Recreation Park was a

baseball park A ballpark, or baseball park, is a type of sports venue where baseball is played. The playing field is divided into the infield, an area whose dimensions are rigidly defined, and the outfield, where dimensions can vary widely from place to pla ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

. The ballpark was the first home 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 ...

of the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...

during the years 1883–1886, prior to the opening of the ballpark that became known as Baker Bowl. The park was bounded by 24th Street (east, first base); Ridge Avenue (north, right field); Montgomery Avenue (northwest, center field); 25th Street (west, left field); and Columbia Avenue (south, third base) (which in 1987 was renamed Cecil B. Moore Avenue after the civil-rights leader). The park was not the only one in the area; 14 years later,

Columbia Park Columbia Park or Columbia Avenue Grounds was a baseball park in Philadelphia. It was built in 1901 as the first home of the Philadelphia Athletics, who played there for eight seasons, including two games of the 1905 World Series. Columbia Park ...

, the first home of the

Philadelphia Athletics The Philadelphia Athletics were a Major League Baseball team that played in Philadelphia from 1901 to 1954, when they moved to Kansas City, Missouri, and became the Kansas City Athletics. Following another move in 1967, the team became the Oaklan ...

, opened eight blocks to the west on Columbia Avenue, across the avenue to the south.

1860 to 1882

The field was used at least as early as June 16, 1860, when Equity defeated Pennsylvania 65-52 in what author Charles Peverelly, writing about "the national game", called the "first baseball game played in Pennsylvania." During the Civil War, a cavalry of the Union Army occupied the park. In 1866, with new houses bordering the field, a nine-foot fence was erected and the field was put back in shape for baseball. But it was poorly maintained by 1871 and used less and less. 1882RECPARK

The

Philadelphia Centennials The Centennial baseball club, or Philadelphia Centennials in modern nomenclature, were a short-lived baseball team in the National Association in 1875. They were named the Centennial club during a time when the city of Philadelphia was busy makin ...

of the National Association leveled and resodded the field, built a 10-foot fence, clubhouse and grandstands in 1875. They called it Centennial Park. The team folded after just 14 games and the association followed at the end of the season. With no tenant the park fell into disrepair. During the 1876-1879 period, the lot was used as a horse market. Local newspapers referred to its location variously as Ridge and 23rd, 24th or 25th. Most of the time it was given as 24th.

Philadelphia Phillies (1883-1886)

Alfred J. Reach acquired a five-year lease on the horse market property in 1882, renaming it "Recreation Park". He cleared the grounds, resodded the field, built a three-section wooden grandstand, and fielded the independent team called "Fillies." The next year, Philadelphia joined the National League. The Phillies played their first game ever on April 2, 1883 and defeated the amateur Manayunk Ashlands by the score of 11-0 at Recreation Park. Once the lease had expired following the 1886 season, the club moved into their own new facility, Philadelphia Baseball Park, which they would call home for the next years. There is no historical marker or any indication that a ballpark once stood on this site. As of October 2015, a mini market stands on the corner where home plate was located, and urban housing occupies the area.

References

{{Philadelphia Phillies

External links

Only known photo of Recreation Park1887 birds-eye map showing Jefferson Street grounds and Recreation Park
Defunct sports venues in Philadelphia Defunct baseball venues in the United States Philadelphia Phillies stadiums Baseball venues in Pennsylvania