Louisville Slugger Museum & Factory to celebrate the Big Bat’s 30th Birthday
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) - One of Louisville’s most iconic landmarks, the Big Bat at the Slugger Museum, is turning 30.
The Big Bat was installed on Oct. 21, 1995. It towers over the museum and downtown Louisville at 120 feet tall and weighs in at 68,000 pounds.
The bat was created in Louisville by Caldwell Tanks, a company known for building massive water towers. Made from a single piece of steel and hand-painted to mimic wood grain, the bat is modeled after Babe Ruth’s Louisville Slugger model, the R43.
To keep it standing tall, the support structure extends 40 feet into the ground.
The bat was installed before the museum opened in July 1996. Since then, it’s become a spot tourists and locals alike snap a photo in front of.
The birthday celebration includes free cupcakes, a giant birthday card for guests to sign and limited-edition pennants for the first 500 visitors.
The museum will launch a #BigBat30 social campaign where fans can post Big Bat photos on Instagram to be displayed in real-time at the museum.
The event runs from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. At 11 a.m., guests and employees will sing Happy Birthday to the bat.
For more information on the Slugger Museum & Factory, click or tap here.
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