The History of the Packers Hall of Fame
During the 1960’s, Mr. Bill Brault , a local restaurateur and member of the Green Bay Visitor and Convention Bureau conceived an idea that a museum dedicated to the history of the Green Bay Packers would not only be a great source of community pride, but could also become a significant tourist attraction. Visitor surveys were indicating that visitors to the Green Bay area wanted to learn more about the history and traditions of the football team.

In 1966, Brault approached Vince Lombardi for an official approval from the Packers as he began his independent pursuit of developing what would eventually become the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame. Lombardi’s last words to Brault as he left Lombardi’s office were “and don’t screw it up”. He didn’t.

Later that summer a temporary display of Packer memorabilia which was either donated or loaned by interested individuals was set up in the concourse of the Brown County Veterans Arena. The Arena, built in 1958, is located across Oneida Street from Lambeau Field. The display of Packer memorabilia became an instant hit with summer visitors to the Green Bay area.

In 1967, the Packer Hall of Fame Association was established. The “Hall of Fame” display at the Arena continued to grow through the early 1970’s with thousands of visitors. The induction process began in 1970 as eight Packer legends from the 1920’s became the first class of inductees. The original group included: Curly Lambeau, Cal Hubbard, Jug Earp, Johnny “Blood” McNally, Mike Michalske, Bernard “Boob” Darling, Lavvie Dilweg and Verne Lewellen.

With the success of the Induction Banquet and the growing popularity of the Hall of Fame display, the Packer Hall of Fame Association decided to pursue a permanent museum in its own building, open throughout the year. On May 23, 1975, the Association became a 501 (c)3 non-profit corporation which would allow them to receive funds as a charitable organization. With the corporate structure in place, Brown County and the Packers joined forces in a joint venture to build an addition to the Brown County Veterans Arena which would house the new museum. Then a “34th and Goal” fundraising campaign was launched, which sold Charter Lifetime Memberships to more than 5000 fans at $25 per membership.

On July 12 1976, President Gerald Ford helped dedicate the new 17,000 square foot Green Bay Packer Hall of Fame. During the next 12 months, over 60,000 visitors toured the new museum which now offered hundreds of pieces of Packer memorabilia, all donated by loyal fans and former players.

Committed to building one of the premier sports museums in the country, the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame Board of Directors, along with Executive Director Bill Brault planned for continued growth.

In 1981, a new 7000 square foot extension was added. In 1985 additional fund raising efforts collected $42,000 as 42 individuals, including many former Packer players and corporations, each paid $1,000 to autograph the world’s largest football which became the base for the famous “receiver” statue located just outside the Hall of Fame. The entire concept for the statue was conceived by Jim VanMatre of the Green Bay Visitor and Convention Bureau.

In 1990 another $750,000 renovation was completed, followed by a $150,000 investment in 1994. The 1994 investment brought in new interactive technology which included games, trivia tests, and a “touch screen” biography for each inductee. By 1996, when the Packers Super Bowl season was in progress, attendance reached 160,647. This represented a 60% improvement over 1995. Once again the Packers Hall of Fame Board of Directors approved another ambitious renovation. This time it was an overall renovation for $1.6 million which would increase the display area of the Hall to 21,000 square feet. The museum remained open during the entire renovation which was completed July 2, 1997. Incredibly, attendance soared along with the Packers success on the football field with year end figures exceeding 259,000 fans. To put things in perspective, attendance at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton Ohio was 198,451 that year.

In 1999 Packers President Bob Harlan approached the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame Board of Directors on moving the Hall to a proposed newly renovated and expanded Lambeau Field. After much discussion and negotiation the move was approved by the Hall of Fame Board and a new management contract was entered into with the Packers. The Packers would manage day to day operations of the new museum, similar to the way that PMI had under the prior management contract. In the meantime all artifacts would be inventoried and valued prior to the move. On December 20, 2002 the “Old Hall of Fame” closed its doors and the “New Hall of Fame” opened the following September at Lambeau Field.

Today, the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame, Inc., continues to operate as an independent 501 (c) 3 tax exempt corporation. All memorabilia is owned by the charitable corporation which is run by a twenty person Board of Directors and a seven person Executive Committee. The Packers manage the daily operations of the museum and fully staff the facility. The positions of Marketing Director, Business Office Manager and Archivist however are contracted with the Hall of Fame Board of Directors.

The two major fund raising events each year are the Hall of Fame Golf Classic and the Hall of Fame Induction Banquet. 

For information on either event, contact Hall of Fame Business Manager, Gwen Borga at (920-965-6984).