Philadelphia Grounds (or Philadelphia Base Ball Grounds)
was a baseball stadium that formerly stood in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
It was the home of the Philadelphia National League Phillies from 1887 to
1894. The stadium was located at 15th Street and Huntingdon.
The stadium burned to the ground on August 6, 1894 - the third wood
stadium to be destroyed by fire during the season. The fire was described
as fierce and was driven by intense winds. Seven firemen were injured
attempting to rescue their engine from being toppled by one of the five
giant turrets in the stadium. The team had insured the stadium for
$60,000, but damages were estimated at $80,000. The surrounding
neighborhood suffered another $100,000 in damage.
George
Haddock, Tuck
Turner and Jack
Fanning happened to be at the park at the time and tried to put out
the fire, which apparently started near a plumber's stove. The plumber was
with a group doing repairs on the stadium at the time. When it was clear
they were not going to be able to put it out, an alarm was sounded.
Fly
to the site of the Philadelphia Grounds!
If you have Google
Earth installed, click here
to be "flown" to the site of the Philadelphia Grounds. Of
course the stadium is no longer there, but you can see the old
neighborhood. (If you do not have it installed, get
it from Google. It allows you to view virtually anywhere on
Earth in 3D using satellite imagery.)
Ed
Delahanty managed to save his bat from the fire, which perhaps helped
him to hit .407 (the entire Phillies outfield, including backup Tuck
Turner, hit over .400 in 1894).
The Phillies first games after the fire were moved to Boston. It was
their first appearance that season in Beantown due to the fire there that
claimed the South End Grounds II and forced those games to be moved to the
Quaker city.
Temporary bleachers were erected to allow the team to finish its home
schedule starting on August 18. The games of August 11, and 14-17 were
played at the University of Pennsylvania Athletic Field.
The rebuilt field was ready for the 1895 season and eventually became
known as the Baker Bowl.
Philadelphia Baseball Grounds!
The Philadelphia
Grounds burned in 1894. The grandstand was
quickly rebuilt and the "new"
ballpark on the same location eventually
became known as the Baker Bowl.
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