"Anne was kind enough to donate the famous red parka that she wore when she sang 'O Canada' back on snowy April 7, 1977, when the Toronto Blue Jays hosted their first major league game," said Carl McCoomb, CHBFM Curator.

She also gave the hall the outfits she wore when she sang the anthem in 1992 when Canada hosted its first World Series game against the Atlanta Braves and the outfit she wore when she sang at the1989 opening of SkyDome.

The exhibit has already drawn rave reviews from visitors during the May weekends. We are looking forward to an opportunity for Anne to come down and officially unveil the collection in person, but since something like that would not be possible before this Fall, we decided these unique items deserved to be on display immediately."

For more information on Anne Murray, please consult Anne's web site www.annemurray.com

The museum has had a quite fresh face lift, due mainly to the Toronto Blue Jays asking to borrow many of the artifacts for a display in the main concourse at SkyDome for the entire 2002 season. "The Blue Jays have decided to recognize Canada's rich baseball heritage this year, and we were proud to be their partner in honouring great Canadians and great Canadian baseball moments on their season tickets, as well as inside and outside of the SkyDome," said Tom Valcke, CBHFM President/CEO. "This also gave us an opportunity to give more prominence to some well-deserved artifacts and stories that we have had on the back burner."

Another unique donation this year came from Chatham's Murray King, a well-known baseball collector. King donated a bat autographed by every pitcher in history to have struck out 3,000 or more hitters, including his good friend Fergie Jenkins. The bat is the only one known to exist. King also donated a baseball signed by every pitcher with 300 or more victories, also reported to be one-of-a-kind.

Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame & Museum
P.O. Box 1838 (140 Queen St. E.)
St. Marys, ON, Canada, N4X 1C2
Tel: (519) 284-1838
Toll Free: 1-877-250-BALL
Fax: (519) 284-1234
Email: baseball@baseballhalloffame.ca
Website: www.baseballhalloffame.ca

St. Marys – May 30, 2002