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Thread: Old Crosley Field Pictures

  1. #61
    Strategery RFS62's Avatar
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    Re: Opening Day 1962 at Crosley Field

    I posted this a few years ago.

    As many of you already know, I grew up in a log cabin back in pioneer times. I understand Abe Lincoln lived there after we moved.

    Anyway, I was thinking recently about how magical an experience it was when I finally got to see a major league baseball game.

    We actually lived in the back of a 100 year old wood frame building, formerly a train station. It was my grandfathers country store, very similar to Sam Drucker's General Store on Green Acres and Petticoat Junction. It was a dry goods store, a grocery store, the post office, and my grandfather and grandmothers home all in one building, I guess about 3000 sf all together.

    It was 50 feet from the railroad tracks on the Norfolk and Western's main line. When a train went by, the house shook, pictures rattled on the walls, you couldn't hear the TV set. But I thought the whole world was like that, and I actually thought we were wealthy, as we had a car and owned a business in this little town of 150 in the farthest backwoods of West Virginia.

    After becoming totally addicted to baseball as a 6 year old, my mom, the only single mother anyone knew back in the day, saved all her money for what I now know to be quite some time to take my brother and I to Cincinnati to see my beloved Reds.

    We actually whistle stopped the train behind the house, the N&W Pohattan Arrow, which ran from Norfolk to Cincinnati. You stood out by the tracks with your suitcase and flagged it down, and they stopped.

    For a 9 year old kid who had never been 50 miles from home, everything about the experience was magical. The train ride took about six hours, I believe. And the scenery was beautiful, a fantastic way to travel.

    So many things about the trip are still ingrained in my memory. When we got to Union Station in Cincinnati, I thought I had landed in Oz.

    We took a taxi to downtown Cincinnati and stayed at the old Sheraton. Everything about it was mesmerizing. Buildings the likes of which I'd only seen on TV. The buzz of the city. I thought I was in Manhattan, relative to where I lived.

    Then the long awaited day arrived. We took a bus to Crosley Field, the equivalent of a pilgrimage to Mecca in my mind. I was beside myself with excitement.

    We passed through the turnstiles, into the concourse and made our way to our section's portal.

    The next memory I have from that trip is one which I've drawn on many times in my life. As we walked up the ramp towards the usher and stepped out of the portal and saw the vast expanse of the field, the brilliant green of the grass, the crowd, the bleachers, the players on the field taking batting practice, I thought I had died and gone to heaven. I stood there in amazement for a moment, just taking it all in, without a doubt the happiest moment of my life.

    I really don't remember much about the game, other than Frank Robinson made a really nice sliding catch on a tough chance and my hero, Johnny Edwards, had a couple of hits.

    But I'll never forget that first step through the portal into a world I had only dared to dream about, a world I have loved every day since then.

    Now, every time I go to a game, no matter who I'm with, I do the same thing. I go to the nearest portal once I get in the gate and stand there, taking in the field, and thinking about that day.

    I stand there and think about the things that are good and decent in the world, and the childlike wonder that sports can bring out in all of us. I think about how much I loved playing and still miss it so badly. I think about the wonderful experiences I've had in baseball over the years and how much joy it gave me to take my son to his first game.

    And most of all, I think about the sacrifices my single mother had to make to take us there, our only vacation of the year, and she picked something she knew I loved. It was just a weekend series, but it meant the world to me.
    We'll go down in history as the first society that wouldn't save itself because it wasn't cost effective ~ Kurt Vonnegut

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  4. #62
    Member cumberlandreds's Avatar
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    Re: Opening Day 1962 at Crosley Field

    Here's a shot of Crosley from the 1940 World Series. Detroit's lineup is on the left of the scoreboard. This from Lost Ballparks Twitter account. I will change the name of this thread to Old Crosley Pictures. There seems to be a lot interest and feedback. So we can have some fun looking at these old pictures that I come across.

    Last edited by cumberlandreds; 08-12-2016 at 07:37 AM.
    Reds Fan Since 1971

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  6. #63
    Member cumberlandreds's Avatar
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    Re: Old Crosley Field Pictures

    One more for today I couldn't pass up. It's a good shot of the Moon Deck. There's even a sign saying Moon Deck. This is a Life photo. No year given. Can anyone name the players in the photo? Looks like Big Klu on the mound giving the pitcher advice or heck? I have no idea for the others.

