It should come as no surprise to sports enthusiasts to discover New England provides plenty of opportunities to visit Sports Museums and Tours when traveling through the region.

Most of the New England states and all major sports are represented here and there is just about something for everybody. This collection will give  you the low-down on what to expect and where to find out more.

Museums can be difficult to visit with family but there are a number here that’ll be enjoyable for the kids as much as adults.

Please use comment section below to let me know of any you feel warrant being added.

Boston Red Sox Fenway Tours – Boston, Massachusetts:

The oldest ball park in America, and home to fierce rivalry between a team from New York that I’m not allowed to mention for fear of death threats (from my wife that is), Fenway Park is like a pilgrimage to many baseball enthusiasts.

The park itself is full of history not just for its age, but the quirkiness within its fences.

The red seat amongst a sea of blue for where Ted Williams hit a 502-foot home run and the yellow pole in right field called the Pesky Pole after Johnny Pesky’s game-winning home run.

These and a lot more stories and memories are conjured up in a 50-minute walking tour that takes you though one of America’s most bellowed ballparks. Tours leave every hour.

More >>> Boston Red Sox Tours

Basketball Hall of Fame – Springfield, Massachusetts:

Hoops were devised and grew up in Springfield, Massachusetts. History records that a Canadian P.E. instructor named Dr. James Naismith was looking for a way to keep his students at a Springfield College fit during winter in New England. And thus the game of Basketball was invented as he laid down the first set of rules and court for playing this game.

Today you can visit the shrine in Springfield to this sport – a distinctive shaped building called the Basket Ball Hall of Fame.

You’ll find a healthy mixture of artifact exhibits and interactive displays and games, and a good dosing of the history of the sport. You can see how you measure up to the wingspan of Kevin McHale, or the shoe size of Shaquille O’Neal or Michael Jordan – hey, don’t be depressed I’m no Tarzan either.

Springfield has given the Indian Motorcycle and Smith & Wesson guns to the world but it seems its surviving contribution is likely to be a game played by giants trying to get a large ball through a small net – and I mean that in the most sincerest form of awe.

More >>> Basketball Hall of Fame

The Hall at Patriot Place – Foxboro, Massachusetts:

The mere words Patriot Place should provide enough of a hint that this museum is all about American Football, and about one team in particular – the New England Patriots.

Located at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro where the team plays its home games, the Kraft Family have created an experience that is aimed at going beyond just being a collection of artifacts and memorabilia.

The Hall has large projections screens, exhibits with plenty of touch screens, a chance to get in a huddle with Tom Brady, compare your vertical jump to Lawrence Maroney’s and your weight to Vince Wilfork’s. You’ll also block Tedy Bruschi, and put your finger through a Super Bowl ring.

The Hall is open most days except when there’s a Patriot home game.

More >>> Hall at Patriot Place

International Tennis Hall of Fame Museum – Newport, Rhode Island:

The entrance is easy to miss along Newport’s famous Bellevue Avenue but step inside the International Tennis Hall of Fame and you’ll enter the world of the grunters and groaners, and the graceful and the occasional – spoiled brats.

This is not just a museum though as its grass courts can be reserved by the public during the season.

Tennis has been played at the Newport Casino since 1881 – the date and site of the first U.S. National Championship. The museum itself chronicles the history of tennis through 18 galleries that include: interactive exhibits, dynamic videos and a lot of memorabilia from the stars of yesterday and today.

The Newport Casino was renamed the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1986 and recognized as the official Hall of Fame by the International Tennis Federation, the governing body of tennis. Group tours are available for 15 or more people.

More >>> International Tennis Hall of Fame

Husky Heritage Sports Museum – Storrs, Connecticut:

UConn has a phenomenal reputation for its athletics program and has captured the history of success with its individuals and teams over the years in an exhibit at an on-campus facility.

Here you can relive some of memorable moments of the past one hundred years if you’ve followed the Husky’s  success story and set expectations for the future.

