Creason: Map solves the riddle of 1893 Los Angeles Angels night game
From Glen Creason at Los Angeles Magazine on April 1, 2015:
When the great Vin Scully puts his golden tonsils to work for the Opening Day of baseball season in Los Angeles this Monday, he will be tacking yet another year on to this city’s long tradition with our national pastime. Believe it or not, there was a night game in Los Angeles on July 2, 1893, even though Major League baseball did not follow suit until 1935. Dogged baseball historians—as resolute a group of researchers as any—have tried to determine the location of that game by studying a microfilm reader; even so, the host park has remained elusive. Enter this old gem of a map.
On the cartogram above, Athletic Park is clearly seen on Alameda Street between 7th and Palmetto, very near to the spot where a Greyhound bus terminal and a McDonald’s stand today. Back in the 1890s, the Los Angeles Athletic Club utilized the space by building a field with a double-deck grandstand that seated 1,500 and bleachers that took in several thousand more. The project seemed like common sense what with Southern California’s temperate climes providing perfect baseball weather.
Read the full article here: http://www.lamag.com/citythinkblog/citydig-this-map-solves-the-riddle-of-the-los-angeles-angels-1893-night-game/
Originally published: April 23, 2015. Last Updated: April 23, 2015.