Polo Grounds [IV] / Brush Stadium (1911-1963)

[Lpeters199]

http://www.t3licensing.com/video/clip/5110034AA7418_013.do?assetId=clip_14000401&keywords=polo%2Cgrounds

http://www.t3licensing.com/video/clip/541008_008.do?assetId=clip_8020328&keywords=polo%2Cgrounds

http://www.t3licensing.com/video/clip/1617571_013.do?assetId=clip_6502420&keywords=polo%2Cgrounds

http://www.t3licensing.com/video/clip/5112796318_003.do?assetId=clip_10814148&keywords=polo%2Cgrounds

http://www.t3licensing.com/video/clip/331715_004.do?assetId=clip_5162852&keywords=polo%2Cgrounds

http://www.t3licensing.com/video/clip/331802_012.do?assetId=clip_3774024&keywords=polo%2Cgrounds

http://www.t3licensing.com/video/clip/1B012258_013.do?assetId=clip_29275698&keywords=polo%2Cgrounds

http://www.t3licensing.com/video/clip/587014_043.do?assetId=clip_10852800&keywords=yankee%2Cstadium

[alpineinc]

New York Tribune, Thursday, June 29, 1911. PG reopens (PG IV). Article truncated (very long). Mathewson standing center right, McGraw sitting at right. The partially completed grandstand in the photo is very interesting indeed. And, the Boston Terriers?

109655
Larger size (http://i.imgur.com/GAJ3B.jpg)

[Mygirljess]

Hear, hear. Thanks for posting it. Who is standing with him? His mother, perhaps? What a poignant moment, for him and the fans of his former city and that SF uniform on that storied field.

I doubt that's his mother. Willie's parents never married, and his Aunt Sarah played the maternal role in his life. Maybe that is her in the picture.

[StanTheMan]

More from the 6/1/62 LIFE photo shoot.

This one has also definitely been here before, but is just an amazing photo of Willie coming out of the clubhouse that day.

http://i270.photobucket.com/albums/jj90/alpineinc/19626-1-1962WILLIEMAYS.jpg


http://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/POLOGROUNDS1962/files/

I never noticed before... But the wire mesh which was cut away on the window in Durocher's office - used to steal signs in late 1951 had long since been repaired. I wonder when?

[alpineinc]

An interesting view behind the Grant plaque here. John "Jack" Scott, 1922.

109683
Larger size (http://www.mearsonlineauctions.com/LotImages/20/16105a_lg.jpeg)

http://www.mearsonlineauctions.com/LotDetail.aspx?lotid=16105

[Lpeters199]

The lines on this picture are supposed to point to the Miracle Ball, but I disagree. I think the ball has already bounced off someone's hands when this picture was taken and is in the left box I've drawn in a blowup of the Pafko at the wall shot. The right box is the area that the lines point to. I don't disagree with the book's analysis, but I think the ball is in the left box, not the right box. Any comments?

[StanTheMan]

Interesting I guess, but there are problems at first glance.

The shadows and light on your object are not consistent with a backlit spherical object.

If the ball entered the stands somewhere near where the eyes are all tracking it in the photo only to go to the box you drew after that, how did the person who ended up with the ball get it? I won't name that person here, or point them out in the photo, as that is part of the fun of the book.

That said, I have a question for you...

The GLOVE with the ball in the photo (right side box, not yours)... Whose hand and glove is it in your opinion? The glove appears to be horizontal, no? But is it thumb closest to ground and pinky above or the other way around?

[Lpeters199]

I don't see a ball in a glove. If my box doesn't show a baseball, then what is it, and what should it look like if it were a ball? As for who ended up with the ball, any of those people could have picked it up, depending on where it bounced and/or rolled.

[alpineinc]

New York Evening World, April 15, 1911, just after the fire:

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Evening World, June 28, 1911, PG IV built:

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[StanTheMan]

I don't see a ball in a glove. If my box doesn't show a baseball, then what is it, and what should it look like if it were a ball? As for who ended up with the ball, any of those people could have picked it up, depending on where it bounced and/or rolled.

