Miguel Boada Najera
Alabama / 08/03/2023 20:37:16
Thursday, August 18, 1910 was the day that Rickwood Field first opened its doors to become the home of the Minor League team, Birmingham Coal Barons… and today this ball park remains in effect, which makes it the oldest baseball stadium in the United States.
Rickwood Field in Birmingham, Alabama is a living museum, opened in 1910 and long term home for Birmingham Barons and Birmingham Black Barons, which featured 4 HOF players Willie Mays, Satchel Paige, Mule Suttles, Willie Wells. It’s a fascinating step back in time. pic.twitter.com/w2nKrl6mQr
— Shawn Gillespie (@ShawnGillespi) July 25, 2023
The Rickwood Field was built by Allen Harvey “Rick” Woodward, owner of the Woodward Iron Company, who in 1909 bought the Coal Barons team and immediately began building his own stadium. He first bought a piece of land in the west of the city of Birmingham where he built the place made of concrete and with metal grandstands (the first ball park of its kind in the Minor Leagues).
The name of the park was given by combining the nickname of Allen Harvey (Rick) with the first four letters of his last name.
Once it opened, it was used by various Minor League and Negro League teams, such as the Birmingham Barons (Southern Association) from 1910 to 1961, the Birmingham Barons (Southern League) in 1964–1965, 1981–1987, and 1988–present, Birmingham A’s (Southern League) from 1967 to 1975, and Birmingham Black Barons (Negro Southern League) from 1920 to 1924, 1926, 1931 to 1936, and 1938 to 1939, among others.
Different players who were beginning their careers and at some point reached the Major Leagues have passed through this ball park, such as members of the Hall of Fame: Willie Mays, Satchel Paige, Mule Suttles, Willie Wells.
Rickwood Field! My oldest son just played there this past weekend in a PG tournament. Seeing both of my boys, who love baseball, walk on this field and walk around looking at all the history was a great memory to make together. pic.twitter.com/EyBrHyyGTE
— Sarah Wessel (@SarahWessel14) July 25, 2023
In 1992 the Friends of Rickwood Foundation was created, which was in charge of raising funds to renovate and then maintain this site, which still opens its doors for different types of games or tournaments at the amateur, semi-professional and professional level, such as a Barons Annual. In addition, it is open to visitors who want to take tours inside where they can even run the bases.
DATA RICKWOOD FIELD, THE OLDEST BASEBALL STADIUM IN THE UNITED STATES
Location: City of Birmingham, Alabama Opened: August 18, 1910 Land: 12.7 acres Capacity: 10,800 seats Construction cost: $75,000
Field dimensions:
Left field: 321 feet (98 m)Left center: 399 feet (122 m)Center field: 393 feet (120 m)Right center: 392 feet (119 m)Right field: 332 feet (101 m)
MLB TO HOLD A GAME AT RICKWOOD FIELD IN 2024
With this magical venue still going strong, Major League Baseball announced that they will add to the ballpark’s history by hosting a regular-season game in 2024, when the San Francisco Giants and St. Louis Cardinals meet on June 20.
Due to the magical conditions in which the property is located, it has been used on several occasions to film some parts of movies, such as those of Jackie Robinson (42) and Ty Cobb (Cobb), as well as the 1995 film, “Soul of the Game”. seventh inning
2023-08-04 14:41:25
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