Now, I'm not much of a Detroit Tigers fan like my high school buddy Neil, but I hate to see the old ball fields being torn down. Looks like it is about that time for Tiger Stadium which was built in 1912.
In August, the city council, by a 5-4 vote gave the Detroit Economic Development Corp. the authority to demolish the park. This came shortly after Hall of Fame broadcaster Ernie Harwell gave an impassioned plea to save it. Harwell proposed a scaled-down version of the park seating 8,000-10,000 which could be used for high school sports. Also, it could be used for a museum on Detroit's rich musical heritage
"Tiger stadium has meant a lot to generations. " Harwell continued, " If we cant [save part of it], we'll have to keep Tiger Stadium in our memory, our mind and out heart and cherish it that way."
It has sat empty since owner Mike Ilitch moved the ballclub to Comercia Park in 2000.
From August 5th Chicago Tribune "Final out for Tiger Stadium" by Corey Williams, AP.
A HISTORY OF TIGER STADIUM- from Wikipedia
The stadium has been declared a state of Michigan Historic Site in 1976 and was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989. It is scheduled for demolition in 2008.
It is also nicknamed "The Corner" for its location at the corner of Michigan Avenue and Trumbull Boulevard.
It replaced Bennett Park at the site, the first home of the Tigers. Grand opening was on April 20, 1912, the same day Boston's Fenway Park opened.
From 1938 to 1974, the Detroit Lions played their home games there until they moved to the Pontiac Silverdome. It hosted the World Series in 1968, 1984, and 2006.
Since the Tigers left, Detroit has spent $4 million maintaining it, a big reason for its demolition.
A lot of New York Yankee history took place there. This is where, on July 13, 1934, Babe Ruth hit his 700th home run. On May 2, 1939, Lou Gehrig voluntarily sat himself down to bring his 2,130 consecutive game streak to an end. With his advancing disease,this proved to be his last-ever game.
I hate it when they tear an old ballfield down like Comiskey Park. Ugly though it was, it had a lot of history. I didn't care so much when Three Rivers in Pittsburgh and Busch Stadium in St. Louis were torn down. They had not been around long enough to get the history of a Comiskey or Tiger Stadium.
Lions and Tigers and URBAN RENEWAL, Oh My!--RoadDog
RoadDog's RoadLog Blog: Being my travels down those great two lane highways of this nation as well as news I learn about them from media sources. Since I'm also very interested in historic preservation, there will be a lot of that as well.
The Shamrock Court Motel in Sullivan, Missouri. It can be yours for $125,000. Lots of possibilities. Actually, now you're too late. Missouri's Roamin' Rich bought it.
No comments:
Post a Comment