This collection documents the Basketball Hall of Fame Building from its conception in the 1940’s to its dedication in 1968 and its life as the Basketball Hall of Fame until it was closed in 1985 and eventually changed into the Allied Health Sciences Center (bulk: 1960s-1985). There are some materials from the second and third Basketball Hall of Fame. Materials include correspondence, news releases, newspaper articles, magazine articles, reports, architect drawings, pamphlets, brochures, print materials, photographs, slides, and memorabilia. The vast majority of documents come from Springfield College, but there are materials that come from the Basketball Hall of Fame and the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC).

The collection contains a variety of materials including photographs of the original Architect Sketches by Munson and Mallis, Inc. of Springfield, Mass. The sketches are contained in a portfolio prepared by them. Of interest are some sketches and materials, including print cards, of the original design of the Basketball Hall of Fame done around 1940-1941. Other items of interest include a lifetime certificate of Membership to the Basketball Hall of Fame for Robert R. Thompson, NABC lists of membership up to 1992, and a Naismith Memorial Fund binder containing donation information to the fund up to 1945. In addition. there are some pictures of the Hall, both outside and inside the hall taken at various time over its lifetime.

Also of interest are mailings for fundraising and updating supporters of the Hall of Fame. This includes a document outlining the NABC Resolution on the Hall of Fame, dated March 24, 1966, complete Annual Report Mailings (with original mailing envelopes) from 1952-1963 (some missing – see folder list), and some official Basketball Hall of Fame Souvenir Booklets, including a 1982 one that is signed by some of the inductees to the Hall. There are materials from the 100th anniversary celebration in 1991 at the Basketball Hall of Fame, including invitations, programs, the commemorative stamp and Springfield College specific information including special invitations sent by Springfield College, the seating arrangements, and what appears to be a copy of the words spoken by Springfield College President Dr. Frank Falcone at the celebration. There are multiple envelopes with the 1991 commemorative US postage stamp sent out by the Springfield College Sports News Bureau on the day of its issuance.

Of note are a group of materials from the November 6, 1961 Commemoration Day celebrations, the hundredth anniversary of Naismith’s birth. This includes invitations, tickets, a copy of a speech given on the day, programs, the commemorative stamp that was released in honor of his birthday, and black and white, silent, 16mm film of the events (including showing what was put into the cornerstone of the building). Two of the programs are signed by the attendees of Commemoration Day, including one that is framed and was donated by Dave Behrend, Class of 1964. The signatures include Edward Hickox, James S. Naismith, and Ray Kaighn among many others (each program is signed by different people).

Finally, there are many folders containing newspaper articles, from the 1940s through the 1990s. The bulk of this falls in the 1980s (1981-1983, especially) during the moving of the Basketball Hall of Fame from the campus of Springfield College to downtown Springfield. This includes a scrapbook of newspaper clippings, the bulk of which is from 1956 through the construction of the hall in 1968. It is unknown who collected these materials, but it was most likely someone in the marketing and communications office at Springfield College. Most of the articles have to do with the fund-raising and the construction of the building, a long and tumultuous experience.