Memorial Stadium is the current home of the
Indiana State Sycamores
The Indiana State Sycamores are the NCAA Division I intercollegiate athletic teams of Indiana State University. Since the 1977–78 academic year, Indiana State has been a member of the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC). The Indiana State foo ...
football and soccer section in
Terre Haute, Indiana
Terre Haute ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Vigo County, Indiana, United States, about 5 miles east of the state's western border with Illinois. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 60,785 and its metropolitan area had a ...
, United States. The stadium was renovated between 1967 and 1969; it was built to host professional minor league baseball; the Indiana State football team began playing there in 1949.
Memorial Stadium (1924–1967)
Constructed in 1923–1924 by the City of Terre Haute to seat approximately 16,000 people. The stadium and its grounds were used for minor league baseball, semi-pro, high school and college football and baseball, professional boxing, circuses, fireworks exhibitions, ice skating and miscellaneous conventions and other events.
The stadium was officially dedicated on May 4, 1925 and was universally hailed as the nation's finest minor league baseball stadium. Baseball commissioner
Kenesaw Mountain Landis was present to throw out the first pitch of the season opening game between Terre Haute and the
Peoria Tractors. The facility was first home to the
Terre Haute Tots, a minor league team in the
Three-I League; a
Class B team equivalent of today's
Class A baseball. Late, the ballpark hosted the
Terre Haute Phillies, a farm club of the
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...
, and the
Terre Haute Huts
The Terre Haute Huts were a minor league professional baseball team in Terre Haute, Indiana in the Three-I League. The team was in existence from 1955 to 1956, and was affiliated with the Detroit Tigers. They played at Indiana State University
...
, which had a working agreement with the
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...
. Terre Haute's long association (since 1883) with professional baseball ended on July 3, 1956.
Memorial Stadium 1968-present
In 1967,
Indiana State University
Indiana State University (ISU) is a public university in Terre Haute, Indiana. It was founded in 1865 and offers over 100 undergraduate majors and more than 75 graduate and professional programs. Indiana State is classified among "D/PU: Doctor ...
became the first university in the world to own and operate an outdoor artificial playing surface. The stadium, except for its outside wall and memorial arch, was razed in 1968–1969, and converted to a football stadium. The three-part renovation project included: the reorientation of the playing field from a north–south direction to its present east–west configuration; the installation of Astroturf; and the construction of some 4,500 bleacher seats on the north side of the field as well as the rebuilding of seats on the south side. The original arch still remains from the original structure. However, the bleacher seats, installed in 1967, were removed in the summer of 1996 and replaced by a landscaped hill which serves as a general admission section and a site for pregame tailgating for Sycamore fans. As a result, it has little resemblance to the majestic amphitheater constructed in the early Twenties. The field was upgraded in 2009 with a new
FieldTurf playing surface, at a cost of $750,000.
Memorial Stadium, which has a current capacity of 12,764, also hosts the annual High School football game (previously the homecoming game) between Terre Haute rivals North-South as they play for the Victory Bell.
There are tentative plans to construct a new multi-purpose stadium on the Indiana State campus, three miles to the west. Memorial Stadium would likely then be razed, with the exception of the last portion of the original Memorial Stadium, the Arch.
In June 2010, two practice fields were constructed to alleviate scheduling conflicts for practices and provide additional fields for Terre Haute-area youth football and high school programs.
See also
*
Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League
*
List of NCAA Division I FCS football stadiums
The following is a list of current National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA) football stadiums in the United States.
Conference affiliations reflect those for the comi ...
References
External links
Memorial Stadium - Home Of Sycamore Football and Soccer
{{Terre Haute, Indiana
Sports venues in Indiana
College football venues
Buildings and structures in Terre Haute, Indiana
Tourist attractions in Terre Haute, Indiana
Baseball venues in Indiana
Boxing venues in Indiana
1924 establishments in Indiana
Sports venues completed in 1924