A museum exhibit centered on the role sports play in American society is coming to far west Kentucky. “Hometown Teams” opens Saturday at Murray State University’s Wrather West Kentucky Museum.
Kentucky Humanities associate director Kathleen Pool said the five-week exhibit is part of a Smithsonian program called “Museum on Main Street” that leases small exhibits to rural communities. She said Hometown Teams shows the impact sports have on a community.
“It’s looking at what roles sports played in integration what it was time to integrate or what roles sports played with women’s rights when it was time to give women equal rights in the gym and things like that,” Pool said.
Wrather Museum is featuring a tribute hall to Murray State and local athletes, as well as a playable exhibit called “Foul Shot” by Nashville artist Brandon Donahue. The university is also sponsoring an opening reception for the exhibit on Monday, Oct. 8, from 6 to 8 p.m. with author and WPSD sports director Jeff Bidwell serving as the keynote speaker.
The exhibit is the product of a collaboration between Murray State University Libraries, Kentucky Humanities, and the Smithsonian Institute Travel Exhibition Service’s Museum on Main Street program.
