Chicago's Wrigley Field (IL)

by Paul Michael Peterson

Wrigley Field is the second oldest ballpark currently in use in the major leagues, but it ranks first in the hearts of Cubs fans. Rooting for the home team from the corner of Clark and Addison to small towns and city streets across the country, generations of Cubs' fans have made that summer pilgrimage to the home of Gabby Hartnett's "Homer in the gloamin'" that clinched the 1938 pennant, Hack Wilson's record 190 RBI season, Ernie Banks' 500th career home run, Sammy Sosa's 60 plus home run seasons, and Kerry Wood's 20-strikeout masterpiece. It was originally built as Wheeghman Park in 1914 to host the Chicago Whales of the upstart Federal League. The Cubs moved in two years later, and, with an 11-inning 7-6 victory over the rival Cincinnati Reds, one of the greatest traditions in all of American sports was established: National League baseball at Chicago's picturesque north side ballpark. Renamed Cubs Park in 1920 and finally Wrigley Field in 1926, the hallmark bricks and ivy, hand operated scoreboard, and high flying "W" (or, regrettably, "L") flag over Wrigley have become longstanding symbols of summertime in the city.

Genres: Baseball

128 pages, Paperback

First published April 4, 2005

Reviews

[Jay French]

If you have a friend that has visited Wrigley Field many times in the past, and like to show you slides of his trips, you've had a preview of what this book has to offer. This is one of those books with plenty of photos. And you get mostly what you expect here - pictures from around Wrigley Field, mostly of the stands. While there are some historic photos, and some pictures of baseball professionals (players, and Bill Veeck), a good percentage of these photos are like family photos from trips to the park. My interest waned while going through this and seeing pictures aimed not at the park but at someone's kids. I'd have liked to see more of the behind-the-scenes locations within the park, like the press boxes, the ramps, the restaurants, the grounds crew storage. I don't recall even seeing a picture from inside the scoreboard here, and they show that a lot on TV. Hit and miss.

[Nick]

This was an exceptionally quick photographic history of Wrigley Field. There's not a lot of actual reading in this one, but it does highlight the evolution of the field. Fun way to kill a little time over the weekend, but not recommended if you're looking for an in-depth study.

[Paul Farahvar]

Great summation of the greatest ballpark in the world. (I am biased as a cubs fan).

[Katherine]

It only took me about 13 years of living in Chicago to finally see the inside of this place. I liked it a lot (and the Cubs winning 13-1 and 8-1 in the games I saw didn't hurt!).