From their formation in 1878 as West Bromwich Strollers, until their move to

The Hawthorns The Hawthorns is an All-seater stadium, all-seater association football, football stadium in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England, with a capacity of 26,688. It has been the home of EFL Championship, Championship club West Bromwich Albion F.C. ...

in 1900,

West Bromwich Albion F.C. West Bromwich Albion Football Club (), commonly known as West Brom or The Albion, is a professional association football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the Englis ...

occupied five different grounds. All of these early grounds were close to the centre of

West Bromwich West Bromwich ( ), commonly known as West Brom, is a market town in the borough of Sandwell, in the county of the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is northwes ...

List of grounds

Cooper's Hill

The club's first ground
Cooper's Hill
was situated between Walsall Street and Beeches Road.Matthews (1987) pp233–234 The site is now occupied by St Philip's Church.

Dartmouth Park

From 1879 to 1881, Albion played additionally at

Dartmouth Park Dartmouth Park is a district of north west London in the London Borough of Camden, north of Charing Cross. The area adjoins Highgate and Highgate Cemetery (to the north) and Kentish Town (to the south). Parliament Hill, London, Parliament Hill ...

, appearing to alternate between here and Cooper's Hill during this time. A local pub, the Globe Inn on Reform Street, served as the teams' changing rooms.

Bunn's Field

Albion's third ground was at Bunn's Field. The ground became known as The Birches, and the team played there for a single season in 1881–82. With a capacity of between 1,500 and 2,000,''Full Throstle'' DVD 0:06:37 it was their first enclosed ground, allowing the club to charge an entrance fee for the first time.Matthews (2007) pp64–66

Four Acres

The increasing popularity of football led the well-established West Bromwich Dartmouth Cricket Club to rent thei
Four Acres
ground to Albion from 1882 to 1885. The cricket club allowed football to be played there only on Saturdays and Mondays. The ground was the venue for the biggest win in Albion's history, when on 11 November 1882 they beat Coseley 26–0. The record attendance at Four Acres was 16,393, for an

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...

match between Albion and

Blackburn Rovers Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second level of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. Th ...

in February 1885. Albion quickly outgrew their new home and soon needed to move again. The Four Acres ground is now Park Crescent, off Seagar St.

Stoney Lane

Albion's tenure o
Stoney Lane
from 1885 to 1900, was arguably the most successful period in the club's history, as the club won the

twice and were runners-up three times. The club built a wooden grandstand that became known as the "Noah's Ark". The stand had a capacity of over 2,000 people and was later transported to

when the club moved there in 1900. It was destroyed by fire on

Guy Fawkes Night Guy Fawkes Night, also known as Guy Fawkes Day, Bonfire Night and Fireworks Night, is an annual commemoration list of minor secular observances#November, observed on 5 November, primarily in Great Britain, involving bonfires and firewor ...

, 1904. The first league game at Stoney Lane took place on 29 September 1888, when Albion beat

Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2021 population of 78,266. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River B ...

4–3. The ground's record attendance of 20,977 was set in March 1895, for Albion's 1–0 victory over Wolves in the FA Cup third round. Albion played their last game at Stoney Lane on 16 April 1900, beating

Nottingham Forest Nottingham Forest Football Club is a professional association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Founde ...

8–0 in front of 5,187 spectators. The expiry of the lease on Stoney Lane, as well as the club's desire for a more spacious location, saw them move once again in 1900. They moved to

, which has been their home ground ever since.

References

;Specific ;General * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:West Bromwich Albion F.C. Former Grounds West Bromwich Albion F.C. Sports venues in Sandwell Defunct football venues in England History of Staffordshire