DATE: Now through Oct. 7, 2011.

EVENT: “The Games We Played: Sports in Nineteenth Century America,” an exhibition of books, manuscripts, prints, photographs and other materials tells the compelling story of sports played in 19thcentury America and the legacy that continues today.

The William L. Clements Library at the University of Michigan explores the broadly defined theme of sports, which includes team sports, leisure activities, and other outdoor amusements including hunting and camping. The emergence of these social and cultural activities came at a time when life was increasingly urban and industrialized. Activities like hunting, fishing, and running were transformed from tasks performed as part of basic subsistence in rural, untamed environments into forms of entertainment reserved for leisure time.

Some of the most popular sports today, including baseball, basketball and football, were first developed in the 19th century. By the end of that century, many sports had become formalized with the establishment of clubs, governing bodies and official rulebooks.

The exhibit is curated by Emiko Hastings, assistant curator of books at the William L. Clements Library.

LOCATION: William L. Clements Library, 909 S. University, Ann Arbor.

Central Campus map: http://www.umich.edu/~info/mapsAndDirections.html#anchor_centralCampus

WEBSITE: For more information: http://www.clements.umich.edu/