July 03, 2008 09:08 am
—
By ERIC AHLQVIST
Cooperstown Crier
So far, the National Baseball
Hall of Fame appears to be recession-
proof.
The museum had its best June
attendance figure in history, with
45,733 fans passing through the
turnstiles. That figure broke last
year’s record of 43,014.
In the first six months of 2008,
the Hall drew 97,504 visitors, up
five percent from the 92,986 visitors
in the first six months of 2007.
``We’re incredibly encouraged by
our visitorship,’’ said Hall spokesman
Brad Horn. ``Especially considering
all the factors which are
out of our control.’’
One negative factor is gas prices,
which have risen to above four
dollars a gallon, which could mean
tourists would be less likely to
travel to Cooperstown.
But Horn said the museum’s aggressive
programming, affordable
price and the overall popularity of
Major League Baseball have helped
to bolster attendance. Horn said
Hall membership is above 32,000,
which is also the highest in the 69-
year history of the museum.
Last week, Horn traveled to
Cincinnati to accept the helmet
Ken Griffey Jr. used when he hit
his 500th career home run in June.
The helmet is on display in the Today’s
Game exhibit on the second
floor of the museum.
``Every year in which we have
drawn at least 92,000 visitors
through June, we’ve gone on to
draw at least 330,000 for the year,’’
Horn said.
That held true last year, as the
museum went on to draw 352,119
in 2007, up 50,000 from the 2006
figure of 312,100.
The final Hall of Fame Game
was scheduled to be played June
16, and the Hall drew approximately
7,500 fans from June 14 to
17.
Last year’s Induction Ceremony
featured Cal Ripken and Tony Gwynn,
and the Hall got a big attendance
boost during Hall of Fame
Weekend.
This year’s ceremony is slated
for Sunday, July 27, and will feature
baseball writers’ selection Rich
``Goose’’ Gossage as well as five
Veterans Committee selections, including
former manager Dick Williams.
The Hall announced Wednesday
that nearly 50 Hall of
Famers will return for the ceremony.
``The first six months have been
encouraging, but our work is by no
means complete,’’ Horn said.
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