On March 14, 1951, per City Council Minutes, a group of citizens composed of Messrs Young, Swearingen, Barney, Stewart, Bulifant, Johnson, Williams and Picardat, appeared before the council and stated they had purchased the baseball franchise from Mr. Dishman’s motion, as Colonial Heights had become a 2nd Class City just four days before, on March 19th! It is interesting that council minutes refer to the “town” in Mr. After subsequent investigation, on MaCouncilman Wilbur Dishman made a motion “that the Town go ahead and rebuild the stands at the Ballpark.” The motion was seconded by Mr. Hatchett of Petersburg in regards to the possible “relocation” of the stands in the Ballpark. Shepherd was instructed by town council to confer with a Mr. Cox declared the thriving, young community to be “the best town in the nation!"įollowing the tragic interruption of World War II, baseball experienced a resurgence that was felt even in Colonial Heights. It was on this memorable occasion that Judge Edwin P. Perhaps the most memorable event in the early history of the Ballpark occurred on September 26, 1936, when hundreds of local residents gathered to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Colonial Heights, then just a small town. There were numerous traveling shows, carnivals and circuses that set up here during the 1930’s and 40’s, along with a constant stream of religious revivals.
Pro player stadium baseball crack#
Early residents of the area still recall the crack of the bat and the roar of the crowds that could be heard through open windows on hot summer nights.īaseball, however, was not the only activity that was hosted by the Ballpark. One of the earliest teams that played here was sponsored by the Colonial Heights Fire Department and known, understandably enough, as “The Firemen.”Įarly ballplayers recall the “big tree” in right field, bicycles lining the foul lines, and the wooden outfield fence that harbored contingents of anxious children waiting to retrieve every precious baseball that left the Ballpark confines. According to local tradition, the Ballpark was constructed in an area known to turn-of-the-century residents as “horse heaven” due to the fact that for many years dead horses and mules were buried here.Īlthough used freely by local farm boys for endless summers of “pick up games,” organized baseball leagues were playing games at the Ballpark by the 1930’s. Earliest memories recall a cleared field with a rickety fence, later replaced by a stronger fence and bleacher seating, and one of the better “diamonds” in the area. Originally, of course, there was no stadium at all. To the “old timers” in Colonial Heights, Shepherd Stadium may always be remembered as simply “The Ballpark.” Indeed, it was by this name that the stadium was known in the late 1920’s and throughout the 1930’s and 40’s.
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