Cleveland has a historic landmark in it’s Hough Neigborhood. Many people know its there, but other than a quick drive-by, there isn’t much of a reason to stop. I’m speaking of course of old League Park, the baseball field that was the one-time home of the Cleveland Indians and the Negro League Cleveland Buckeyes. The structure sits vacant on the corner of E. 66th and Lexington.
This is the place that saw Babe Ruth’s 500th home run in 1929 and where Bob Feller fired fastball after fastball. Legends of the game played in this hallowed park and then after 1946, it became outdated. Cleveland Municpal Stadium was the spot for the baseball action in Cleveland while League Park just sat there empty, year after year, decade after decade. It was never razed.
Cleveland historians for almost 20 years have attempted to come up with plans to restore and renovate this legendary ground. None of the ideas took shape, from the mayoral eras of Mike White and Jane Campbell. Plans ranged from anywhere from $2 million to $18 million. Then yesterday, Mayor Frank Jackson’s Chief of Staff, Ken Silliman announced the city’s intentions to put $5 million into rebuilding League Park and its adjacent land. According to Silliman, a museum and a youth baseball field will be the big keys to the project.
At first blush, as a baseball fan and historian myself, my thoughts were “its about time.” League Park is a historical baseball site that I remember my father driving me past when I was a kid. But all I ever did was drive past it. So much history went on there, something had to be done to this.
But this was also 25 years ago that my father pointed this out to me. The site was old, run down, and dilapidated then. Add 25 years to it and things obviously haven’t improved. Add in the fact that the current generation of baseball fans is dwindling and the game back in the days of League Park might as well have been a completely different sport, and it makes me wonder if restoring League Park is a good idea.
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1. snapper (history's 42nd greatest monster) Posted: January 26, 2012 at 02:49 PM (#4046267)Anyway, can't they get MLB to throw if a few bucks? How about the Indians?
Hell, with how little is left, they should be able to repair it for a few hundred Gs, max.
Right -- they all fail because no one wants to go to Hough because it has such an awful reputation.
You mean we can't say slum anymore?
If it's not costing the city much money, then yes the answer is obvious isn't it? are there maybe better things to spend money on, of course, but it doesn't make this a bad idea.
It is racially charged (not jmac's comment -- the perception of Hough). Hough burned like Watts in the 60's. There is a mindset that it shouldn't come back. Hopefully, that mindest is shrinking, but Cleveland is mired in the past, so things change slowly.
In Harlem in New York City
And he's free to be put in a cage on the South-Side of Chicago
And the West-Side
And he's free to be put in a cage in Hough in Cleveland
And he's free to be put in a cage in East St. Louis
And he's free to be put in a cage in Fillmore in San Francisco
And he's free to be put in a cage in Roxbury in Boston
They're gatherin' 'em up from miles around
I'll, uhh...stop there. Oh, for no reason.
I don't get it, though--is that all that's left of it, the house-sized building in a corner of the lot? Doesn't even look like there are any stands left. What are they going to spend 5m on? Grass?
Ah, TFA mentions the field will be playable. That works, sort of. Still, it seems like a heckuva lot gelt.
I wonder how long the diamond lasted, because I think I can see a very faint outline of one.
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