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CoJPGqwWAAAQX1m.jpg:large
    Reds Fan Since 1971

  7. #64
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    Re: Old Crosley Field Pictures

    #11 is McMillan, #16 is Temple. I'm working on the others.

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  9. #65
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    Re: Old Crosley Field Pictures

    Possibly Alex Grammas come in from 3rd base, Hal Jeffcoat coming out of the game, Wally Post in RF. 1956?

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  11. #66
    Knowledge Is Good Big Klu's Avatar
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    Re: Old Crosley Field Pictures

    It has to be 1956. That was the only season they wore dark caps (red) with the sleeveless jerseys. In 1957 they switched to white caps.

    Looks like Birdie is escorting Jeffcoat bact to the dugout.
    Last edited by Big Klu; 08-12-2016 at 08:54 AM.
    Eric Stratton, Rush Chairman. Damn glad to meet ya.

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  13. #67
    6 months of heartbreak Bob Borkowski's Avatar
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    Re: Old Crosley Field Pictures

    Quote Originally Posted by HokieRed View Post
    Possibly Alex Grammas come in from 3rd base, Hal Jeffcoat coming out of the game, Wally Post in RF. 1956?
    That could be Grammas but Ray Jablonski played third base most of the time in 1956.

  14. #68
    breath westofyou's Avatar
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    Re: Old Crosley Field Pictures

    1956 Life on 6/4 had a piece on the Redslegs

    https://books.google.com/books?id=oE...issues_r&cad=1

    https://books.google.com/books?id=oE...page&q&f=false

    The next year Time had a cover story on Birdie



    Life's best baseball photos

    http://time.com/18039/baseball-class...life-magazine/

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  16. #69
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    Re: Old Crosley Field Pictures

    I knew leftfield had a slope but did rightfield also have one? It looks like it slightly slopes in the 1956 photo.

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  18. #70
    breath westofyou's Avatar
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    Re: Old Crosley Field Pictures

    Quote Originally Posted by Cooper View Post
    I knew leftfield had a slope but did rightfield also have one? It looks like it slightly slopes in the 1956 photo.
    No, RF was flat and the dimensions changed often

    right field: 360 (1912), 384 (1921), 400 (1926), 383 (early 1927), 377 (late 1927), 366 (1938), 366 (1938), 342 (1942), 366 (June 30, 1950), 342 (1953), 366 (1958)

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  20. #71
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    Re: Old Crosley Field Pictures

    Quote Originally Posted by westofyou View Post
    No, RF was flat and the dimensions changed often

    right field: 360 (1912), 384 (1921), 400 (1926), 383 (early 1927), 377 (late 1927), 366 (1938), 366 (1938), 342 (1942), 366 (June 30, 1950), 342 (1953), 366 (1958)
    Depending on if they had any good Left handed power hitters?
    WHEN DOES IT STOP!?!?

  21. #72
    breath westofyou's Avatar
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    Re: Old Crosley Field Pictures

    Quote Originally Posted by Z-Fly View Post
    Depending on if they had any good Left handed power hitters?
    A lot of these changes are related to moving HP out as well as adding seats in the OF. The parks built in that ear didn't have OF seats n most cases, just a grand stand and long baseline seating. As the parks grew they added seats in the OF and shrank the OF area. Redland, Forbes and Braves field were crazy big and the amount of triples before the OF seats were insane compared to the rest of the league

  22. #73
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    Re: Old Crosley Field Pictures

    Quote Originally Posted by Bob Borkowski View Post
    That could be Grammas but Ray Jablonski played third base most of the time in 1956.
    Looks more like Grammas to me; Jablonski was more compact and seemed heavier. Also likely the worst fielding third baseman in Reds history.
    Last edited by HokieRed; 08-12-2016 at 02:37 PM.

  23. #74
    Member kpresidente's Avatar
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    Re: Opening Day 1962 at Crosley Field

    Quote Originally Posted by cumberlandreds View Post
    Here's a shot of Crosley from the 1940 World Series. Detroit's lineup is on the left of the scoreboard. This from Lost Ballparks Twitter account. I will change the name of this thread to Old Crosley Pictures. There seems to be a lot interest and feedback. So we can have some fun looking at these old pictures that I come across.
    Those signs in the background make me realize an under appreciated part of progress is the development of fonts. That Gothic is terrible!

  24. #75
    breath westofyou's Avatar
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    Re: Old Crosley Field Pictures

    https://books.google.com/books?id=6k...page&q&f=false

    The above story in Life has this image


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