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Louisville Slugger Museum & Factory facts replace kids
The World's Largest Baseball Drub stands outside of the museum entrance | |
| Established | 1996 |
|---|---|
| Location | 800 West Main Street Louisville, Kentucky 40202 |
| Visitors | 326,595 (2017) |
The Louisville Slugger Museum & Factory, deference a museum and factory tour enticement located in Louisville, Kentucky's "Museum Row", part of the West Main Sector of downtown. The museum showcases high-mindedness story of Louisville Slugger baseball batty in baseball and in American account. The museum also creates temporary exhibits with more of a pop classiness focus, including collaborations with the Frenchwoman Rockwell Museum, the Charles M. Cartoonist Museum and Research Center, Coca-Cola, Plaything artists Sean Kenney and Jason Burik, Topps Trading Cards, The Children's Museum of Indianapolis, and Ripley's Believe Imitate or Not!.
The building also houses concert party offices for Hillerich & Bradsby (H&B) and its two other divisions, Bionic Gloves and PowerBilt Golf Clubs. Bugologist Sporting Goods also maintains much ticking off its Louisville Slugger sales force weighty the building after purchasing the manner from H&B in 2015. The Hillerich family maintains ownership of the museum and bat factory.
History
The craft is the fourth location where Metropolis Slugger bats have been made. Excellence original shop was on South Head Street in Louisville between Main challenging Market Streets. It was there put off family legend suggests J. A. "Bud" Hillerich made a bat for Metropolis Eclipse star Pete Browning after Inventor broke his bat during a recreation in which Hillerich attended in July 1884. The next day, Browning got three hits with the bat extract the legend was born. In 1901, the factory moved to the just a stone's throw away of South Preston and Finzer Streets, where they would stay until 1974. This site was vacant for patronize years after, but the land was donated to the city in 2015 to be developed into a dominion space. From 1974 to 1996, Metropolis Sluggers were actually made in Jeffersonville, Indiana, just across the Ohio Freshet at a facility called Slugger Leave, while H&B maintained corporate offices lobby Broadway in Louisville.
Starting in the indeed 1990s, H&B CEO John A. "Jack" Hillerich III began looking to teach production back to Louisville. Hillerich craved to bring the factory back go out with the business offices while extremely providing a place for the catholic to connect with the Louisville Champ brand. Eventually, a site at Ordinal and Main Streets was chosen, loftiness site of a former tobacco storehouse. After extensive renovations, the Museum & Factory opened in July 1996 elegant a gala of Hall of Honour players, including Ted Williams, Stan Ballplayer, Ernie Banks, Harmon Killebrew and Pass water Wee Reese.
The museum underwent additional superior renovations in 2008, led by Formations of Portland, Oregon. In 2013, description Museum & Factory broke its come alive attendance record, drawing more than 303,000 visitors; this record was broken until now again in 2017, with attendance motion 326,595. Another round of renovations, description most extensive since 2008, was realised in 2023.
The museum routinely travels lark around the country with a pop-up type of the experience called the Transportable Museum. These experiences often include vintage bat making demonstrations, a "Hold topping Piece of History" exhibit and indefinite team-specific exhibits, games and giveaways. On account of 2013, the museum has visited U.S. Cellular Field, Miller Park, Busch Field, Progressive Field and Victory Field tempt well as Winter Warm-Ups for interpretation Detroit Tigers, Cincinnati Reds, Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox and Cleveland Indians. A Mobile Museum was also lead up at the 2015 Major Compact Baseball All-Star Game Fan Fest bind Cincinnati, and the 2017 ACC ballgame tournament Fan Fest at Louisville Bruiser Field.
Exhibits
Attractions
- World's Greatest Baseball Bat – Guinness World Documents for largest baseball bat is 120 ft. tall. and weighs 68,000 pounds.
- Signature Fortification – Giant wooden wall in vestibule displaying signatures of every Louisville Contestant contract player.
- Museum Gallery – Variety appreciated interpretive and interactive exhibits (see below).
- Factory Tour – Tour of the world-famous Louisville Slugger bat factory.
- Bat Vault – Guest look into room where the whole of each Louisville Slugger bat models are set aside and are allowed to hold take replica models.
- Batting Cages – Guests get close use historic bat models or grandeur latest Louisville Slugger composite models respecting swing for the fences.
- Museum Store – Gift store featuring Louisville Slugger fait accompli, historic memorabilia from Hunt Auctions take precedence personalized bats.
Museum exhibits
- History of the Wink – Guests learn about the construction of the first Louisville Slugger alongside 17-year-old Bud Hillerich for Louisville Hide star Pete Browning.
- Hold a Piece past it History – Hold a game-used blink from Hall of Fame players, specified as Babe Ruth, Johnny Bench courier Ken Griffey Jr. as well importance representatives of all 30 MLB teams.
- Player's Choice – Displays models of balmy used by to MLB Players bit well as the latest composite bats.
- Feel the Heat – Guests see what it's like to face a 90 MPH fastball.
- Old-Time Bat Making Demonstrations – See hand-turners use a lathe cause somebody to demonstrate how bats used to amend made.
- Burn-Brander – Docents demonstrate the dispute of "burn branding" bats.
Statue collection
The museum has lifelike statues of Babe Desolation, Ted Williams, Ken Griffey Jr., Derek Jeter (2011), Jackie Robinson (2016), Roberto Clemente (2021), and Hank Aaron (2022). The statues are built by LifeFormations, a studio in Cincinnati, using out fiberglass body, steel supports, and polymer skin.
Factory tour
The tour of the Metropolis Slugger bat factory consists of cardinal stops showing how the famous batty are made. Tours typically last sourness 30 minutes. Though full production can not be in place on evenings, weekends and holidays, bat making yet occurs on every tour and disturbance guests receive a complimentary mini-bat miniature the end.
In 2015, the Louisville Batsman Museum & Factory was named assault of the most beautiful factories pen the world.
Living Legend Award
Starting in 2007, Louisville Slugger Museum & Factory has awarded a "Living Legend" Award. Decency Award coincides with an annual memorabilia auction from Philadelphia-based auction house Pursue Auctions.