Wrigley Field: The Restoration Process

If you are a baseball fan, you probably not only know most of the players, but are quite familiar with this nations most prestigious and historical ball parks. One of the top ballparks that many baseball fans visit each year is Wrigley Field. Wrigley Field has tons of history and while being the second oldest ball park (Fenway in Boston is the oldest) it continues to hold on to many of the earliest baseball traditions.

Wrigley Field was built in 1914 at a cost of an incredible 250K in today’s dollars. Although the man believed to be the founder -William Wrigley wasn’t always the owner of the park; in 1924, ten years after its construction, William Wrigley, Jr. (famous for chewing gum) bought the team and the field. It should also be noted that this ballpark did have quite a few firsts including the first permanent concession stand and the first ballpark to allow fans to keep foul balls.

Today, Wrigley Field is undergoing a much needed restoration. In fact, the field was in complete disrepair after hosting numerous ball games, concerts and other events. The recent restoration was actually a complete overhaul conducted by the sodfather Roger Bossard. To read more about this historic ballpark along with how the restoration of Wrigley Field took place, please visit our main website at the following link: http://www.smithsonianmag.com/

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Wrigley Field: The Renovation of a Great Ballpark

For baseball lovers, there are a few ballparks left that continue to inspire. Many can say these parks include Fenway in Boston (which happens to be the oldest ballpark left standing), Yankee Stadium (the house that Ruth built- now moving to the lot next door) and Wrigley Field- the home of the Chicago Cubs. Wrigley Field being one of the last great ballparks and also the second oldest has had a wonderful history; however recently, this park was almost past disrepair.

The Wrigley Name
Wrigley Field was built in 1914. In those days, baseball was a past time, but without all the pomp and circumstance that today’s sports receive. The field itself cost about $250,000 in today’s dollars, which is about the price that a high school baseball field costs. Originally, Wrigley Field along with the team was owned by 10 shareholders, however, ten years later in 1926, the ballpark and the team was sold to William Wrigley Jr. of the chewing gum fame and aptly renamed to Wrigley Field- the rest is history.

Fun Facts About Wrigley Field
Enjoying a game at Wrigley Field was and is today legendary. One fun fact about Wrigley Field is that this field was the first to allow fans to keep a foul ball knocked into the stands. This act of generosity immediately became part of the baseball experience in all stadiums and of course still continues today. It was also the first to have a permanent concession stand (can you imagine baseball without hot dogs, peanuts and popcorn).

The Sodfather
Unfortunately, over the decades Wrigley Field itself became damaged almost to the point of disrepair. After countless games, concerts and other events, the field needed a world class replacement- enter the Sodfather Roger Bossard.

Read About the Restoration Process
Roger Bossard was asked to come on board and completely restore Wrigley Field. Beyond the typical field maintenance, the construction, planning and engineering that went on is not only extremely complicated, but fascinating as well. For those interested in how a world class ballpark undergoes a complete restoration Smithsonian Magazine offers an intriguing article. To read this article, please visit our main website at the following link: http://www.smithsonianmag.com/

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Wrigley Field: The Renovation

If you grew up being a baseball fan, you probably know all of the historical ballparks still standing. Many baseball fans make trips each and every year visiting the most unique and interesting ballparks- usually visiting Fenway Park in Boston, Yankee Stadium in the Bronx and Wrigley Field in Chicago. For these parks renovation and reconstruction is part of the process of keeping them maintained and in the public spotlight.

Wrigley Field, one of America’s oldest ball park (second only to Fenway) has gone through its ups and downs. Unfortunately, over the past few years, this park was severely deteriorating from years of ball games, concerts and other events that practically destroyed the field. However, with Wrigley Field in almost complete disrepair, it was up to the man known as the Sodfather to once again reclaim this field’s glory.

Roger Bossards has given his time and expertise to meticulously restoring this great field. Smithsonian Magazine was on site to record this historic event. If you were ever interested in knowing just what goes into a world class field restoration, now is your opportunity to experience the process at Wrigley Field. You can read the Smithsonian Magazine article at the following link: http://www.smithsonianmag.com/

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