Friends of Labatt Park is a grassroots, non-profit (unincorporated) group of volunteers dedicated to "promoting and enhancing

Labatt Park Labatt Memorial Park (formerly Tecumseh Park, 1877–1936) is a baseball stadium near the forks of the Thames River in central London, Ontario, Canada. It is in size, has 5,200 seats and a natural grass field. From home plate to centre field t ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

, as the world's oldest baseball grounds in continuous use in its original location since 1877." In this regard, "Friends" has a custodial fund set up with the City of London's treasurer whereby all donations of $25 or more will result in the donor being issued a tax-deductible receipt by the City of London.

Designating Labatt Park an historic site

The group was first formed in 1993 and was successful in convincing London's city council-of-the-day to designate the municipally owned ball park an

historic site A historic site or heritage site is an official location where pieces of political, military, cultural, or social history have been preserved due to their cultural heritage value. Historic sites are usually protected by law, and many have been rec ...

under Part IV of the '' Ontario Heritage Act'' in 1994 with a plaque unveiling on Canada Day—a ballpark which dates back to 1877 when it was called Tecumseh Park, before it was donated to the City of London by the

Labatt Brewing Company Labatt Brewing Company Limited (french: La Brasserie Labatt Limitée) is a Belgian-owned brewery headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1847, Labatt is the largest brewer in Canada. In 1995, it was purchased by Belgian brewer Int ...

on December 31, 1936.

Amending the park's reasons for designation

In 1996, the group was also successful in having the "reasons for designation" contained in the designating

by-law A by-law (bye-law, by(e)law, by(e) law), or as it is most commonly known in the United States bylaws, is a set of rules or law established by an organization or community so as to regulate itself, as allowed or provided for by some higher authorit ...

of Labatt Park amended to include the 1937, cottage-style clubhouse, built after the Thames River Flood of April 26, 1937, for the

London Majors The London Majors are an independent, minor league baseball team of the Intercounty Baseball League. The team was founded in 1925, and is based in London, Ontario. They play their home games at the 5,200 seat Labatt Memorial Park. Team history ...

and their opponents (subsequently renamed the Roy McKay Clubhouse in 1996) in the

Intercounty Baseball League The Intercounty Baseball League (IBL) is a Canadian amateur baseball league, comprising teams of college players and former professionals from North America and beyond. The teams are located in Southern Ontario. The league was formed in 1919 and ...

. Since that time, the group has helped to raise money for a new cedar-shingle roof on the Roy McKay Clubhouse (via a fundraising ballgame on May 31, 1998, dubbed "The Rumble at the Riverforks"), facilitated the mounting of eight history-related plaques at the stadium, the planting of five indigenous trees and assisted in organizing numerous events at the park, including five annual

Doors Open ''Doors Open'' is a 2008 novel by crime writer Ian Rankin. It was his first stand-alone thriller in over 10 years. The story was originally published as a serial novel in ''The New York Times Magazine''. Plot outline Mike Mackenzie is a soft ...

events, vintage base ball games and other special events where the "Friends" display historical photos and other baseball memorabilia related to the ballpark. The "Friends" have also issued numerous media releases over the years, as well as liaising with the local, regional, national and international media about the history of the ballpark and its activities. In 2006, the "Friends" were responsible for the inclusion of Labatt Park in a 16-month calendar published by American transportation carrier,

Roadway Express Roadway Express, Inc. was an American trucking less than truckload (LTL) trucking company. Roadway Express and its holding company, Roadway Corporation, were acquired by logistics holding company Yellow Corporation in 2003 and the parent companie ...

, entitled "Times of Greatness 2007 calendar" featuring sites important to the history of the Negro leagues. Labatt Park is the only Canadian site featured in the calendar which has a print run of 150,000.

Intercounty Baseball Hall of Fame

In June 2006, the

(IBL) unanimously endorsed establishing an IBL Hall of Fame at Labatt Park. The Friends of Labatt Park are assisting in this proposed initiative, which remains in the early stages of development. On September 7, 2011,

Baseball Canada Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding te ...

announced that historic Labatt Memorial Park in London, Ontario, had won its six-week-long, favourite ballpark contest, winning the final round where it went head-to-head with Port Arthur Stadium in Thunder Bay, Ontario. During the two-week-long, final round of online voting, where more than 19,000 votes were cast, Labatt Park won with 63 per cent of the vote.

References

''Milky Way illuminates Labatt Park'' by James Reaney of ''The London Free Press'', October 2005

* An Eight-Page Indenture/ Instrument #33043 between The London and Western Trusts Company Limited, The Corporation of The City of London and

John Labatt John Labatt (11 December 1838 – 27 April 1915) was a Canadian businessman and brewer. Labatt took charge of Labatt Brewing Company, formally known as Labatt and Company, after his father's death in 1866. Labatt helped Labatt Brewing Company ev ...

, Limited, dated December 31, 1936, and registered on title in the Land Registry Office for the City of London on January 2, 1937, conveying Tecumseh Park to the City of London along with $10,000 on the ''provisos'' that the athletic field be preserved, maintained and operated in

perpetuity A perpetuity is an annuity that has no end, or a stream of cash payments that continues forever. There are few actual perpetuities in existence. For example, the United Kingdom (UK) government issued them in the past; these were known as conso ...

"for the use of the citizens of the City of London as an athletic field and recreation ground" and that it be renamed "The John Labatt Memorial Athletic Park."

External links

Virtual Tour of Labatt Park

Map: location of Labatt Park in LondonThe Friends work to protect Roy McKay Clubhouse

1876 and 1877 Bryce's Baseball Guides

London Majors Web site

Intercounty Baseball Official Site

1920 London Tecumsehs

City of London Web site

* ttps://www.london.ca/city-hall/mayors-office/Pages/Mayor%27s-Honour-List-Archive.aspx Friends' founder (Barry Wells) named to 2006 Mayor's New Year's Honours List for Heritage
Stephen Harding, another member of "Friends" receives 2008 Mayor's New Year's Honours List for Heritage
{{London, Ontario Non-profit organizations based in Ontario History of baseball in Canada Baseball culture Sport in London, Ontario Baseball in Ontario Organizations based in London, Ontario