Shibe Park

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Lore & Background

Ben Shibe quietly assembled the land for the park early in 1907, using straw buyers to keep his name out of dealings and spending $67,500 on seven parcels totaling 5.75 acres. The site was primitive—an area of "high clay bluffs, rain-washed gullies, quagmires, open fields, even ponds" where chickens pecked and pigs rooted. Shibe hired William Steele and Sons, whose engineering staff had worked with steel-reinforced concrete and designed the city's first skyscraper. The signature feature was an octangular tower on the southwest corner, with a domed cupola housing Connie Mack's office. On Opening Day 1909, more than 30,000 fans got in while another 15,000 were turned away. An estimated 7,000 standing-room spectators ringed the outfield, held back by a rope, and another 6,000 watched from rooftops. "It seemed as if all of Philadelphia was there," wrote the Public Ledger.

In Their Own Story

On Monday, April 12, 1909, Opening Day walked a fine line between festival and chaos. Nervous officials closed the gates hours before game time, turning outsiders into a "howling mob of thousands" whose pressure forced open one of the gates. Hundreds poured in without paying. Mayor John E. Reyburn called the new facility a "pride to the city" and threw out the first ball. The A's beat the Boston Red Sox 8–1. In May 1939, the park became the site of the first night game played in the American League. The 1952 All-Star Game held the distinction of being the only All-Star contest shortened by rain, to five innings. The Phillies beat the Montreal Expos 2–1 on October 1, 1970, in the park's final contest. Phillies Hall-of-Fame centerfielder Richie Ashburn remembered: "It looked like a ballpark. It smelled like a ballpark. It had a feeling and a heartbeat, a personality that was all baseball."

Reader's Guide

The Philadelphia Athletics era at Shibe Park covers 1909 to 1954. The team won pennants in 1910, 1911, and 1913, bringing World Series to town. The park was home to "The $100,000 Infield" and later "The Whiz Kids" and "The 1964 Phold" when the Phillies played there. The venue's two home teams won both the first and last games at the stadium. The original 1909 configuration had a double-deck grandstand in the southwest corner, with open pavilion seating extending to the foul poles. The deepest part of center field was 515 feet from home plate. The upper deck was built of wood mounted on steel girders, while the lower deck was concrete and steel. Seating capacity was 23,000: 11,000 in the double deck and 12,000 in the two pavilions. Some 500 tons of steel went into the construction.

Did You Know?

• Shibe Park was baseball's first steel-and-concrete stadium when it opened April 12, 1909.
• The 1952 All-Star Game at Shibe Park was shortened to five innings due to rain and ended in a 3–2 tie, not a full nine innings.
• In May 1939, Shibe Park hosted the first night game played in the American League.
• The deepest part of center field was 468 feet from home plate in the original 1909 configuration.
• Ben Shibe spent $67,500 on seven land packages totaling 5.75 acres, using straw buyers to keep his name out of the dealings.

Architectural Innovation and Design

When Ben Shibe replaced cramped Columbia Park, he hired William Steele and Sons to build baseball's first steel-and-concrete stadium. Finished by April 1909, the building mixed French Renaissance style with modern engineering: red brick walls, terra cotta friezes showing baseball scenes, and an octagonal tower holding team offices and Connie Mack's suite. The plan was egalitarian, meant for working fans and the elite alike—a goal Shibe pushed even though the site near a smallpox hospital was once swampy. Ban Johnson, American League president, called it "the greatest place of its character in the world." The original setup had a 515-foot center field and an upslope terrace in left-center, fitting over 23,000 fans in a double-deck grandstand. The souvenir program on Opening Day called it "a fetching combination of color." Gabled dormer windows on the upper deck's copper-trimmed green-slate mansard roof looked out over the streets below. Presiding over all were terra cotta busts of Shibe and Mack above the main entrances on Lehigh and 21st.

A Dual Legacy of Teams

For six decades, this Philadelphia landmark served as the home for two distinct franchises. From its opening in 1909 until 1954, it hosted the American League's Philadelphia Athletics, a powerhouse that produced legendary groups like 'The $100,000 Infield' under Connie Mack's management. Following the Athletics' departure, the venue found new life as the home of the National League's Philadelphia Phillies from 1938 to 1970, becoming the stage for iconic eras such as 'The Whiz Kids' and the memorable '1964 Phold.' The stadium's history is bookended by victories: the Athletics defeated the Boston Red Sox in the very first game on Opening Day 1909, while the Phillies secured a 2–1 win against the Montreal Expos during the final contest on October 1, 1970. The stadium was five blocks west, corner-to-corner, from the Baker Bowl, the Phillies' home from 1887 to 1938.

Historic Milestones and Events

Beyond regular season play, the venue hosted eight World Series and two Major League Baseball All-Star Games, with the 1952 contest holding the unique distinction of being the only All-Star game shortened by rain to just five innings. In May 1939, it became the site of the first night game played in American League history. Located on a block bounded by Lehigh Avenue and 20th through 21st Streets, just five blocks from the old Baker Bowl, the stadium was served by trolleys running up and down Broad Street and back and forth along Lehigh, and both the Pennsylvania and Reading railroads had major stations nearby. The area had been served by public transportation even before the park was built.

Atmosphere and Cultural Memory

The essence of this ballpark cultivated an atmosphere that longtime broadcaster Richie Ashburn described as possessing a unique 'heartbeat' and personality: "It looked like a ballpark. It smelled like a ballpark. It had a feeling and a heartbeat, a personality that was all baseball." The design elements, from the copper-trimmed mansard roof to the terra cotta busts of Shibe and Mack presiding over the entrances, created a sense of occasion. Bobby Shantz, pitcher for the A's in their last years at Shibe, wrote that the corner tower entrance "looked almost like a church." Shibe was proud of the egalitarianism of the design; he said it was "for the masses as well as the classes." The Philadelphia Public Ledger called it "a palace for fans, the most beautiful and capacious baseball structure in the world."

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