It's too bright white to be a ball with all those spectators BETWEEN
it and the sun. It does not appear to be spherical enough. It could be the white of a mans shirt, below a bow tie.

Have you read or watched Miracle Ball? The image investigation beyond the analysis of the eye paths is solid, including identifying a ROUND object in mid-air. I also feel Biegel figured out who had the ball all these years and why they never came forward is simple. The person is to the RIGHT portion of the photo, away from where you're suggesting the ball careened. If indeed the ball went as far left as you're suggesting, it would have been tough for them to get it. Not that they could not have been GIVEN the ball, but they had it immediately after the homer. It's quite unlikely they could pick it up or catch it if the ball crossed the wall close to where the eyes are pointed, then went to your box.

Also, why would all those people be looking at location X, if the ball was at location Y? And are there any people looking at location Y?

[ol' aches and pains]

My eyesight isn't what it used to be, but I don't see anything resembling a baseball in either picture.

[StanTheMan]

On a computer monitor or phone, no.

With photo analysis equipment used by NYCPD and the FBI, on an original photo that was huge... Much different views and conclusions. I am beyond convinced that the ball is in mid-air, about to hit a glove, in the box on the right, exactly where everyone is gazing and above people who are DUCKING.

Read/Watch Miracle Ball (one of my personal top 5 favorite books) and it is easy(easier) to see.

[Lpeters199]

I haven't read Miracle Ball. I'm just looking at a picture, both standard size and zoomed. In the original Pafko at the wall picture, I can see a white object that looks like a baseball. Zoomed in it isn't perfectly spherical, granted. But the slower cameras of the day often caught a ball in motion as a partial blur.

All the people in the pictures are not gazing at the same spot. Some are looking at the front row, where I contend the ball might have bounced off a fan's hands--possibly even off the top of the wall--and rebounded up and to the left. I don't see anything else in that picture that resembles a ball.

If the Pafko original were simply a picture with no context, wouldn't a person pick out that white object as a ball?

[alpineinc]

It's a bright white spot, similar to a ball, but with the photo zoomed it, the white area appears more like the man's white shirt below his bow tie. It's not really terribly round. But, yeah, I don't really see a ball on the right either. I guess that's why forensics were needed to figure it out, lol.

[Lpeters199]

Thanks for the input, guys. Back on page 323 I posted some pictures that I converted to 3D with a free program from the Internet. You need red/blue 3D glasses to view them, which are also available free from this site: http://www.rainbowsymphony.com/freestuff.html

I'll post five more here and hope someone has glasses to view them with. If you don't send for a pair, you're missing the boat. The third dimension adds realism to the stadium pictures we all love. People often don't like to try new things, but I guarantee you'll enjoy these pictures.

I'm thinking of starting a thread of 2D to 3D conversions, but I need some positive input before I start one. Thanks.

[chip]

New York Evening World, April 15, 1911, just after the fire:

109711

They made a mistake - The ballpark on the bottom right is Comiskey Park not the Pittsburg's Grounds

[StanTheMan]

I haven't read Miracle Ball. I'm just looking at a picture, both standard size and zoomed. In the original Pafko at the wall picture, I can see a white object that looks like a baseball.

The book explains very clearly the scientific methodS used, including that which identifies the ball as STILL in mid air in the photo, in plain sight all these years (albeit hard to find with the naked eye).

Also, the white spot that is probably a portion of a shirt below the mans bowtie.... it's simply not possible for that to be the ball. The sunlight was entering from BEHIND section 35, and slightly over his right shoulder. The sunlit portion of the ball is very specific, and is discussed in the book as well.

The side of the ball facing the camera would not be as brightly lit as your white spot is.


I highly recommend the book...

[JOVE23]

It's a bright white spot, similar to a ball, but with the photo zoomed it, the white area appears more like the man's white shirt below his bow tie. It's not really terribly round. But, yeah, I don't really see a ball on the right either. I guess that's why forensics were needed to figure it out, lol.

I definitely concur with this. (It's a shame nobody dresses nice to go to ballgames anymore.)

