Baseball Exhibit Is a 'Hit'

The image of a father playing catch with his son or daughter is as much a part of American culture and history as anything. On Father's Day, the Fairfield Museum and History Center opened an exhibit that celebrates and teaches about the sport of baseball and its importance to America.

Called "It's a Hit! A Hometown View of Our National Pastime," the exhibit will run until Jan. 2 and feature many special events to celebrate baseball history in the Fairfield/Bridgeport area.

Adrienne Saint-Pierre, the museum's curator, said they had a good opening day turnout, including a lot of "new faces" that had never been to the museum before. The event included a father/son/daughter baseball game on the field outside the museum, a scavenger hunt in the exhibit, a reading of "Casey at the Bat" and more special events.

Saint-Pierre said the museum was "looking for a topic with broad appeal -- and baseball is very popular. It is a good way to learn about history." She said that baseball provides a unique view of American history, teaching about issues like segregation.

"There is a lot of local history, too. Most of it is in Bridgeport, but Fairfield is a portion of the story," Saint-Pierre said. She cited the example of James O'Rourke, a Bridgeport native who had the first hit in the history of the National League in the 1880s. Another example was Fairfield native Rufus Baker, a 1938 graduate of Roger Ludlowe High School who played in the Negro Leagues for the Bridgeport Colored Stars and New York Black Yankees.

The exhibit includes memorabilia from Connecticut and the surrounding area, including old bats and gloves, pictures from Fairfield little league teams and items from company teams that were popular in the late 19th century and early 20th century.

Local baseball historian Steve Krevisky said there was "a lot of history people might not know about." Like Saint-Pierre, he said he hopes the exhibit can show how baseball can teach people about the nation's history and important issues.

The exhibit is sponsored by a grant from the Connecticut Humanities Council, as well as GE, The Bank of Fairfield, the Bridgeport Bluefish, WSHU Radio and Fairfield University. The next event hosted at the exhibit will be Thursday, June 24, when local baseball historian, author and journalist Don Harrison will share stories about Connecticut's part in baseball history, speaking about Bobby Valentine, Charles Nagy and others. On July 14 the museum will host a town ballgame, played by original rules, and a picnic.

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