Baseball, African American Baseball League, sports history, 521 All Stars Traveling Exhibit

The 521 All-Stars: A Championship Story of Baseball and Communityy Traveling Exhibition

Based on the 1998 book The 521 All-Stars: A Championship Story of Baseball and Community, this exhibition depicts the game in its purest form: scrap metal base lines, rotten wood bleachers, teams made up of brothers, fathers and sons, and most importantly, fellowship within the community.

Until Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in 1947, major league baseball was the pastime for white players and fans. Segregated and separated, black players were forced to form leagues of their own.

In 1996, photographer Byron Baldwin was driving north on Route 521 in Sumter County when he discovered a homemade ballpark and stopped to take pictures of the players. He and his partner, author Frye Gallaird, spent the next season and a half watching and studying the Gamecock baseball league of Rembert, S.C. The teams are comprised only of African-Americans.

Schedule

March - Nov. 2023
On exhibition at the South Carolina State Museum View the Exhibition

Dec. 2023 - Onwards
Available