Uconn’s athletic program has captured 12 national titles in men’s soccer, men’s and women’s basketball, and women’s field hockey. Their cups and banners and stories are woven together in the museum which traces with text, photographs and artifacts the rich history of this elite college and the impact its athletics’ tradition has had on the nation.

More >>> Husky Heritage Sports Museum

New England Sports Museum at TD Banknorth Garden – Boston, Massachusetts:

A place to take the family and kids when in Boston, the Sports Museum is located at the “new” (those of us old enough to have visited the original Boston Garden still call this the new) Boston Garden. Since the era of sponsors wanting stadium name rights the Garden became a bank – sort of.

It’s got a lot of quirky but interesting stuff under its hood from the many eras of Boston sports teams. Like what you’re asking, right?

If you want to get up close and personal with Larry Bird’s locker, or the shoes that Adam Vinatierri used to kick the 48-yard game wining field goal to give the Pats their first Super Bowl, or the baseball that struck Boston Red Sox slugger Tony Conigliaro in the eye in August of 1967, derailing a career bound for Cooperstown, then you’ll find these all here.

In the off-season when the Celtics and Bruins are not playing you can take a behind scene tours of the Garden. These are offered twice daily, and call 617-624-1235 for more information.

More >>> New England Sports Museum

American Museum of Fly Fishing – Manchester, Vermont:

Throughout my youth I enjoyed freshwater fishing. I drifted away from it as a pastime after high school, but returned to it when my kids were old enough to fish, and we added the occasional deep water coastal fishing trip as well. But fly fishing is another sport altogether requiring different strategies, skills and mastery.

The American Fly Fishing Museum is located on Route 7A just south of Manchester Center, and was established in 1968 but has fast become the largest museum in the world dedicated to fly fishing. The exhibits document the evolution of fly fishing as a sport from around the world and includes artifacts from as early as the 16^th century and includes, rods, reels, flies, tackle, art, photographs and books.

More >>> American Fly Fishing Museum

New England Ski Museum – Franconia, New Hampshire:

The New England Ski Museum can be found at Cannon Mountain a thriving ski resort in Franconia Notch in the White Mountains of New Hampshire.

New England has seen many of its ski slopes vanish over the last twenty years.

Too many and bad management have contributed, and the unpredictable winters make earning your living running a ski resort a precarious operation these days. So its great to see time and energy put into keeping the skiing history of the region preserved.

There are a number of permanent exhibits at the museum but you’ll also find a special annual exhibit set up at Cannon, and in recent years at the Bretton Woods ski resort at the other side of Mount Washington Valley towards Jackson and North Conway.

New England ski areas have a number of firsts in the U.S. ski world with the first night skiing, and the first aerial tramway ski lift in the U.S. at Cannon itself. And you’ll find reminders of these and much more at the museum.

And best of all, the museum is free but donations gratefully accepted. More >>> New England Ski Museum

Museum of Yachting – Newport, Rhode Island:

During the years of the America’s Cup, yacht racing fever overtook the city of Newport regularly and it’s never really left this town,.

Even when the America’s Cup left for other shores and returned to other destinations in the U.S., Newport, Rhode Island, remains its birthplace and spiritual home.

Lest you question this belief, just visit Newport on a summer’s weekend.

It oozes yachts and boats of all shapes and sizes and the harbor front is a great place to relax and watch the yachts come and go. But all eyes turn whenever a 12-meter is spotted to see if it is new or one of the famous racing yachts of yesteryear.

The Museum of Yachting is located at Fort Adams State Park – a beautiful recreational area in its own right – and is a seasonal museum opening in mid-May and closing in Mid-October. In addition to exhibits the museum also offers educational workshops and restoration programs. Special exhibits are planned each year for the season and for more about the museum and visitor information check out their web site at: http://www.moy.org/

New England is rich in museums and sports and this has been but an attempt at documenting in one place a small list of destinations where we managed to marry both together and create something remarkable. I hope you agree and put one or two of these on your itinerary next time you visit.

Another New England post by one of our writers is being prepared right now so be sure to visit again or just subscribe to our RSS Feed here and get notified automatically of events and news.

Cliff Calderwood
Publisher
New England Online Magazine

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