HISTORY

On September 17, 1920, a group of men gathered in downtown Canton, Ohio, at the Hupmobile showroom of Ralph Hay, owner of the hometown Bulldogs; the building is now known as the Frank T. Bow Federal Building.  The result of that historic meeting was the birth of the National Football League.

It seemed logical that a Canton Repository article published on December 6, 1959, announcing the need for a Professional Football Hall of Fame, marked Canton as the perfect site.  Due to the tremendous efforts of the late Bill Umstattd, president of the Timken Company, late Paul Brown, legendary Cleveland Browns coach, late Clayton Horn, editor of The Repository and others, the dream became a reality.  The Greater Canton (now Canton Regional) Chamber or Commerce and the Canton Junior Chamber of Commerce (now the Jaycees) supported the idea and these men in their efforts. 

 After nearly two years of planning, they finally broke ground on August 11, 1962.  Henry Stuhldreher of Massillon, the late quarterback of the legendary Notre Dame “Four Horsemen”, served as the master of ceremonies along with help from Pete Rozelle, former NFL commissioner and other dignitaries.  Following the ceremony, the New York Giants and St. Louis Cardinals competed at Fawcett Stadium for 14,000 fans in the first ever Hall of Fame Game.

 THE HISTORY OF THIS ONE OF A KIND CELEBRATION!

The celebration continued to expand in 1963 with the addition of the first Festival events, thus earning recognition as “Football’s Greatest Weekend.”  Wives of Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers modeled for a crowd of 300 at the first Fashion Show Luncheon on September 5, 1963 at the downtown Hotel Onesto.  The Onesto also hosted a dance later that evening sponsored by the Canton Junior Chamber of Commerce.

Two days later 40,000 people lined the streets downtown to watch the premiere Grand Parade featuring 89 units and 17 bands.  Later that same day came the dedication of the Hall of Fame and the induction of the first 17 enshrinees into the Professional Football Hall of Fame.  The charter members included:  Sammy Baugh, Bert Bell, Joe Carr, Dutch Clark, Red Grange, George Halas, Mel Hein, Pete Henry, Cal Hubbard, Don Hutson, Curly Lambeau, Tim Mara, George Marshall, John Blood McNally, Bronko Nagurski, Ernie Nevers and Jim Thorpe.  That Sunday, September 8, 1963, CBS televised the defeat of the Cleveland Browns by the Pittsburgh Steelers 16-7 in the second Hall of Fame Game. 

The Festival continued to grow and a year later on September 4, 1964, the first Mayor’s Breakfast was held at the Hotel Onesto with 225 in attendance.  The Fashion Show Luncheon was back by popular demand and was held at the Mergus Restaurant.  The luncheon was supported by the Fine Arts Associates, Junior League of Canton and Stark County Bar Association wives.  Once again, the evening ended with a dance, this time at Meyers Lake Moonlight Ballroom.  The 1964 parade was a great success again with an estimated 50,000 spectators.  The Baltimore Colts beat the Pittsburgh Steelers 48-17 the following Sunday afternoon.

The year 1965 saw the return of the Mayor’s Breakfast and Fashion Show Luncheon at the Mergus Restaurant and the Jewish Community Center, respectively.  The Grand Parade featured 74 units plus 23 bands and 16 floats, of which The Timken Company won the Grand Prize.  Actress Jane Russell was Grand Marshall and led the parade past more than 150,000 spectators. Saturday evening 1,100 guests attended the first Celebrities Banquet (later the Enshrinees Civic Dinner) at the Meyers Lake Moonlight Ballroom.  That same evening, Cynthia Hershey, of Perry High School, was crowned as the inaugural Pro Football Hall of Fame Festival Queen.  The Coronation Dance was held at Glenwood High School due to severe weather at Meyers Lake.  Football’s Greatest Weekend came to a close when the Washington Redskins defeated the Detroit Lions 20-3.

Scheduling difficulties prevented the 1966 Hall of Fame game from taking place, but the festivities continued.  The second annual Coronation Ball took place at the Moonlight Ballroom at Meyers Lake with 18 contestants.  Kay Williams was crowned Queen and the remaining 17 participants served as members of the Royal Court.  The Fashion Show Luncheon once again changed location and was held at Nazir Grotto Hall.  The weekend ended with the Grand Parade, in which The Hoover Company float took first prize and the Enshrinement Ceremony was held on the steps of the Pro Football Hall of Fame for the first time.

During the 1980’s the Festival experienced tremendous growth, adding the following events:  Junior Parade (now Community Parade), 1980; Ribs Burnoff and Fireworks, 1984; Balloon Classic Invitational as well as the Drum Corps Competition, 1985; Kickoff Sunday Race, 1986 and the Photo Contest, 1989.

The Pro Football Hall of Fame Festival has also experienced a lot of exciting additions in recent years.  In 1995, the Jackson-Belden Chamber of Commerce and the Canton Regional Chamber of Commerce worked together to bring the Jackson-Belden Food Fest and Fireworks under the umbrella of the Festival.  The event is now held in conjunction with the Balloon Classic Invitational on the Kent State University/Stark State College of Technology campus. 

The Ribs Burnoff expanded from two to three days in 1997 in order to accommodate the huge crowds coming to enjoy the food and free entertainment.  Traditionally, the Burnoff takes place downtown on Market Avenue and was moved further south in 1999 due to the Market Avenue Streetscape Project renovations.  Also in 1999, the AFC-NFC Hall of Fame Game was featured for the first time ever on ABC-TV’s Monday Night Football, resulting in an expanded Festival schedule.  Several new events were created:  the NFL Experience, golf scramble, and the GameDay Luncheon (now known as Enshrinees GameDay Roundtable.

