Robison Field

Robison Field
Former names	New Sportsman's Park (1893-1899) (aka Union Park) League Park (1899-1911) Cardinal Field (1917-1920)
Location	Natural Bridge Avenue and Vandeventer Avenue, St Louis, Missouri
Coordinates	38°39′46″N 90°13′20″W / 38.66278°N 90.22222°W / 38.66278; -90.22222Coordinates: 38°39′46″N 90°13′20″W / 38.66278°N 90.22222°W / 38.66278; -90.22222
Opened	April 27, 1893 [1]
Closed	June 6, 1920 [1]
Demolished	before 1926
Surface	Grass
Capacity	14,500 (1893) 15,200 (1899) 21,000 (1909)
Field dimensions	Left Field - 470 ft (1893), 380 ft (1909) Left-Center - 520 ft (1893), 400 ft (1909) Center Field - 500 ft (1893), 435 ft (1909) Right-Center - 330 ft (1893), 320 ft (1909) Right Field - 290 ft (1893) Backstop - 120 ft (1893)
Tenants
St. Louis Cardinals (MLB) (1893-1920)

Robison Field is the best-known of several names given to a former Major League Baseball park in St. Louis, Missouri. It was the home of the St. Louis Cardinals of the National League from April 27, 1893 until June 6, 1920.

History

Today's Cardinals of the National League began in 1882, as the St. Louis Browns of the then-major American Association. They won four championships during the Association's ten-year existence of 1882 through 1891, as well as a World Series win against the National League champion Chicago White Stockings. During that decade, the team was playing their home games at Sportsman's Park, at the corner of Grand and Dodier. In 1892, four of the Association clubs were absorbed into the National League, and the Association folded. Sportsman's Park remained the home of the Browns during their first NL season.

Although the Browns had been the most successful of the Association clubs, they fell on hard times for some years after the merger. For 1893, owner Chris von der Ahe moved his team a few blocks to the northwest and opened a "New" Sportsman's Park, at the corner of Natural Bridge and Vandeventer. The move to this particular site was part of a "deal", as the property had been owned by a trolley company, who then ran a trolley line out near the ballpark.

The ballpark was generations ahead of its time in some ways. Along with the basic stands, Von der Ahe had built an adjoining amusement park, a beer garden, a race track in the outfield, a "shoot-the-shoots" water flume ride, and an artificial lake (used for ice skating in winter). The side show notwithstanding, the club performed poorly on the field for most of the 1890s, consistently finishing at or near last place in the 12-team league as Von der Ahe sold off his best players in order to keep the club solvent.

In 1899, Von der Ahe sold the Browns to Frank and Stanley Robison. By then the ballpark was no longer the "New" Sportsman's Park. During the Robison's tenure, the venue was simply called League Park. It would bear that name through the 1910 season.

The Robison brothers sought to change the image and reverse the fortunes of their team. They dropped the old "Browns" identity, abandoning that team color and switching to Cardinal red. This would yield a new and lasting nickname. However, for 1899 they are known to historians as the "Perfectos".

The Robisons had previously owned the Cleveland Spiders, and in fact still owned them as the 1899 season began (a situation that would not be allowed today). They stripped Cleveland of its best players, including Cy Young, and sent them to St. Louis. If this made the St. Louis club the "Perfectos", it also unfortunately made the Cleveland club the "Wanderers", as they became known when they were forced to play most of that season (their last) on the road. Despite loading up their roster, the previously cellar-dwelling St. Louis club was only able to improve to fifth place.

Cleveland and three other clubs were contracted after the 1899 season. The Cardinals began the 1900 season with less competition, but sank back toward the cellar again. The only thing that kept the baseball situation in balance was that the new Browns of the American League generally fared equally poorly in the pennant races.

The wooden ballpark was plagued by a number of fires, including a serious fire in April of 1898 and another in May of 1901. In its final form, the park was typical for its era: a wooden structure, with a covered grandstand behind home plate and extending to first and third base; open bleachers extending to the left field corner; bleachers in parts of the outfield; and a covered pavilion from first base to the right field corner.

Helene Britton, daughter of Frank Robison, inherited the Cardinals team and the ballpark from her uncle Stanley upon his death in 1911. Helene renamed the ballpark Robison Field as a memorial to her father (who had died in 1908) and her uncle. She held the club for next few seasons, until selling her interest in the team in 1917 to a group that included Sam Breadon.

With the Robison family no longer associated with the team, the park was often called simply Cardinal Field in its final years. Breadon attained majority ownership in 1920 and decided that the nearly three-decades-old wooden ballpark was no longer adequate.

In mid-season 1920 the Cardinals abandoned this ballpark and moved back to Sportsman's Park, making their debut there on June 6. The park had been rebuilt, owned and occupied by the American League version of the Browns since 1902. The "Old" Sportman's Park would outlive the "New" by some four decades.

Legacy

Robison Field was the last remaining major league ballpark that was primarily wooden. The park site continued to be owned by the Cardinals for a few more years. They finally sold the property to the developers of Beaumont High School, which was built on the site and was opened in 1926. After their constant on-field struggles at the old park, the club had begun to improve after their move, and with some fresh cash, they were ready to taste success. 1926 would also be the year of the Cardinals' first modern league and World Series championship.

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "Robison Field". Ballparks.com. http://www.ballparks.com/baseball/national/robiso.htm. Retrieved 2009-03-07. 

• Lowry, Phil. Green Cathedrals: The Ultimate Celebration of All Major League Ballparks. ISBN 9780802715623. 

External links

• Photo of the ballpark in 1901 (with smoke)
• Photo of the ballpark in 1912
• Artist's conception of bird's-eye view
• Project Ballpark facts

Preceded by Sportsman's Park

Home of the St. Louis Cardinals 1893 - 1920

Succeeded by Sportsman's Park