Sunday June 13, 2010

Baseball Hall of Fame

Upon arrival in Cooperstown at the Baseball Hall of Fame we were greeted by the Education Coordinator.  We started off with some basic information about the Hall of Fame. First, how it came to be in Cooperstown, NY, second the qualifications for being inducted, that the induction ceremony is held at the end of every July, the Hall of Fame is not affiliated with MLB and all the artifacts have been donated; they have never purchased any items.

Qualifications for Induction:

• Had been a MLB player and played for at least 10 years
• You are eligible for induction five years after your retirement
• The Baseball Writers Association of America votes to induct new members and you must receive 75% of the vote

We were then given an overview of their website (baseballhalloffame.org – click on education then click on learn) with the 16 different curriculum units that they have available for us to use, all which have baseball as a “hook”. She also went over the various video conferences that are available. I have never heard of the equipment that is necessary for these (a Codec), but am definitely going to check with the district to see if we have these and how to sign up for them.  If we don’t have them, I want to see about raising some money, writing a grant, getting a donation, etc. to purchase them for my building. I know that I would use them and I believe several other teachers would also.

We were then given a 2010 Yearbook, which was greatly appreciated and then “let loose” in the museum. Being the huge baseball fan that I am, it was wonderful to just roam and observe. I wish my dad could have been there with me; he’s the one who taught me all about baseball and he would have loved it!  He’s jealous that we went there to begin with.

After touring the museum for a few hours we walked down the street to the Doubleday Cafe and had a great cheeseburger and fries.

After lunch we went to the Fenimore Art Museum. While the exhibits in the museum were nice, I was more interested in the property and house. I had no idea that Cooperstown was named after the Cooper family, as in relatives of James Fenimore Cooper, author of “Last of the Mohicans”. Talk about being out of touch.  I thoroughly enjoyed walking through the small exhibit about the family, and wish we would have been given more information about them. After touring several exhibits in the museum I wandered out onto the patio, and what a breath taking site that was!

Patio at Fenimore Art Museum

Looking toward Otsego Lake - Patio of Fenimore Art Museum

I cannot imaging living in such a beautiful spot! As we sat and relaxed for a moment a deer wandered along the tree line.

Deer on the lawn at the Fenimore Art Museum

We then walked across the street to the Farmers’ Museum. We were given a brief overview and then taken to see the Empire State Carousel.  All of us except for one unadventurous type who will not be named, climbed aboard the carousel and went for a spin! It was rather hysterical to see I must admit.

The Empire State Carousel

Marie and I then went walking through the village and happened into the pharmacy where the pharmacist was making ginger pills. He showed us the method of making them which was completely amazing!  He mixed gum arabec which would have been obtained from Egypt, and ground ginger obtained from Jamaica. This created a type of paste.  He then took some of the paste, rolled it into a small section that looked like a worm, put it onto a device that rolls it out evenly and then cut it into small tablets. He said when they were allowed to dry they were completely hardened and could not be broken. Ginger was (and still is) used for nausea and sea sickness. This would be a very cool activity to do in combination with a science class.

Gum Arabec from Egypt

Mixing the Arabec and ground ginger

Preparing to make ginger tablets

Tada! Ginger pills!

He then brought out a jug with leeches!  It was very interesting to learn that a leech really does suck blood, but a very miniscule amount. The saliva of the leech numbs the area and acts as a blood thinner and this saliva is actually what causes a person to bleed for up to four hours!  Gross!!!!

Ugh! A Leech!

We went into the blacksmith shop which was completely reminiscent of Sturbridge Village down to the fact that they were making the same items (nails, door latches, hinge latches, etc.) with the same type of bellows and fires. If Sturbridge Village was supposed to be an 18th century village and the Farmers’ Museum is 19th century, there wasn’t much difference in the techniques that they were using. Do I have the time periods wrong?

The Blacksmith

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