[chinese home run]

New York Tribune, Thursday, June 29, 1911. PG reopens (PG IV). Article truncated (very long). Mathewson standing center right, McGraw sitting at right. The partially completed grandstand in the photo is very interesting indeed. And, the Boston Terriers?

109655
Larger size (http://i.imgur.com/GAJ3B.jpg)

I have a copy of the New York Times' account of the game and it was said about Mathewson's performance, "It's as easy for Matty to defeat Boston as it is for you to eat strawberry shortcake." Well, that's a new one on me. (LOL)

[chinese home run]

I doubt that's his mother. Willie's parents never married, and his Aunt Sarah played the maternal role in his life. Maybe that is her in the picture.

It wouldn't have been his Aunt Sarah, either- she died in 1954.

[Lpeters199]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Original-Photo-NEW-YORK-GIANTS-LITTLE-GIANTS-Polo-Grounds-/261042341750?pt=Vintage_Sports_Memorabilia&hash=item3cc7560776

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1938-Original-Photo-JOHNNY-VANDER-MEER-Reds-JEERED-at-POLO-GROUNDS-/251081931535?pt=Vintage_Sports_Memorabilia&hash=item3a75a63b0f

[alpineinc]

Two great shots. Had to follow the link to find out more about the second one (6/23/38), with Johnny Vander Meer likely hearing it from the crowd after getting roughed up a week after his second of two consecutive no-hitters. But Vandy had the last laugh and was the winning pitcher in an 8-5 contest.

[Lpeters199]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1920s-Original-Photo-N-Y-GIANTS-Automobiles-at-POLO-GROUNDS-/280898197505?pt=Vintage_Sports_Memorabilia&hash=item4166d65801

[elpablo302]

Looks like Yankee Stadium, not Polo Grounds. The sweep of the backstop in the photo is too dramatic, not as wide and gradual as Polo Grounds.

[Lpeters199]

Looks like Yankee Stadium, not Polo Grounds. The sweep of the backstop in the photo is too dramatic, not as wide and gradual as Polo Grounds.

I think you're right--good observation. I'll post it in the OYS thread also, along with your post.

[alpineinc]

Alternate universe? No, just the Babe playing for the Giants in a charity game on October 3, 1923 against the IL Orioles, and he hit a home run that cleared the right field stands for good measure as well. And in his next game at the Polo Grounds 8 days later, he would hit 2 HRs against McGraw's Giants in Game 2 of the '23 WS.

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http://www.ebay.com/itm/MLB-Babe-Ruth-New-York-Yankees-in-a-Met-Uniform-RARE-8x10-/170821393332?pt=Vintage_Sports_Memorabilia&hash=item27c5bf9bb4

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[Chef Bill]

Great photo and story, Alpine! Absolutely awesome. Can you imagine in this day and age the Yankees allowing Derek Jeter to suit up with the Mets - even for a charity game?

[alpineinc]

Great photo and story, Alpine! Absolutely awesome. Can you imagine in this day and age the Yankees allowing Derek Jeter to suit up with the Mets - even for a charity game?

Ha ha, yeah, every photo I find I try to dig up the story behind it, and some are pretty darn interesting. This one does almost take the cake. Not only are they inter-city rivals, but facing each other in the WS the following week, AND, posing for a photo with the owner! And like you said, but go a little further, like Jeter preparing to play short for the Mets at SHEA a week before the '00 Series, and posing in a Mets uniform with Fred Wilpon in the Mets' dugout!! Somehow, I can't see it happening, lol. And the fans in the stands behind them would be a BIT more involved, I'd say!

