A photograph of the gymnasium where basketball was invented in the School for Christian Workers, now Springfield College, building in Springfield, Massachusetts. The earliest date the photograph has been seen in publications is 1887, so the photograph is thought to have been from around this period. The photograph shows two unidentified students standing on opposite sides of parallel bars. The original building of the School for Christian Workers (now Springfield College) was built on the corner of State and Sherman streets in Springfield, Massachusetts. In 1891 James Naismith, while a faculty member at the school, invented the game of basketball in the gymnasium of the building. The original building was torn down in 1965 to create a parking lot. In 1995, McDonald’s Corporation bought the land, excavating the original foundation and bricks before building a restaurant on the site. Today, there is a monument commemorating the site as the birthplace of basketball. The image is mounted on cardboard backing.
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