Worcester, MA – No sport reflects New England like candlepin bowling. It is 60 feet from the point of delivery to the top of the triangle. A lot can happen in those 60 feet and the result is totally unpredictable.
Candlepin Bowling was invented in Worcester in 1880 by Pop White, the owner of a pool hall on Pearl Street, just around the corner from today’s Worcester Historical Museum.
The new exhibit, in the Booth Gallery of Worcester Historical Museum, “Strikes, Spares and Deadwood: Candlepin Bowling” shares the origins of the sport and the technicalities of it. With items on loan from private collectors and images from WPI, Bentley University, Boston Public Library, National Baseball Hall of Fame and more, this exhibit explores the game that is both frustration and family fun. Also featured are items from Colonial Bowling Center – the last candlepin bowling alley in Worcester when it closed in 2020.