[alpineinc]

The Babe, late 1922 (dated 9/23/22, but the Yanks' last home game was 9/10/22, oddly enough playing their last 18 games on the road). Also just BP, Ruth didn't play first at the PG in 1922. Bain photo. Note the relatively new Eddie Grant memorial in the background.

http://i.imgur.com/F9I5o.jpg
Massive size (http://i.imgur.com/F9I5o.jpg)

http://sports.ha.com/c/item.zx?saleNo=7041&lotNo=81226#Photo

[alpineinc]

Boxer Jack Sharkey shakes hands with Giant catcher Shanty Hogan on 6/11/30, the day before his big fight against Max Schmeling for the world heavyweight title, which was held at Yankee Stadium the next night. Schmeling would win the crown on a low blow disqualification of Sharkey in the 4th round. Sharkey would make his way back and defeat champion Schmeling in a controversial split-decision in 1932 (at the Madison Square Garden Bowl in Long Island City), to finally become champ (until 1933).

http://res.lelands.com/Zip/Image?path=/public/auctionimages/0/35/35381/46422a.jpg

http://res.lelands.com/Zip/Image?path=/public/auctionimages/0/35/35381/46422b.jpg

http://www.lelands.com/Auction/AuctionDetail/35381/January-2007-Lelands-Gaynor/Internet-Only/Baseball-Memorabilia/Lot279~Jack-Sharkey-At-The-Polo-Grounds-(1930)?page=8

[Lpeters199]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/July-1920-Mid-Week-Pictorial-Babe-Ruth-Yankees-vs-Red-Sox-Polo-Grounds-Man-O-War-/280903801722?pt=Vintage_Sports_Memorabilia&hash=item41672bdb7a

http://www.ebay.com/itm/CLIPPED-PAGE-PHOTO-TY-COBB-BABE-RUTH-1920-NEW-YORK-CITY-POLO-GROUNDS-/261048987538?pt=Art_Photo_Images&hash=item3cc7bb6f92

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Polo-Grounds-1951-NYC-Across-8th-Ave-5-x-7-Photo-/370625064091?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item564af9ac9b

[Mario Mendoza...HOF Lock]

Man, away for a while and the great photos continue to come. A lot of good ones here lately (and in the other threads).

This auction (http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&_trksid=p4340.l2557&hash=item564aed6eec&item=370624261868&nma=true&pt=US_Football_Fan_Shop&rt=nc&si=s4g5yRQbzKnkuS4V5utGEEx9oF0%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc) made my day. Can anyone be this clueless?


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[alpineinc]

Ha, just slap that baby proudly on the back of the old Model T, lol.

Welcome back, MM.

[StanTheMan]

Quite tempted to send the seller a few questions, just to see what comes back..

Was it your great great or great great great grandfather that was there that day?

Is the sticker cotton or linen - as vinyl was not invented yet when the ballpark opened. Neither was the bumper.

Why is the Polo Grounds shaped funny in the photo in your auction?

If I were to have Ralph Branca, a baseball pitcher, sign your football sticker, do you think it would be worth more or less than a frozen pizza, and why?

[alpineinc]

Albeit blurred, nice LOC shots of the second deck under construction, 1911. Chief Meyers and Buck Herzog doing BP.

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110435

http://www.flickr.com/photos/library_of_congress/2163527762/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/library_of_congress/2162914441/

[alpineinc]

1911 World's Series, Giants and A's, little groundskeeping and goings-on at home plate. Love the kid's Giants cap.

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http://www.flickr.com/photos/library_of_congress/2163821634/

[J.E.Fullerton]

Albeit blurred, nice LOC shots of the second deck under construction, 1911. Chief Meyers and Buck Herzog doing BP.


Wow, 1911 PG construction pics...there's a real rarity! I think there was only one other of them earlier in this thread, just showing the pilings for the lower deck.

[alpineinc]

Wow, 1911 PG construction pics...there's a real rarity! I think there was only one other of them earlier in this thread, just showing the pilings for the lower deck.

Yeah, there was the one from the New York Tribune article I posted a little while back from the first day PG IV opened; the more typical press photos of the group of celebrants, including the ones in the LOC, take the group head on, but thankfully the Tribune photog was off to the side, and captured a very rare shot of the just begun second tier in the background. And the only one where Matty's prominent as well.

http://www.baseball-fever.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=109655&d=1339133917

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[alpineinc]

Very interesting shot here. This appears to be right at the end of the second tier construction; the tier looks complete, but the scaffolding is still in place. The black uniform shows that this dates from the 1911 World's Series, so this photo must be one of the first workouts before the fall classic (also, Giant George Burns in the foreground is not in a WS uniform, and played a few games in '11 but was not on the WS roster). Also, oddly enough, there are a fair amount of fans in the right field bleachers. A photo I just posted yesterday has a similar angle, with the scaffolding removed, done before actual play.

