The Beyer Stadium, one mile from downtown in
Rockford, Illinois, was the home of the
All-American Girls Professional Baseball League's
Rockford Peaches
The Rockford Peaches were a women's professional baseball team who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. A founding member, the team represented Rockford, Illinois.
The Peaches were one of two teams to pla ...
from 1943 to 1954.
It was a multi-purpose facility, as contemporary newspaper articles also report high school baseball and football games being played there. Its address in city directories was typically given as 311 15th Avenue.
It began as Kishwaukee Park or simply Rockford Base Ball Park in about 1913 when the Rockford club of the
Wisconsin-Illinois League
The Wisconsin State League was a class D baseball league that began in 1905, changing its name to the Wisconsin–Illinois League in 1908 and operating through 1914. The league re–organized under that name in 1926. Another Wisconsin State League ...
moved into it from their previous home, Riverside Park. That club folded after the 1923 season and sold the ballpark to Rockford High School for use as their athletic field. By 1925 the venue was being called Rockford Municipal Stadium or 15th Avenue Stadium. In 1948 it was renamed in honor of Charles Beyer, long-time high school athletics coach.
There was a "practice field" adjacent to the main stadium, to the east. When the
Rockford Rox
The Rockford Rox was the primary moniker of the minor league baseball teams based in Rockford, Illinois, between 1871 and 1949. In an era of early baseball, Rockford hosted teams in numerous leagues beginning in 1871. From 1916 to 1923, the Rox p ...
minor league club was established in 1947, the Rockford school board gave them permission to configure the field for baseball, fitting it with lights and seating. To distinguish the field from the Peaches' diamond, it was called 15th Avenue Park or Rox Park. The clubs worked out their schedules so they would not both be playing at the same time, thus avoiding potential logistical problems. The Rox struggled financially, and in early August 1949 they became strictly a road team as they finished out their final season. The site of Rox Field is now occupied by the Beyer Early Child Center and parking lots.
Following the closure of the AAGPBL and hence the Rockford Peaches, the stadium continued to be used for local sports, but was eventually abandoned and fell into disrepair. The stands were torn down in the early 1990s.
The film ''
A League of Their Own
''A League of Their Own'' is a 1992 American sports comedy-drama film directed by Penny Marshall that tells a fictionalized account of the real-life All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL). The film stars Tom Hanks, Geena ...
'' raised renewed interest in the women's league, and revival of the ballpark was discussed. In 2004 the Rockford Park District finally approved a proposal to revamp Beyer Park. Proposed improvements include a new
baseball diamond, new lighting, and a track.
A re-dedication of Beyer Stadium occurred on Saturday, June 5, 2010 at 1:00 pm. The history of Beyer Stadium was celebrated as Rockford's "
field of dreams
''Field of Dreams'' is a 1989 American sports fantasy drama film written and directed by Phil Alden Robinson, based on Canadian novelist W. P. Kinsella's 1982 novel ''Shoeless Joe''. The film stars Kevin Costner as a farmer who builds a ...
" for over 70 years, and members of the Rockford Peaches women's baseball team were honored, along with other women who played in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. To commemorate this event, the Friends of Beyer Stadium and other donors have re-created the original score board, created a vintage backstop, and installed a flag pole that features the Rockford Peaches flag.
The revamped ballpark is bounded by 15th Avenue (north, left field); Seminary Street (west, third base); Beyer Early Childhood Center (east, right field); and various buildings to the south. The ticket booth is at 15th and Seminary, near the left field corner.
https://history.rockfordpubliclibrary.org/localhistory/?p=54753
[2] https://www.rrstar.com/photogallery/IR/20100606/PHOTOGALLERY/306069893/PH/1/%E2%80%9D//www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-WF5MZJ9%E2%80%B3
References
{{Reflist
Baseball venues in Illinois
Rockford Peaches
Sports venues in Rockford, Illinois