Veterans Memorial Stadium (Quincy, Massachusetts)

{{Short description|Multi-purpose sports stadium}}{{Infobox venue

| stadium_name = Veterans Memorial Stadium

| nickname =

| image =

| image_size = 220

| caption = Aerial view from the south in 2015

| location = 850 Hancock Street
{{nowrap|Quincy, Massachusetts, U.S.}}

| broke_ground = 1937

| opened = 1938
{{Years or months ago|1938}}

| former_names = Quincy Municipal Stadium{{cite web |title=Veterans Memorial Stadium – Quincy MA |url=https://livingnewdeal.org/sites/veterans-memorial-stadium-quincy-ma/ |website=Living New Deal |access-date=5 February 2025}}

| closed =

| demolished =

| owner = City of Quincy

| operator = Heritage Sports Ventures

| surface =

| scoreboard = Daktronics

| construction_cost =

| architect =

| tenants = Quincy High School Football (1932−2017, 2019−present){{efn|Due to the renovations during the 2018-19 school year, Quincy High's home field was moved to North Quincy's Creedon Field for the season.}}
North Quincy High School Football (1932−present)
Boston Minutemen (NASL) (1976)
Eastern Nazarene College Soccer (NCAA DIII) (2007–present)
Boston Rams (PDL) (2014)
Boston Cannons (MLL) (2019)
New England Free Jacks (MLR) (2021–present)

Boston Banshees (WER) (2025 - present)

| seating_capacity = 5,000

}}

Veterans Memorial Stadium is a multipurpose outdoor stadium in Quincy, Massachusetts. Built from 1937 to 1938 under the Works Progress Administration, it seats 5,000 spectators{{cite web|url=https://www.bostonherald.com/2019/05/31/boston-cannons-excited-to-start-new-season-at-new-stadium/|title=Boston Cannons Excited to Start Season at New Stadium|date=31 May 2019 }} for football, soccer, Rugby union and lacrosse. It is the home field of Quincy High School athletics, namely football and soccer, and the New England Free Jacks of Major League Rugby. The grounds have most notably held the annual intracity Thanksgiving Day Game between QHS and NQHS, dubbed by SI.com as one of the best in America,{{cite web|url=https://www.si.com/2014/11/26/thanksgiving-football-10-best-high-school-rivalries|title=Thanksgiving at Its Best|first=Mark|last=Mravic|publisher=}} since 1932.

The land the stadium sits on is part of Merrymount Park, which’s was gifted to the city by the Adams family. The current stadium replaced a prior athletic field that was known as Pfaffman’s Oval, a cinder dirt track with a large embankment on one side, which made for a natural amphitheater for spectators. After several attempts to fund the stadium failed, ground was broken in January, 1937. The stadium was opened on September 25, 1938, in a ceremony attended by Senator Henry Cabot Lodge.{{Cite web|title=26 Sep 1938, 13 - The Boston Globe at Newspapers.com|url=http://bostonglobe.newspapers.com/image/431868775/?terms=Quincy%20municipal%20stadium&match=1|access-date=2021-03-10|website=Boston Globe|language=en}}

Throughout the 1960s, the Boston Patriots played several preseason intra-squad scrimmages for charity at the stadium.{{Cite web |last=Tobias |first=Todd |title=1964 Boston Patriots Broadside |url=https://talesfromtheamericanfootballleague.com/1964-boston-patriots-broadside/ |access-date=2025-03-25 |website=Tales from the AFL |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |date=2019-10-19 |title=AFL Program: Boston Patriots intrasquad game (August 2, 1966) | website=SportsPaper.info |url=https://www.sportspaper.info/nfl/seasons/1966/08-02_bos-intrasquad.html |access-date=2025-03-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191019222425/https://www.sportspaper.info/nfl/seasons/1966/08-02_bos-intrasquad.html |archive-date=19 October 2019 }}

In 1976 it served as a home stadium for the Boston Minutemen of the North American Soccer League.[https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2209&dat=19760501&id=7J4rAAAAIBAJ&sjid=RPwFAAAAIBAJ&pg=2775,115103 "Minutemen to Play 9 at Vet's Stadium, Quincy"], Nashua Telegraph, May 1, 1976.

The stadium underwent a $1.2 million renovation in 2006, including accessibility improvements and new synthetic turf as well as making the stadium usable as a lacrosse, rugby and soccer field,Monique Walker, [https://web.archive.org/web/20161008201927/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-7981070.html "Quincy's renovated stadium finally open for business"], The Boston Globe, October 12, 2006. via HighBeam Research. and another $1.5 million renovation in 2018, replacing bleacher seats with chair back seats, adding extra capacity and a large electronic video board.

The stadium served as the home of the Boston Cannons of Major League Lacrosse for the 2019 season. [http://www.bostoncannons.com/articles/breaking-news-boston-cannons-and-city-of-quincy-announce-partnership-to-bring-the-cannons-to-veterans-memorial-stadium Boston Cannons and City of Quincy announce partnership] Due to Covid, the team played the entire shortened 2020 season behind closed doors at Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Maryland, in which they would win the championship. The team was then absorbed by the barnstorming Premier Lacrosse League, for which a home stadium was no longer necessary.

On June 28, 2021, the New England Free Jacks of Major League Rugby announced they were moving into the stadium starting with the final game of the 2021 MLR season. [https://freejacks.com/news/new-england-free-jacks-announce-veterans-memorial-stadium-in-quincy-as-the-new-home-for-major-league-rugby-in-new-england/ NEW ENGLAND FREE JACKS ANNOUNCE VETERANS MEMORIAL STADIUM IN QUINCY AS THE NEW HOME FOR MAJOR LEAGUE RUGBY IN NEW ENGLAND]

The stadium has been used since 2021 for the Massachusetts Instrumental and Choral Conductors Association State Finals for marching band.