Pro Football Hall of Fame: NFL Family Fun and Education

Nine of my family members traveled from Cleveland to Canton, OH to visit the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

I had heard about the HOF, but now that I am a B/R scribe, I wanted a first-hand experience.

It was more than I expected.  There were greeters at the door, ready to introduce the concept and direct you into the Hall of Fame.  A large image of a historical player stood behind the greeters.

I was excited so I had one of my children take a picture of me with the greeters.  I know, you are probably wondering, "How does that have anything to do with research?"  Let's just say I wanted to record the moment I entered that great place, designed for entertainment and education.

I saw the display showing that professional football started in America in the late 19th century.  It was 1892 in the state of Pennsylvania. 

The old helmets were on display.  It was surprising that some of those old helmets were even considered strong enough to protect the player's head, face and nose.  In fact, one so-called helmet was nothing more than a cap, made of sweater-like material. Wow, I wonder what the percentage of concussions was in the old days.

I read that Canton, OH was the cradle of the first league in 1920.  The citizens organized themselves and set forth a proposal for the Hall of Fame to be in their town, which gave birth to the first league.

Approval for the location of the Hall of Fame was on Apr. 27, 1961, the year I finished high school.  Back in 1961, I had no idea I would grow to love football and its history.

Then, I read that community leaders raised approximately $400,000 for the construction of the site.

Earlier the leaders made wise use of the media by stimulating a headline:  "Pro Football Needs Hall of Fame and Logical Site is Here."

The non-profit organization in Canton, OH is an excellent contributor to the safe archiving of American History in the area of professional football.

The visit to the Pro Football Hall of Fame was so exciting that five of my family members insisted on returning to the site very soon.

It takes more than one visit to learn the lessons taught through the multimedia presentations at the Hall of Fame.

If fun and education are what you are seeking with your family, travel to Canton, Ohio and have the time of your life.  Also, don't forget to sit through one of the NFL highlight films to hear the powerful voice of John Facenda and his poetic and exciting narration of NFL history.