Hank Aaron State Trail Dedication

Baseball legend Hank Aaron was on hand for the dedication in 2000 of the trail named in his honor. The ceremony involved community leaders and representatives from the many surrounding neighborhoods. A sign with information about the trail and Aaron's accomplishments was unveiled.

Hank Aaron (center) and his wife with DNR officials and Governor Tommy Thompson
DNR Photo

What the sign says about Hank Aaron

Accomplishments

Hank Aaron retired with 755 home runs and more major league batting records than anyone else in history. His career records include most home runs (755), most RBIs (2,297), total bases (6,856), and long hits (1,477). He's also second in lifetime at bats and runs, third in games and hits, ninth in doubles, 11th in singles, and tied for 14th in years of service. He and younger brother Tommie combined for 768 home runs, the most ever by brothers.

An All-Star in every season he played except his first and last, Aaron was incredibly consistent. He hit between 24 and 45 home runs for 19 straight seasons, averaging 33 from 1955 through 1973. He drove in 100 runs 11 times and scored 100 runs 15 times. He won two batting titles and four Gold Gloves.

MVP in 1957
Hall of Fame Induction 1982
Senior Vice President of the Atlanta Braves
Founder and Executive Director of the Chasing a Dream Foundation, which provides scholarships to children to pursue educational, vocational, and avocational dreams.

A quote from Hank Aaron

"Over the years, it was often said that…I would have been a much bigger star and made more money in a bigger city like Chicago or New York. That may be so, but I think… Milwaukee was perfect for me. Any player would have been fortunate to play in front of those fans. On Sundays, there might be 200 school buses parked outside the stadium. I used to take the streetcar to the park and walk right along with the fans as they came streaming down the hills and over the bridges from Story Parkway. It was something to see. In my rookie year, the Braves' initial print order for tickets was the largest ticket order in the history of the printing business. We drew 2.1 million people and broke the National League attendance record in August."

For more information about the Hank Aaron State Trail, ask Melissa Cook, trail manager, (414) 263-8559.