Sports & Leisure
The nation's passion for sports is obvious every day—at NASCAR races, kiddie soccer matches, and countless other contests. From a handball used by Abraham Lincoln to Chris Evert's tennis racket to a baseball signed by Jackie Robinson, the roughly 6.000 objects in the Museum's sports collections bear witness to the vital place of sports in the nation's history. Paper sports objects in the collections, such as souvenir programs and baseball cards, number in the hundreds of thousands.
Leisure collections encompass a different range of objects, including camping vehicles and gear, video games, playing cards, sportswear, exercise equipment, and Currier and Ives prints of fishing, hunting, and horseracing. Some 4,000 toys dating from the colonial period to the present are a special strength of the collections.
"Sports & Leisure - Overview" showing 630 items.
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Canoe, SAIRY GAMP
- Description
- This small canoe was built in 1882 by J. H. Rushton in Canton, New York, for writer and adventurer George Washington Sears. Under the name "Nessmuk," Sears penned essays on hunting, fishing, and camping for popular journals and magazines.
- Location
- Currently on loan
- date made
- 1882
- maker
- Rushton, J. H.
- ID Number
- TR*160315
- accession number
- 7809
- catalog number
- 160315
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Odyssey 1 Dobsonian Reflecting Telescope
- Description
- This is a Dobsonian-type reflecting telescope. It was made commercially in the 1980s as part of the "Dobsonian revolution" in amateur astronomy.
- John Dobson began developing this form of telescope in 1956. At the time he was living in a monastery in San Francisco, working as a gardener. Although he had a degree in chemistry, Dobson had always been interested in spiritual issues. Seeking a way to directly experience a fundamental reality, he became obsessed with seeing the "deep sky"—the distant realm of nebula and galaxies.
- Unfortunately, to actually see these astronomical objects required large telescopes that were generally only available to astronomers and were too expensive for average people, and especially for Dobson, who had taken a vow of poverty.
- Undeterred, Dobson began teaching himself telescope making. In time he developed a new telescope design and a new approach to telescope making. Compared to the typical amateur telescope of the time, what came to be known as the "Dobsonian" telescopes were large, easy to use, inexpensive, and portable. They were also easy to make. The mirrors were ground from simple porthole glass. The mounts were made from common construction materials. Although comparatively crude, these strange new telescopes worked. Thrilled by his success, Dobson put them on wheels and pulled them around the streets of San Francisco, offering to show the wonders of the sky to anyone he met.
- Around 1967 Dobson helped found the Sidewalk Astronomers. They became famous for touring the United States, setting up their telescopes (affectionately known as "light buckets") and inviting passers-by to look through them. Telescope design continues to evolve and today the majority of amateur telescopes (like this one) are precise and commercially made. However, many active amateur astronomers credit an early encounter with a Dobsonian for starting their interest in astronomy and changing the way they view the sky.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1988
- patent holder
- Dobson, John L.
- maker
- Coulter Optical Co.
- ID Number
- 1994.0399.01
- accession number
- 1994.0399
- catalog number
- 1994.0399.01
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Kodak Petite Camera
- Description
- Since Kodak introduced the Brownie in 1900, a variety of easy-to-use cameras have been marketed, especially to women. The Kodak Petite from 1935, part of the Kodak Coquette set, came with a matching compact and lipstick case in a variety of color choices so that one might use it as an accessory to fashionable outfits.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1935
- maker
- Eastman Kodak Company
- ID Number
- 1995.0046.01
- catalog number
- 1995.0046.01
- accession number
- 1995.0046
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Ka-Yo Musical Yo-Yo
- Description (Brief)
- This steel yo-yo was made by the Cayo Manufacturing Company of Benton Harbor Michigan in the early 1930s. There is a "Captain's Wheel" lithograph pattern design printed on one side in gray, white and black. Julius N. Cayo founded the Cayo Manufacturing Company as a metal stamping business and began making yo-yos in the early 1930s. It was called a Musical Ka-Yo, so not to infringe upon the Duncan Toy Company's trademark of the term "yo-yo." It whistled when spun due to holes in its sides.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- maker
- Cayo Manufacturing Company
- ID Number
- 2002.0246.01
- accession number
- 2002.0246
- catalog number
- 2002.0246.01
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Duncan Rainbo Yo-Yo
- Description (Brief)
- This Duncan steel yo-yo was manufactured by the Cayo Manufacturing Company in 1934. It has flat black sides with a black and white stripe design around the edges. There is a red, yellow and blue internal, metallic spinning disc that can be seen through small cut out windows in the sides. The decal reads “Genuine Duncan Rainbo Yo-Yo, Trade Mark Reg. USA.” The Duncan Toys Company contracted its metal yo-yos to the Cayo Manufacturing Company until World War II.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1934
- maker
- Duncan
- Cayo Manufacturing Company
- ID Number
- 2002.0246.02
- accession number
- 2002.0246
- catalog number
- 2002.0246.02
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Duncan Starburst Whistler Yo-Yo
- Description (Brief)
- This steel Duncan yo-yo was made by the Cayo Manufacturing Company in the 1930s. It has flat sides and a red, yellow and blue starburst lithograph seal design on both halves. There are two small air holes that make a whistling sound when the toy is spun. The decal reads “Genuine Duncan Whistling Yo-Yo.” The Duncan Toys Company contracted its metal yo-yos to the Cayo Manufacturing Company until World War II.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1930s
- maker
- Duncan
- Cayo Manufacturing Company
- ID Number
- 2002.0246.03
- accession number
- 2002.0246
- catalog number
- 2002.0246.03
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Festival Screamer Yo-Yo
- Description (Brief)
- This steel, whistling yo-yo was made by Festival in the 1960s. It has a black and yellow checkered design on both sides and is called 'The Screamer" as two small air holes create a screaming sound effect when spun. The decal reads “Festival Screamer YoYo.”
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1960s-1970s
- maker
- Festival
- ID Number
- 2002.0246.06
- accession number
- 2002.0246
- catalog number
- 2002.0246.06
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Gorham Silver Yo-Yo
- Description (Brief)
- This metal yo-yo was made by the Gorham Manufacturing Company in the 1970s. It has flat sides and a sterling silver shell. The yo-yo features an ornate repousse leaf pattern and is engraved at the center. The Gorham Manufacturing Company was originally founded in Rhode Island in 1831 as a sterling silver maker.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1970s
- maker
- Gorham
- ID Number
- 2002.0246.07
- accession number
- 2002.0246
- catalog number
- 2002.0246.07
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Oriental Trading Company American Flag Yo-Yo
- Description (Brief)
- This steel yo-yo was made by the Oriental Trading Company in the 1990s. This yo-yo has flat sides and a red, white, and blue American flag design on both halves. The Oriental Trading Company, begun as a gift shop in Omaha, is a large wholesale company that sells arts and crafts, toys and novelties.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1990s
- maker
- Oriental Trading Company
- ID Number
- 2002.0246.08
- accession number
- 2002.0246
- catalog number
- 2002.0246.08
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Hand-Carved Yo-Yo
- Description (Brief)
- This dark brown wooden hand-carved yo-yo has a floral design and is marked “1951” and "TONY FRANK." Demonstrators carved yo-yos as awards for contest winners during the 1940s and 1950s.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1951
- ID Number
- 2002.0246.09
- accession number
- 2002.0246
- catalog number
- 2002.0246.09
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
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