110449

http://www.flickr.com/photos/library_of_congress/2163074881/


Blurb about the completion of the glorious frieze, in time for the '11 WS:

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[alpineinc]

"The Boston Delegation", as the sign says, or otherwise known as the infamous Red Sox Rooters, Game 1, '12 WS.

110460

http://www.flickr.com/photos/library_of_congress/2787141420/

[alpineinc]

Another shot of the Babe in a Giants uniform for the exhibition game preceding the '23 WS, mentioned a few days ago here. Pitcher Jack Bentley was an actual Giant, on the right. Jack Dunn, center, was the owner of the Baltimore Orioles, and signed Ruth to his first professional contract in 1914, when Ruth was 19 years old. He then sold Ruth to the Red Sox later that season.

What might have been for the Giants and the Polo Grounds with Babe on the team through the '20's?

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http://www.flickr.com/photos/library_of_congress/2889437283/

[alpineinc]

Smaller, but a cool fan photo from 1934.

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3084/3191554253_f14082a33e_z.jpg?zz=1

http://www.flickr.com/photos/22360767@N05/3191554253/

[alpineinc]

I'm sure this has been here before, but it's such a great shot.

110618

http://www.flickr.com/photos/thearchiveonline/5495050781/

[alpineinc]

Interesting colorization from the 1917 WS.

110619

http://www.flickr.com/photos/23481859@N03/7425833788/

[Robbyb26]

That's actually a very good colorization

[kfeser]

I thought The Giants wore a Purple color that year??

[Lpeters199]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Willie-Mays-Rips-Hit-at-Polo-Grounds-8x10-Photo-New-York-Giants-Mets-/170872973056?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27c8d2a700#ht_2493wt_826

[Fedleaguer]

I thought The Giants wore a Purple color that year??

I am not sure how or when they were used, but they also wore a pinstripe jersey with navy blue trim that year. Their main uniforms did have violet trim and accents.

[alpineinc]

..........

[Lpeters199]

http://www.baseball-fever.com/showthread.php?56604-Polo-Grounds-IV-Brush-Stadium-(1911-1963)&p=2022794#post2022794

The link above started a discussion on the Miracle Ball. Everyone disagreed with me that the ball I boxed in was the actual home run ball. Since then I've begun converting flat pictures to 3D anaglyphs, and they support my contention that the round white object wasn't part of a man's shirt. In the 3D conversion the ball is clearly in the air and stands out closer to the viewer than the fan's shirt.

The first picture is a flat photo of the shirt man's section. The second is a 3D anaglyph the same size as the flat picture, then two more 3D enlargements of the same picture. The depth in the anaglyphs shows that the white sphere stands out from the crowd, and the fans around it are looking in its direction--not where Miracle Ball in the book is supposed to be. Anyone who still disagrees should send for 3D red/cyan glasses and view the pictures with them. They just might change your mind.

[Lpeters199]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1957-NEW-YORK-GIANTS-8X10-B-W-PHOTOGRAPHS-54-PHOTOS-POLO-GROUNDS-/230821790086?pt=Vintage_Sports_Memorabilia&hash=item35be0d0186

[POLO GROUNDS 1957]

110879
Here is a nice drawing

[POLO GROUNDS 1957]

110880

Another drawing.

[POLO GROUNDS 1957]

110881

Another drawing

[POLO GROUNDS 1957]

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5-31-1962 Polo Grounds

[POLO GROUNDS 1957]

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8-21-1968 plaque on Polo Grounds site.

[alpineinc]

WELCOME BACK DONALD!!

Thought you were gone forever. Looking forward to more of your posts, especially of the old PG.

[POLO GROUNDS 1957]

Thanks for the welcome, its great to be back.

[JOVE23]

You're the resident expert on the Polo Grounds! There's a thread on here where bkhockey (who's just about done with his STUNNING 3D rendering of Yankee Stadium in 1923) tries to start the 3D treatment for the PG, but the place's weird geometry kinda put it on the back burner. Maybe you can help him some?

