The Glory Days

The decade between 1947 and 1957 was the golden age of baseball in New York City. With three major league teams—the Yankees, the Brooklyn Dodgers, and the New York Giants—at least one of whom played in the World Series every year except 1948; two National League teams in an intense rivalry each season; and seven landmark subway series, New York was the undisputed baseball capital of the nation. But more than that, New Yorkers lived and experienced baseball in their town in a way never to be repeated again.

The Glory Days: New York Baseball, 1947-1957, explores how and why New York City came to dominate the sport, how this changed by 1957, and how the events of these eleven seasons shaped today’s game. In addition, the exhibition uses baseball as a lens through which city life in the post-war years is examined, and contextualizes baseball’s dominance in the history of the city. Great moments and great players, the passion of New York’s fans, and famous, vanished ballparks are all explored through the greatest assemblage of baseball memorabilia ever exhibited—including photographs, film footage, ephemera, uniforms, sports equipment, trophies, and a broad array of treasured baseball collectibles.