Museum Celebrates American Legion Centennial March 29-30 in Cooperstown

(COOPERSTOWN, NY) – The American Legion is teaming up with the National Pastime for a centennial celebration at the home of baseball.

The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum will feature programming with military themes March 29-30 as the American Legion celebrates its 100th anniversary. The iconic veterans organization, which was founded March 15, 1919, has an estimated 2.3 million worldwide members.

American Legion Baseball, established in the 1920s, has become a part of the fabric of our National Pastime. One-quarter of the 329 members of the National Baseball Hall of Famers have roots in Legion ball. The first of those 81 Hall of Famers was Bob Feller, inducted in 1962.

The Hall of Fame celebrates veterans year-round with free admission to active and career 20-year retired military members, and honors Hall of Famers whose careers were interrupted by military service with special medallions in the Museum’s historic Plaque Gallery.

Class of 2019 Hall of Famer Lee Smith will participate in public programs during the weekend, including a welcome event at 10:30 a.m. Friday in the Museum’s Plaque Gallery, featuring special guests from the American Legion; and a question-and-answer event at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday in the Museum’s Grandstand Theater. Both events are open to Hall of Fame visitors.

Special veterans-themed Museum programming March 29-30 will include:

Plaques of the Gallery Tour – 2:30 p.m. Friday; 10:30 a.m. Saturday
Aimed at visitors of all ages, this program educates visitors about the history of the Hall of Fame gallery and the process by which each plaque is made and installed in this 20-minute guided tour.

Guided Museum Tours – 1:30 p.m. Friday; 2:30 p.m. Saturday
Join us in honoring the Museum’s military members in a special guided tour that highlights artifacts and players that have served our country.

Curator Spotlight: Moe Berg Exhibit – 11:30 a.m. Friday
Visitors will have the opportunity to go on a special guided tour of the Museum’s newest exhibit, Moe Berg: Big League Spy, led by a Hall of Fame Curator. This tour provides visitors the unique opportunity to learn about the creation process behind the Hall of Fame exhibits.

Operation Gratitude – 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Friday and Saturday
Honor the military personnel and veterans by taking some time out of your visit to write a letter to our soldiers and veterans. All letters will be sent to Operation Gratitude.

From March 29-30, a display detailing the history of American Legion Baseball and its ties to the Hall of Fame will be available to Museum visitors in the Library atrium. The Hall of Fame annually honors the American Legion Baseball Player of the Year at the Memorial Day Weekend Hall of Fame Classic.

American Legion members, family members and their guests will receive a special Museum admission rate of $12 March 29-30. RSVP is requested by the American Legion at this website.