(MONEY Magazine) – Early in The Wizard of Oz, there's a scene in which the Munchkins sing to Dorothy, "We will glorify your name/You will be a bust in the Hall of Fame!"

This statement might require a bit more specificity today, because there are now hundreds of halls of fame. But back in the late 1930s, when The Wizard of Oz was being filmed, there was only one: the Hall of Fame for Great Americans, which was founded in 1900 in New York City, on the grounds of what was then New York University and is now Bronx Community College.

Although the hall is no longer the tourist attraction or cultural mainstay it once was--a victim, in part, of all the halls of fame it inspired--it's still open to the public (University Ave. and W. 181st St., The Bronx; 718-289-5161). The former presidents, war heroes and statesmen who make up most of the 102 inductees are fairly predictable, and the hall's physical setup--a somber array of busts and plaques on an outdoor terrace--is rather spartan, but the facility nonetheless offers a fascinating glimpse at our country's first attempt to create an institutionalized notion of fame.

The American attitude toward fame and celebrity has evolved considerably in the century since the advent of the original Hall, which was actually somewhat controversial when first proposed by NYU chancellor Henry Mitchell MacCracken. Critics, noting that America's founders had specifically avoided providing a mechanism for knighthood or other official recognition of greatness, felt that the hall would create a de facto aristocracy that ran counter to America's egalitarian ideals. And perhaps they were right. Today we've become so fame-obsessed that we've created a pantheon for virtually every profession, sport and hobby imaginable, enshrining our fellow citizens in institutions like the Soap Box Derby Hall of Fame in Akron and the International Checkers Hall of Fame in Petal, Miss. But while the proliferation of such facilities may seem a bit silly, it also shows that fame is an elastic concept, and maybe a more egalitarian one than MacCracken's critics realized. After all, if there is a Shuffleboard Hall of Fame out there--and there is, in St. Petersburg--then surely we all have a chance to be famous.

By now there are so many halls of fame in America that you're likely to be near at least one of them virtually anywhere you travel. (For a comprehensive list of sports halls of fame with locations and descriptions, go to www.sportshalls.com. And for a more eclectic list, try www.stutt.com /wheel/g-hafs.htm.) You already know about the more obvious ones, like the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y. and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland. Here are some of my less well known favorites.

The National Softball Hall of Fame and Museum (2801 N.E. 50th St., Oklahoma City, 405-424-5266; www.softball.org/hall/index.html). If you think softball is only for weekend beer leaguers, you might be surprised by the depth of history presented at this excellent facility, which was established in 1957 and now has more than 130 male and female enshrinees. The museum does a great job of telling the game's story, from its beginnings as a municipally sponsored recreation program in Minnesota to its new status as an Olympic sport. If you want to see just how well the game can be played, the hall's on-site stadium hosts a variety of tournaments during the course of the year. Plus you've got to like a place whose first inductee was called Harold "Shifty" Gears.

The National Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame (1 Hall of Fame Dr., Hayward, Wis.; 715-634-4440; www.oldcabin.com /freshwater). Even if you don't fish, this unusual hall is still among America's classic roadside attractions, thanks to its unique centerpiece: a gigantic fiberglass muskie, which, at 143 feet long and more than four stories high, is both the largest fish and the largest fiberglass structure in the world. Visitors can enter the muskie via a door toward the tail, walk through its interior and emerge at a little observation deck in the fish's open mouth, a surreal experience that's probably the closest you'll ever get to knowing how Jonah felt inside the whale. Exhibits--some of which are set up inside the muskie--focus on subjects like tackle boxes, minnow buckets, outboard motors, hooks, taxidermy and, of course, famous fishermen.

The International Boxing Hall of Fame (1 Hall of Fame Dr., Canastota, N.Y.; 315-697-7095; www.ibhof.com). I'm a big boxing fan, but I'd be the first to admit that the people associated with the sport have never exhibited the sorts of talents that would lead you to think they could put together a good museum. So I was pleasantly surprised when I visited this hall of fame last year and found a small, well-designed facility with a helpful staff, impressive attention to detail and loads of cool memorabilia. More than most halls of fame, this one exudes a palpable air of history, thanks in part to the wealth of artifacts actually worn by famous fighters--Jake LaMotta's gloves, Tommy Hearns' trunks and Marvin Hagler's robe, to name a few. There's also a fantastic library.

The National Bowling Hall of Fame and Museum (111 Stadium Plaza Dr., St. Louis; 314-231-6340; www.bowlingmuseum.com). Bowling's origins can be traced all the way back to around 5200 B.C., and this large facility does so in impressive detail. Exhibits explain the design evolution and construction of bowling balls, pins and lanes, and there's a great display of vintage bowling shirts. At the end of the tour, visitors can bowl a few frames on a beautiful pair of retro-style lanes that feature a live pinboy--a throwback to the days before automated pinspotters.

As for Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz, she never did make it to the Hall of Fame for Great Americans. But Judy Garland, who played Dorothy, ended up enshrined on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, so the Munchkins' prediction wasn't too far off-base. Anyone know if they ever predicted anything similar for Shifty Gears?

Paul Lukas, winner of a Lowell Thomas Award from the Society of American Travel Writers, is not related to the late Oscar-winning actor Paul Lukas, who has his own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.