Ned Skeldon Stadium, originally opened as Lucas County Stadium, is a

stadium A stadium ( : stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage either partly or completely surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to stand o ...

Maumee, Ohio Maumee ( ) is a city in Lucas County, Ohio, United States. Located along the Maumee River, it is about 10 miles southwest of Toledo. The population was 14,286 at the 2010 census. Maumee was declared an All-America City by the National Civic L ...

. It was primarily used for

baseball 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 tea ...

, and was the home field of the

Toledo Mud Hens The Toledo Mud Hens are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Toledo, Ohio, and play their home games at Fifth Third Field. A Mud Hens team has played in ...

minor league Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nor ...

baseball team. It opened for minor league ball in 1965, and closed for the minors in 2002 when the Mud Hens moved to

Fifth Third Field Fifth Third Field is the name or former name of several minor league ballparks. *Fifth Third Field (Toledo, Ohio), a minor league baseball stadium *Fifth Third Field (Dayton, Ohio), now known as Day Air Ballpark See also * Fifth Third Park, a futu ...

. It held 10,197 people. The stadium replaced Swayne Field, which had been demolished after the previous version of the Mud Hens had folded ten years earlier. Prior to 1965, the ballpark was the racetrack of the Lucas County fairgrounds, a.k.a. Fort Miami Fairgrounds, as far back as 1902. Public official

Ned Skeldon Edward J. "Ned" Skeldon was a Toledo local politician remembered for his promotion of baseball in the fourth most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Biography Politics Ned Skeldon was a longtime advocate for Toledo and Northwest Ohio. A l ...

persuaded area businessmen to sponsor conversion of the stadium for use as a ballpark, for the purpose of reviving the Mud Hens. The racetrack stands were converted into the third-base stands, and additional seating was constructed around the home plate and first base sides, also suites were added that were called "The Diamond Club". The whole area was redeveloped as the Lucas County Recreation Center. The scoreboard at "The Ned" was an old

Fair Play Scoreboards A fair (archaic: faire or fayre) is a gathering of people for a variety of entertainment or commercial activities. Fairs are typically temporary with scheduled times lasting from an afternoon to several weeks. Types Variations of fairs incl ...

model with a small four line message board along the bottom in monochrome that would run small (under 20 frame) animations and text throughout the game. Lucas County Stadium would be the home of the Mud Hens for 37 years. In 1988 the stadium was renamed in honor of Skeldon, a few months before his death. The ballpark is maintained as part of the Lucas County Recreational Center Complex, and continues to be used for amateur baseball. In 2022 Lucas County approved the demolition of the stadium. The photo source in the external links calls the Toledo club "

Corporal Klinger This is a list of characters from the ''M*A*S*H'' franchise, covering the various fictional characters appearing in the novel '' MASH: A Novel About Three Army Doctors'' and its sequels, the 1970 film adaptation of the novel, and the televisio ...

's favorite team". The team's predecessor during the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

played at Swayne Field.

References

External links

Lucas County, OH - Official Website - Rec Center ComplexWriteup on Ned SkeldonPhotos of the old racetrack
Sports venues in Toledo, Ohio Minor league baseball venues Sports venues completed in 1935 1935 establishments in Ohio Baseball venues in Ohio Buildings and structures in Lucas County, Ohio {{Ohio-baseball-venue-stub