[alpineinc]

PG IV detail from "Layout of Baseball Parks", Osborn Engineering Co.

111241

https://picasaweb.google.com/joeypdrain/LeaguePark#5227034205401664610

[Gary Dunaier]

This auction (http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&_trksid=p4340.l2557&hash=item564aed6eec&item=370624261868&nma=true&pt=US_Football_Fan_Shop&rt=nc&si=s4g5yRQbzKnkuS4V5utGEEx9oF0%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc) made my day. Can anyone be this clueless?


110431

The "Polo Grounds" connection is that the program, from the very first NY Football Giants game, is a reprint that was given to fans attending the first game at Giants Stadium. Unfortunately, the seller appears/appeared to be selling it as an original, not a reprint.

[SultanOfWhat]

Nice version of this one from October 15, 1912:

http://i1076.photobucket.com/albums/w459/bucket4nyy/Poloshare21912.jpg


October 1937 (next 2):

http://i1076.photobucket.com/albums/w459/bucket4nyy/Poloshare41937Oct.jpg


http://i1076.photobucket.com/albums/w459/bucket4nyy/Poloshare51937Oct.jpg




Couldn't find the other Polo grounds threads for the older versions (before 1911) so I'll post these here:


Caption not much help, says 1880-99. Maybe someone could narrow that down. Love the smoke rising from the locomotive and from the chimneys on the left:

http://i1076.photobucket.com/albums/w459/bucket4nyy/Poloshare31880-1899.jpg



The Bridge in 1902:

http://i1076.photobucket.com/albums/w459/bucket4nyy/Poloshare11902.jpg

[Lpeters199]

3D conversion of Sultan's pic.

[alpineinc]

Dodger Augie Galan, 1946.

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http://www.ebay.com/itm/1946-Augie-Galan-Brooklyn-Dodgers-Original-Acme-News-Press-Wire-Service-Photo-/150858447630?pt=Art_Photo_Images&hash=item231fdd3b0e#ht_500wt_1204


Could go for one of Mrs. Wagner's pies right about now.

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[Chef Bill]

I don't recall if these have been posted before. If there are any questions about what the color scheme of the Polo Grounds was in 1952, these shots should answer them...

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Giants vs. Philadelphia, 9/5/52 - http://www.tumblr.com/tagged/polo-grounds?before=1339130365


These were taken at a celebration for the birthday of Pope Pius VII in 1956...


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http://www.tumblr.com/tagged/polo-grounds

[Chef Bill]

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[Chef Bill]

Great video about the history of the Polo Grounds - Be sure to watch in Full Screen mode...

http://vimeo.com/28966444#

[alpineinc]

The baseball pic(s) have been here before, LPeters made the discovery - there's a lot of photos in that set, and I was able to post many larger versions of them - it might be the best overall color PG set that exists, and is absolutely outstanding - check 'em all a few pages back.

I don't think the second set has been here before, but I'd put it alongside the baseball set - it is equally stunning!! Glorious find.

[alpineinc]

Couple more good ones in that PG tumbler.

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[SultanOfWhat]

1897 Polo Grounds New York Giants NYC
http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Polo1.jpg


The Polo Grounds as the National League Champion New York Giants were playing their last game of the 1913 baseball season before they would begin play in the World Series against the Philadelphia Athletics. The Giants defeated the Philadelphia Phillies in a double-header played on October 4 to finish the season in first place in the National League 101-51. The Giants became the first NL team since the Chicago Cubs to win three consecutive pennants and the second club since the Detroit Tigers to lose three consecutive World Series as they were defeated by the Athletics 4 games to one. The photograph is back stamped and dated “Oct 6 1913” from the archive from which it came.
http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Polo2.jpg



1913:
http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Polo31913bs_retcrop.jpg


Mid-Week Pictorial
http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Polo4.jpg



This wide-angle view before a packed Polo Grounds shows Gil McDougald completing his grand slam swing in the 5th game of the 1951 WS. It was only the third grand slam in Series History and the first by a rookie.

