Bill Hoak Collection
name: label: Creator
content: Hoak, Bill
label: Creator
content: National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Community Life
topic: label: Topic
content: Baseball players -- Photographs -- 1900-1920
label: Topic
content: Baseball -- 1900-1920
label: Topic
content: North Pole exploration
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: Collection donated to the Archives Center on July 21, 1986 by Bill Hoak of Fresno, California "in memory of Daniel Ray Hoak."
creator: label: Creator
content: Hoak, Bill
label: Creator
content: National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Community Life
abstract: label: Summary
content: Collection documents major-league baseball players, circa 1909-1912, through photographs and newspapers.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 0.3 Cubic feet (1 box)
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1909-1972
container: label: Container
content: Box 1
custodhist: label: Custodial History
content: Collection transferred to the Archives Center from the Division of Community Life (now Division of Work and Industry), September 1986.
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives Center, National Museum of American History
identifier: label: Identifier
content: NMAH.AC.0236
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Newspapers
label: Type
content: Photographs
processinfo: label: Processing Information
content: Collection processed by NMAH Staff, 1986.
genre_format: label: Genre/Form
content: Newspapers
label: Genre/Form
content: Photographs -- 20th century
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: Numerous posed "action" photographs of American and National League baseball players, several group team photographs and portraits of several major league executives are included. The photographs are reprints of supplements to "The Sporting News" publications, 1909-1912.

Newspapers from 1909 report the controversy over the "discovery" in the previous year of the North Pole by Frederick A. Cook, an American explorer. Cook's claim was declared a hoax by Commander Robert A. Peary of the U.S. Navy, who reached the pole himself in 1909.

Several copies of the Amaroc News published by the American Army of Occupation in Germany shortly after World War I are also part of the collection. 

Newspapers from 1961 report Roger Maris hitting his 60th home run in that year and 1972 papers report Stanford's victory over Michigan in the Rose Bowl.