure was formed under the guidance of Andrew "Rube" Foster, a former player, manager, and owner for the Chicago American Giants. In a meeting held at the YMCA in Kansas City, Mo., Foster convinced seven other midwestern team owners to join him forming the Negro National League. Soon, rival leagues formed in eastern and southern states, bringing the thrills and innovative play of black baseball to major urban centers in the U.S., Canada, and Latin America. The Negro Leagues maintained a high level of professional skill and became centerpieces for economic development in many African-American communities. In 1945, Major League Baseball's Brooklyn Dodgers recruited Negro League shortstop Jackie Robinson from the Kansas City Monarchs. Robinson would be recognized as the first African-American in the modern era to play on a white professional team. While this historic event was a key moment in baseball and civil rights history, it also marked the decline of the Negro Leagues. The best black players would soon be signing contracts with the Major Leagues, and black fans followed.The last Negro League teams folded in the early 1960s, but their legacy lives on through the surviving players and the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum.