In the fall of 2002, Festival officials held a long-range strategic planning retreat in order to probe all aspects of festival operations, rationales, and philosophies, literally taking the festival apart and putting it back together again, with the goal of creating an even stronger and more successful festival for the future.  Such extensive planning sessions had never before occurred, and the timing was perfect, as it coincided with the NFL and Pro Football Hall of Fame’s challenge to compact the weekend into a stronger, more dynamic experience for the enshrinees and returning Hall of Famers.   

The most significant results of the session were initiated with the 2003 Festival, and they included elimination of the Mayor’s Breakfast, as guests did not arrive in Canton until later in the day, and elimination of the traditional Kickoff Sunday Concert, shifting the event to a location in downtown Canton one week later for a concert and huge fireworks display.  In addition, the Enshrinees Dinner (formerly known as Enshrinees Civic Dinner) was moved to Saturday evening, and the Enshrinement ceremony was moved to Sunday afternoon.  Further, the Ribs Burnoff was shifted to Thursday (4:00 PM to 10:30 PM), Friday and Saturday (11:00 AM to 10:30 PM), and the event was held at the fairgrounds to allow for growth and enhancements.  The Hall of Fame NFL Experience was part of the Ribs Burnoff for the first time ever.

 Also in 2003, for only the second time in the Festival’s history (the first time being the year 2000), all 144 living Hall of Famers were invited to return to Canton for the Enshrinement weekend and the celebration of the 40^th anniversary of the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the Festival; 116 accepted the invitation and were present to witness the induction of five new members, bringing the total number of inductees to 221. 

In 2004, the Ribs Burnoff was held for the second consecutive year at the Stark County fairgrounds, and due to the wonderful response the year before, the event was expanded to be in operation all three days from 11:00 AM to 10:30 PM.  The Ribs Burnoff was also featured on The Food Network show “All American Festivals,” making it the first event in Ohio to be featured on The Food Network.

An increased number of tour group guests enjoyed the 2005 Festival, including 300 at an off-site Enshrinees Dinner at the Canton Negro Oldtimers Activity Center, and 2,000 guests at a “Pigskin Picnic” on Saturday night at the Ribs Burnoff.  These tour group participants were in addition to the traditional 2,000 at the Hoover Grand Parade and 1,900 at Enshrinees GameDay Roundtable. This is a shining example of the partnership and cooperation between the Hall and the Festival.  With the induction of four more football greats into the Pro Football Hall of Fame during the 2005 festivities, the total number of inductees was 229.

In 2006, an impressive Class of Enshrinees brought the total number of inductees to 235.  Changes in the 2006 Festival included the AFC-NFC Hall of Fame Game moving from Monday night to Sunday night on “NBC Sunday Night NFL Football” and The Timken Company became the title sponsor of the Grand Parade.  In order to further reflect the solid partnership between the Festival and the Hall of Fame, the Festival’s mission statement was revised to read as follows:  To work in a spirit of cooperation with the Pro Football Hall of Fame to annually organize and present the Pro Football Hall of Fame Festival in order to celebrate the induction of new Enshrinees, encourage continuing support for the Pro Football Hall of Fame Museum, provide a positive economic impact, and promote the spirit of our community and its people. 

A significant change to the 2007 Festival was the opportunity to move the Enshrinement from an afternoon time slot to 6 PM, allowing a prime time television audience.  All living members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame were invited to return for the ceremony and surrounding festivities, and approximately 85 were present.  A capacity crowd at the Enshrinees Dinner warmly welcomed Roger Goodell, new commissioner of the National Football League, who offered congratulations to the Enshrinees and the entire Canton/Stark County community for a job well done.

 CELEBRATING 45 YEARS OF EXCELLENCE

In 2008, both the Hall of Fame and the annual Festival mark their 45^th anniversaries with a renewed commitment to the partnership and the tradition of excellence in honoring the legends and preserving the history of pro football.  In order to more clearly communicate that the Enshrinement of each new class of Hall of Famers is the central focus of the incredibly popular annual Festival celebration, beginning with the 2008 festivities, the Festival name will be enhanced to “Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Festival.”  While the Pro Football Hall of Fame and annual Enshrinement Festival have realized successes well beyond event the most optimistic of their founding fathers, it is clear that even great opportunities still lie ahead!

The Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Festival department of the Canton Regional Chamber of Commerce enjoys a huge level of support from members, volunteers, sponsors, governmental services, and especially, from the Pro Football Hall of Fame.  A team of more than 4,200 volunteers work year-round with the professional staffs at the Hall and Chamber to plan and stage 15 events over a ten-day period for the enjoyment of nearly 700,000 people.  The results of an economic impact survey done during the 2005 Festival revealed an economic impact of $26.7 million on Canton/Stark County and $48.4 million on the State of Ohio.

Directors of the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Festival have collaborated for the past 45 years in order to make the Enshrinement Festival the best celebration possible.  Directors of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Festival have been:  Janice C. Meyer, Dennis P. Saunier, and presently, Joanne K. Murray.  Directors of the Hall of Fame have included:  the late Dick McCann, the late Dick Gallagher, Pete Elliott, John W. Bankert, and currently Stephen A. Perry, President & Executive Director.