The Strong
National Museum of Play
2021
Despite the challenges of COVID-19, The Strong remains committed to sharing the joy of playwith local and national audiences. We broke ground on our 90,000-square-foot-expansion;increased attendance from 2020; added significantly to our collections and archives;
launched new programs with national reach; and emphasized inclusion, diversity, equity, andaccessibility (IDEA) in the museum’s activities. Learn about the many projects and programs
you helped make possible at The Strong this year:

MUSEUM EXPANSION AND CAMPAIGN

ATTENDANCE AND PANDEMIC RESPONSE• Broke ground in April on a new 90,000-square-footexpansion—the centerpiece of the larger Neighborhoodof Play• Safely served nearly 300,000 onsite guests (up from 175,000in 2020), including free/reduced admission to tens of
thousands of children and families in need

• Reached nearly $52 million committed toward $60 million
campaign goal

• Continued and expanded museum-wide safety andhealth protocols• Received a $5 million grant from the Ralph C. Wilson
Jr. Foundation to support the expansion, as well as
an ongoing $500,000 annual commitment for generaloperating expenses• Hired 65 new team members, including filling some positions
lost in 2020

• Announced ESL Federal Credit Union’s $1.5 million
commitment to name the all-new 24,000-square-foot DigitalWorlds gallery• Raised more than $400,000 at the museum’s annual
Play Ball gala—our most successful Play Ball to date!

• Recognized hometown health heroes and first responders
with free admission nights• Partnered with the Rochester Area Community Foundation
and regional advocacy and educational groups to provide
free museum admission and special programming for thelocal community on Juneteenth• Received American Rescue Plan funding from the National
Endowment for the Humanities to add new positions to ourcollections team, including a Research Specialist for Black
Play & Culture

COLLECTIONS AND SCHOLARSHIP• Surpassed more than 520,000 collection items• Focused on adding items that reflect diversity and inclusion,
including versions of Barbie as Eleanor Roosevelt, Helen
Keller, and Maya Angelou• Performed dozens of conservation treatments• Published three issues of the American Journal of Play,
including a special double issue on Blackness and PlayLEARN HOW YOU CAN CONTRIBUTE TO OUR MISSIONContact Lisa Feinstein at lfeinstein@museumofplay.org

EXHIBITS AND PROGRAMSVIDEO GAMES• Opened Skyline Climb, a new high-adventure ropes course forguests to explore physical play

• Inducted Animal Crossing, Microsoft Flight Simulator,
StarCraft, and Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? into
the World Video Game Hall of Fame

• Joined the WeGo Network, allowing pediatric patients to visit
the museum virtually from their hospital beds
• Launched an updated and redesigned website atmuseumofplay.org• Published three online exhibits, including A History ofShindana Toys: Dolls and Games with a Difference

LIBRARY AND ARCHIVES• Launched the National Archives of Game Show History todocument the history of this playful television genre• Created a research portal of materials from game designer
Sid Sackson• Surpassed more than 227,000 volumes in the librarycollection, including more than 55,000 trade catalogs fromthe doll, toy, and game industries• Acquired the papers of influential play scholars Jerome andDorothy Singer• Added Women in Games Initiative materials from Joyce
A. Weisbecker, Amelia (“Millie”) McCarthy, and Michealene
Cristini Risley• Preserved Id Software’s Super Mario 3 computer gameprototype discovered in The Learning Company records• Acquired the Ralph Coppola Papers to document thecontributions of Innovative Concepts in Entertainment tothe coin-op industry• Hosted an onsite and virtual Women in Games: Gamingfor All celebration featuring Brenda Romero and Lisette
Titre-Montgomery• Hosted Black video game trailblazer and co-creator ofthe APF MP1000 console, Ed Smith, on Game Saves fromThe StrongTOYS• Inducted American Girl Dolls, Risk, and sand into the NationalToy Hall of Fame
• Collected more than 1,200 American Girl dolls andaccessories, as well as hundreds of board games, action
figures, and other toys
• Acquired key toys, games, and photographs to enhance therepresentation of diversity in toys and play through the years• Celebrated Toy Industry Hall of Fame inductees from Steiff(Margarete Steiff), the Ohio Art Company (William Killgallon),and American Girl (Pleasant Rowland)

LEARN HOW YOU CAN CONTRIBUTE TO OUR MISSION
Contact Lisa Feinstein at lfeinstein@museumofplay.org