Jackie Robinson Museum opens after 14 years of planning

By RONALD BLUM
AP Baseball Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — The Jackie Robinson Museum has opened in Manhattan with a gala ceremony attended by the 100-year-old widow of the barrier-breaking ballplayer and two of his children. Rachel Robinson watched the half-hour outdoor ceremony from a wheelchair in the 80-degree heat, then cut a ribbon to cap a project launched in 2008. Her 72-year-old daughter, Sharon, also watched from a wheelchair and 70-year-old son David spoke to the crowd of about 200 sitting on folding chairs arrayed on a closed-off section of the major New York thoroughfare where the museum is located. It opens to the public on Sept. 5.