Vaughn Street Park

Infobox_Stadium
stadium_name = Recreation Park
(Vaughn Street Park)
nickname =
location = NW 24th and NW Vaughn streets
Portland, Oregon
broke_ground = 1901
opened = 1901
closed = 1956
demolished = 1956
owner = E. I. Fuller, C. F. Swigert
operator =
surface = grass
construction_cost =
architect =
tenants = Portland Beavers (PCL)
Portland Rosebuds (West Coast Baseball Association
seating_capacity = 12,000

Recreation Park, more commonly known as Vaughn Street Park or Vaughn Street Stadium or just plain Vaughn Street, was a baseball park located in Portland, Oregon. It opened in 1901, and existed for over fifty years before being torn down in 1956. Its primary tenant was the Portland Beavers Pacific Coast League team. During a stretch when the club was tagged as the "Lucky Beavers", the ballpark was also sometimes called Lucky Beavers Stadium.

Early history

The stadium was built in 1901, financed by E. I. Fuller and C. F. Swigert, two owners of trolley lines that ran nearby. The ballpark was on a block bounded by Northwest Vaughn Street (south), Northwest 24th Avenue (east), and Northwest 25th Avenue (west).

The two financiers hoped to profit from professional baseball, both at the box office and via fares on their trolley lines they believed the stadium would generate. In 1896, Portland's former professional baseball team had folded; a new team, the Portland Webfooters, debuted in 1901. This team would go on to win the PNL (Pacific Northwest League) title that year. The following year, the league merged with the California League to become the Pacific Coast League; the Webfooters, after several name change, settled on the name Portland Beavers.

Initially, the stadium had a single 3000-seat grandstand behind home plate; seating was expanded to 6000 seats in 1905. That year, Portland hosted the Lewis & Clark Centennial Exposition, and the stadium was used for the National Track and Field championships, held concurrently. Baseball was instead played on the grounds of the Portland Athletic Club (later the Multnomah Athletic Club), on a field that is now the current site of PGE Park. With the construction of additional seating in 1912, the park's capacity grew to 12,000 spectators.

Twenties and thirties

In 1926, the stadium received its first serious local competition when the larger and more modern Multnomah Stadium (now PGE Park) opened approximately two miles to the south. It was expected that the baseball team, now christened the Beavers, would move to the newer stadium, but the team elected to stay at Vaughn Street. Multnomah Stadium was instead used for other sporting events, including college football games and greyhound racing.

Vaughn Street Park occasionally hosted other events besides baseball; several prizefights were held there. [http://www.boxrec.com/boxer_display.php?boxer_id=011349] .

Among the notable players to play at Vaughn Street, either for the home team or for the visitors, are Satchel Paige, Joe Tinker, Jim Thorpe, and Ted Williams.

The end of the stadium

During World War II, a new all-black league was formed on the West Coast, the West Coast Baseball Association, which included a Portland team (the Rosebuds). This league lasted only one year (1947), however. Also in 1947, the left field bleachers burned. In 1955, the stadium was bought by new owners, who announced that they would tear it down; the Beavers moved to Multnomah Stadium in 1956. The stadium was razed that same year. The grass field from Vaughn Street was transplanted at Multnomah Stadium, but was later replaced when the newer facility installed an artificial turf in 1969.

Today, the site is an industrial property, with no traces of the stadium remaining except for a plaque.

Dimensions

As per the external link [http://www.oregonstadiumcampaign.com/history_oregon.htm] the dimensions were hitter-friendly:

:Left field - convert|331|ft|m, wall convert|20|ft|m high:Center field - 368 feet (very short for a center field), wall convert|20|ft|m high:Right field - convert|315|ft|m, wall convert|30|ft|m high

References

* [http://www.pdxhistory.com/html/portland_baseball.html PDX History: Portland Baseball]
* [http://www.history.pdx.edu/guildslake/thefair/vaughn1.htm Portland State University Department of History: Vaughn Street Park]
** [http://www.history.pdx.edu/guildslake/photo_gallery/Fair/popup/popup-stadium.htm 1955 aerial photo] (Oregon Historical Society OrHi 5908 - note the sign, "Lucky Beavers Stadium")
* [http://www.oregonstadiumcampaign.com/history_oregon.htm Oregon Stadium Campaign: History of baseball in Oregon]