Milan 54 – Hoosiers Museum was awarded a grant for $3,500 from the Duke Energy Foundation. This grant will be used to help purchase the “Hoosiers Collection” which will be on permanent display in the new museum.  

The “Hoosiers Collection” is the world’s largest known collection of “Hoosiers” movie memorabilia which includes movie props and uniforms used in the 1986 sports classic. This collection contains more than 180 items consisting of basketball uniforms, cheer leading outfits and other assorted movie props. Included in this collection is a large assortment of the Hickory Huskers uniforms including “Jimmy Chitwood’s No. 15 home uniform as well as Barbara Hershey’s 3/4 length “Betty Rose” vintage coat that she wore when confronting coach Norman Dale about his past.

“The Hoosiers Collection will be a wonderful addition to the museum and will preserve these historic artifacts for the people of Indiana,” said Marianne Wiggers President of Milan 54, Inc.  “We are very grateful to the Duke Energy Foundation for their support the Hoosier Collection project.”

Before Indiana adopted the high school class basketball tournament system, teams from all sizes of schools competed against each other for that one coveted title—Indiana State Basketball Champions. In 1954 the reign of the large Indiana High Schools ended when the team from Milan High School, with an enrollment of just 161, defeated the Muncie Central team, with an enrollment of 1,662. In 1986 the small town’s accomplishment was made into the movie “Hoosiers.”