After Comisky Park in Chicago was demolished in 1987, Rickwood Field of Birmingham, Ala., became the oldest baseball park in America. The park was built for the minor league Birmingham Barons in 1910, and served as their home until 1987, when they moved to a new park.
The future looked grim for Rickwood, which was run down. Luckily, a few good souls in Birmingham decided that the this small piece of American history was worth saving, and the Friends of Rickwood set out to restore the park as a living baseball museum.
Some of the greatest names in baseball played here, even though it was never the home of a major league team. Stars like Leroy "Satchell" Paige, Willie Mays, Reggie Jackson and Pie Traynor called Rickwood Field home.
But baseball history isn't the only kind we discovered at Rickwood. For the better part of the 20th century, Birmingham was one of the most segregated cities in America and Rickwood field was no exception. For 53 years, the Birmingham Black Barons used the park only when the white Barons were out of town.
The Negro League, unlike its all-white counterpart, was the only game in town for blacks in the early part of the 20th century--there was no "minor" Negro League. As a result, many of the Negro League players probably played at the major league level.
We asked the obvious question, "Would the Black Barons have beaten the white Barons?" Most people say they would have, but we'll never know; the two teams that shared one park for decades never played against each other.
When we visited Rickwood, we were free to roam around, run the bases, climb on the scoreboard; it's that kind of place. In the spring and summer, games are played every day in the park except Friday. We watched an "over 30" league game, where we were among only about 20 fans. We were ready to cook our own hotdogs in Murray but were surprised to find that someone was actually selling hot dogs at the gate to the park.
So with hot dogs and soda in hand, we settled in to watch a game. We were treated to double plays, stolen bases, and a gorgeous homer over the left field fence. Even though we didn't know the names of the players, the enthusiasm with which they played made the game just as exciting as many major league games. In some ways, it was more exciting—at Rickwood, there are 92 years of history behind each at bat.
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