Greenlee Field
{{short description|Sports field}}
{{Infobox venue
| stadium_name = Greenlee Field
| nickname =
| image =
| location = Bedford Ave. & Chauncey St.
Hill District
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
{{USA}}
| coordinates =
| broke_ground =
| opened = April 29, {{baseball year|1932}}
| renovated =
| expanded =
| closed =
| demolished = {{baseball year|1938}}
| owner = Gus Greenlee
| operator =
| surface = Grass
| construction_cost = $100,000
(${{formatprice|{{Inflation|US|100000|1931}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars{{inflation-fn|US}})
| architect = Louis Arnett Stuart Bellinger
| project_manager =
| main_contractors =
| former_names =
| tenants = Pittsburgh Crawfords {{baseball year|1932}} - {{baseball year|1938}}
Homestead Grays 1932 – {{baseball year|1937}}
| seating_capacity = 7500
| dimensions =
|embedded = {{designation list|embed=yes|designation1=Pennsylvania|designation1_date=July 17, 2009{{cite web |url=http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/community/pennsylvania_historical_marker_program/2539/search_for_historical_markers |title=PHMC Historical Markers Search |work=Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission |publisher=Commonwealth of Pennsylvania |format=Searchable database |access-date=2014-01-25 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131113061506/http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/community/pennsylvania_historical_marker_program/2539/search_for_historical_markers |archive-date=2013-11-13 }}}}
}}
Greenlee Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was one of only a few Black-built and Black-owned major league baseball fields in the United States.{{cite web |last1=Ashwill |first1=Gary |title=Lewis Park, 1927 |url=https://agatetype.typepad.com/agate_type/2010/05/lewis-park-1927.html |website=Reconstructing Negro League & Latin American Baseball History |publisher=Agate Type |access-date=2 August 2022}} The field was the dream of Gus Greenlee, owner of the Pittsburgh Crawfords.
History
In 1931, construction began on Bedford Avenue between Chauncey and Duff in Pittsburgh's Hill District. The park opened on April 29, 1932, and reportedly cost $100,000.
The first game was held the next day, April 30, 1932. Future hall of famer Satchel Paige pitched to catcher Josh Gibson as City Council members, the Allegheny County commissioners and Mayor Kline watched from the stands.
Greenlee Field held seven thousand five hundred spectators and was the home field for the Crawfords throughout the Great Depression era. The Homestead Grays also played there for a time.
Located a few blocks up Bedford Avenue from Ammon Field, it was also home to the Pittsburgh Keystones. Contemporary city directories list the ballpark's address as 2501 Bedford Avenue.
During the 1938 season, Greenlee Field management prevented African Americans from obtaining jobs at the ballpark, angering the team's fans. Attendance lagged as a result. After the season ended, the Crawfords disbanded and Greenlee Field was torn down.
The Bedford Dwellings housing project was later developed on the property.
The Pittsburgh Steelers used the field for in-season practices during the 1930s.{{cite web|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=J7VRAAAAIBAJ&sjid=K2kDAAAAIBAJ&dq=mcnally+pittsburgh&pg=2384,2841237|title=Pittsburgh Post-Gazette - Google News Archive Search|website=news.google.com|access-date=9 May 2018}}
Notes
{{reflist}}
References
- {{cite book | author=Lowry, Philip J. | title=Green Cathedrals: The Ultimate Celebration of All 271 Major League and Negro League Ballparks Past and Present | location=Reading | publisher=Addison-Wesley | year=1992 | isbn=0-201-56777-6 | url-access=registration | url=https://archive.org/details/greencathedralsu0000lowr }}
- [http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/sports/uncategorized/greenlee-field-site-earns-place-in-history-349838/ Pittsburgh Post-Gazette article]
- [http://deadballbaseball.com/?p=6373 Greenlee Field and Ammons Field] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161021101302/http://deadballbaseball.com/?p=6373 |date=2016-10-21 }}
{{Pittsburgh Crawfords}}
{{Homestead Grays}}
{{Pittsburgh sports}}
{{coord|40.4514|-79.9727|type:landmark_globe:earth_region:US-PA|display=title}}
Category:Defunct Negro league baseball venues
Category:Defunct baseball venues in the United States
Category:Sports venues in Pittsburgh
Category:Demolished sports venues in Pennsylvania
Category:Baseball venues in Pennsylvania
Category:Defunct sports venues in Pennsylvania
Category:Sports venues demolished in 1938
Category:Sports venues completed in 1932