6 Aug 2022 - US Hockey Hall of Fame - Last Night at West Forty RV Park in Gilbert MN

 6 Aug

This morning we wrapped up our sightseeing in the Gilbert-Eveleth-Virginia-Chisholm-Hibbing Minnesota area by visiting the United States Hockey Hall of Fame Museum in Eveleth MN.  This museum "was established in 1973 with the goal of preserving the history of ice hockey in the United States while recognizing the extraordinary contributions of select players, coaches, administrators, officials and teams."  

The history of hockey is amazing.  I had never heard the terms "shinney" and "bandy"  before but they preceded hockey in the 1800's, and then along came ice polo.  According to the museum, history is vague as to definitely where the first U.S. hockey was played, but it is known to have been played in 1895 in Baltimore, Minneapolis, and in St Paul's School in Concord NH. 

College hockey followed in 1898, high school in 1902 and pro hockey started in 1903.  The National Hockey League was formed in 1917 and the first U.S. Olympic team competed in 1920.

One of the most notable U.S. hockey wins was the first Olympic gold won in 1960 against Czechoslovakia

The second Olympic gold win was against Russia in 1980

The museum is filled with college, league and pro hockey player and team history and displays,  There is even a display on the local elite players that have been produced here in Eveleth, MN which is synonymous with the sport of Ice Hockey, and has come to be known around the country as the "Hockey Capital of the United States. 

 

Some more pictures from within the museum:

US Hockey Hall of Fame Inductees

Check out the old goalie mask!

Other old goalie gear

Home state team!  The Minnesota Wild are a professional NHL hockey team based in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Their AHL affiliate team, the Iowa Wild, plays near our home at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa.

Mighty Ducks scoreboard, used in the Walt Disney movie

One of the most iconic items associated with hockey is on display - the Zamboni, which was born out of necessity.  In the early days of hockey, resurfacing the rink was slow and labor intensive.  They used a planer pulled by a tractor to shave the ice surface and the shavings would be pushed off by hand.  Then water was sprayed and the ice was squeegeed.  Then a final spray of water was applied producing a mirror-like finish.  This process took 3-5 men more than an hour.  

So in 1939 Frank G. Zamboni, a builder and manager of the Island Rink in Paramount California invented a machine to resurface the ice quickly and efficiently.

This is Zamboni #4 made in the early 1950's for the Ice Capades.  

It was built on a Jeep chassis.  

Later models were built on custom Zamboni chassis. 

Other hardware associated with hockey is ice skates.  They have a great display of vintage ice skates here.

The collection here dates back to many from the late 1800's and early 1900's

Early ice polo players made a pyramid of their skates to symbolize their championship

1950's Wissota Model S-8 skate sharpener was made in Minneapolis MN

A great use for used hockey sticks!

 

Younger kids and older ones too can test their skills by giving the puck a whack!

So that was our visit to the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Museum.  On our way back to the campground we stopped by a grocery store and restocked a bit.  Tomorrow we only have about 133 miles to the next stop, Bemidji MN, so we will flush tanks and stow everything before we depart.  We have enjoyed our stay here in NE Minnesota!