Cooperstown   Incorporated as a city in 1812, Cooperstown was named after and founded by Judge William Cooper, father of famous author James Fenimore Cooper. Cooperstown is best known as being the site of the Major League Baseball Hall-of-Fame. In 1936, the first five members of the Hall-of-Fame were elected – which included Babe Ruth and Ty Cobb. The building itself was dedicated in 1939. According to legend, Abner Doubleday invented the game of baseball in a cow pasture within the town in 1839. Today, however, most historians believe the game simply evolved from other games. Abner Doubleday himself never claimed to have invented baseball.   United States Landmarks