The Yogi Berra Museum and Learning Center is a museum on the campus of

Montclair State University Montclair State University (MSU) is a public research university in Montclair, New Jersey, with parts of the campus extending into Little Falls. As of fall 2018, Montclair State was, by enrollment, the second largest public university in New ...

Little Falls, New Jersey Little Falls is a township in Passaic County, New Jersey, United States. The township was named for a waterfall on the Passaic River at a dam near Beattie Mill. As of the 2020 census, the township's population was 13,360 reflecting a decreas ...

. It serves to honor the career of

Yogi Berra Lawrence Peter "Yogi" Berra (May 12, 1925 – September 22, 2015) was an American professional baseball catcher who later took on the roles of manager and coach. He played 19 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) (1946–1963, 1965), all but ...

, who played for the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...

and the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

and was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. The museum, which contains artifacts from Berra's career, opened on December 4, 1998. It is adjacent to

Yogi Berra Stadium Yogi Berra Stadium is a baseball stadium in Little Falls, New Jersey, on the campus of Montclair State University. The stadium is home to the Montclair State Red Hawks baseball team, which competes in NCAA Division III; and the Yogi Berra Museum ...

History

"The Friends of Yogi Inc.", a

nonprofit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

, raised $2 million through donations to build the museum to honor

, who played almost his entire

career for the

. John McMullen, the owner of the

New Jersey Devils The New Jersey Devils are a professional sports, professional ice hockey team based in Newark, New Jersey. The Devils compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern ...

of the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

, was among the museum's benefactors. The museum was built adjacent to

, which hosted the

New Jersey Jackals The New Jersey Jackals are an American professional baseball team based in Passaic County, New Jersey, United States. The team was founded in 1998 by Floyd Hall and is owned by Al Dorso, a businessman who also owns the Sussex County Miners, ...

, a Minor League Baseball team in the

Frontier League The Frontier League is a professional independent baseball league with teams in the Northeastern and Midwestern United States and Eastern Canada. Formed in 1993, it is the oldest currently running independent league in the United States. The le ...

, and the Montclair State Red Hawks baseball team. The museum was dedicated in October 1998, with fellow

Baseball Hall of Fame The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests. It serves as the central point of the history of baseball in the United States and displays baseball-r ...

Ted Williams Theodore Samuel Williams (August 30, 1918 – July 5, 2002) was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played his entire 19-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career, primarily as a left fielder, for the Boston Red Sox from 1939 ...

and

Larry Doby Lawrence Eugene Doby (December 13, 1923 – June 18, 2003) was an American professional baseball player in the Negro leagues and Major League Baseball (MLB) who was the second black player to break baseball's color barrier and the first black pl ...

in attendance. It opened to the public on December 4 later that year. In 2010, IKON 5 Architects redesigned the museum, and Brian Hanlon sculpted a statue of Berra to go in front of the museum. Berra had feuded with Yankees' owner

George Steinbrenner George Michael Steinbrenner III (July 4, 1930July 13, 2010) was an American businessman who was the principal owner and managing partner of Major League Baseball's New York Yankees from 1973 until his death in 2010. He was the longest-serving own ...

since Steinbrenner fired him 16 games into the 1985 season. Berra refused to be involved in Yankees events, including Yankees games. In January 1999, Berra and Steinbrenner resolved their feud with a public event at the Yogi Berra Museum. Berra frequently visited the museum for signings, discussions, and other events. It was his intention to teach children important values such as sportsmanship and dedication, both on and off the baseball diamond. On October 8, 2014, a burglary occurred at the museum, in which a team of "professional" thieves stole specific pieces of Berra's memorabilia.

Exhibits

The museum contains items from Berra's career, including

baseball card A baseball card is a type of trading card relating to baseball, usually printed on cardboard, silk, or plastic. In the 1950s they came with a stick of gum and a limited number of cards. These cards feature one or more baseball players, teams, stad ...

s, a jacket worn by Berra while throwing out the

first pitch The ceremonial first pitch is a longstanding ritual of baseball in which a guest of honor throws a ball to mark the end of pregame festivities and the start of the game. Originally, the guest threw a ball from their seat in the grandstand to ...

of Game 1 of the 2009 World Series, two of his

MLB MVP The Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player Award (MVP) is an annual Major League Baseball (MLB) award given to one outstanding player in the American League and one in the National League. Since 1931, it has been awarded by the Baseball Writers' ...

awards, and all 10

World Series ring A World Series ring is an award given to Major League Baseball players who win the World Series. Since only one Commissioner's Trophy is awarded to the team, a World Series ring is an individual award that players and staff of each World Series ...

s he received as a player. Following the resolution of Berra's feud with Steinbrenner, the Yankees loaned the Commissioner's Trophy from the 1998 World Series to the museum. In 2013, the museum teamed up with

Athlete Ally Athlete Ally is a nonprofit LGBTQ athletic advocacy group based in the United States. They focus on making athletic communities more inclusive and less discriminatory and helping athletes to advocate for LGBTQ equality. History As an athlete i ...

to develop an exhibit called "Championing Respect", which aims to support the inclusion of

LGBT ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is a ...

athletes in sports. An exhibit in 2014 celebrated the 75th anniversary of

Lou Gehrig Henry Louis Gehrig (born Heinrich Ludwig Gehrig ; June 19, 1903June 2, 1941) was an American professional baseball first baseman who played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees (1923–1939). Gehrig was renowned f ...

's farewell speech. The Museum offers a wide range of school and public programs on all aspects of sports and society. It conducts guided school tours and education programs, provides off-site assemblies on anti-bullying and sportsmanship, and also collaborates with Montclair State University on programs examining topical issues in media and sports. In promoting the values of respect and sportsmanship, the Museum, in partnership with Investors Bank and the Super Essex Conference, developed a Best Teammate Award program in 2013, recognizing outstanding leadership by student-athletes. The Museum also offers an array of summer camps, including youth baseball and softball camps.

References

External links

*{{cite web, url=http://www.montclair.edu/alumni/benefits-and-services/alumni-benefits/yogi-berra-museum-and-learning-center/, title=Yogi Berra Museum and Learning Center, work=Montcialr State University Montclair State University Museums in Passaic County, New Jersey Sports museums in New Jersey Biographical museums in New Jersey Museums established in 1998 Baseball museums and halls of fame 1998 establishments in New Jersey Little Falls, New Jersey