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Polo51951GilMacdougalHR.jpg

[FENWAY FRANKY]

Curious that in 1913 regular season finale that there is only a two umpire tandem controlling the game.

[Wrigley Wax]

Two man umpire crews were the norm at that time. In the '20s they may have assigned a third ump to a crucial series. Three man crews for all games started in the early '30s. Finally, beginning in 1952, four umpires were assigned to each regular season game.

[alpineinc]

Caption not much help, says 1880-99. Maybe someone could narrow that down. Love the smoke rising from the locomotive and from the chimneys on the left:


http://i1076.photobucket.com/albums/w459/bucket4nyy/Poloshare31880-1899.jpg

Yeah, this was posted to the PG II thread and football thread in May; my best guess then was the 1890's, since PG II was converted to other uses, including football, after the Giants moved to PG III in 1891. And a glorious photo it is.

[SultanOfWhat]

c. 1911 POLO GROUNDS Baseball Photo BAND/WORLD SERIES, BAIN PHOTO

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Polopics1.jpg



c. 1911 FANS LEAVING POLO GROUNDS Baseball Photo BAIN, WORLD SERIES

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Polopics2.jpg



1913 Apr. 13.

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Polopics3.jpg



Still amazed how open the structure of the grandstand was. Army – Navy game, Polo Grounds, New York. 1915.

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Polopics4ArmyNavygamePoloGroundsNewYork1915-001-001.jpg



http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Polopics51935.jpg

[alpineinc]

Indiana University marching band, November 11, 1939. Fordham shut out the Hoosiers 13-0. Crossposted to football thread.

http://fedora.dlib.indiana.edu/fedora/get/iudl:1063070/LARGE

http://webapp1.dlib.indiana.edu/archivesphotos/results/item.do?itemId=P0031964&searchId=10&searchResultIndex=101

[alpineinc]

Jackpot! More golden PG nuggets found. Great find of fan photos from the very first Banner Day in 1963! Slight deterioration, but still glorious. Pop open a Rheingold, light up a Viceroy, and enjoy.

114074

114075

Not so fast guys! Won't need to wait until the '70's.
114076

Who likes Choo Choo? Not them, bub.
114077

114078

http://randombaseballstuff.com/2012/04/27/photos-from-banner-day-in-1963/#

[alpineinc]

'63 Banner Day continued.

114080

114081

114082

114083

http://randombaseballstuff.com/2012/04/27/photos-from-banner-day-in-1963/#

[alpineinc]

Couple more:

114084

114085

http://randombaseballstuff.com/2012/04/27/photos-from-banner-day-in-1963/#

[mandrake]

Rheingold, Viceroy.....and Trunz meats..... I remember shopping with mom at Trunz a long long time ago. Thanks for sharing !

[alpineinc]

Light up a Viceroy, have a Trunz meats sandwich, and check the Rheingold calendar to see if the Mets are in town...and have your doctor on call, lol...

114097 114096 114098


And love Bob Murphy's pitch on the radio at the beginning of the first ever Mets game on 4/11/62:

"And right now would be a good time for you to check up on your supply of fine, cold Rheingold. Rheingold Extra Dry. Yes sir, put some Rheingold on ice, 'cause it'll add a lot to your enjoyment of the game. Rheingold is brewed with the choicest ingredients - brewed the long, slow costlier way for flavor that's brisk and bright, and clean clear through. Rheingold is beer as beer should taste - "dry" tells you why!

And say, right now would be a good time to light up a Viceroy! Viceroy's not too strong, not too light; Viceroy's got the taste's that's right. That's right!

Now it's just about game time, so settle back with a tall, cold glass of Rheingold, and we'll give you the starting lineups...."

[alpineinc]

Another one is for sale from that Titans/Dallas game. And here they are...the Dallas cheerleaders?

114173

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ORIGINAL-35MM-SLIDE-DALLAS-CHEERLEADERS-AT-NY-TITANS-GAME-POLO-GROUNDS-NOV-1960-/271044744513?pt=Art_Photo_Images&hash=item3f1b869541#ht_525wt_1189

[FENWAY FRANKY]

I just love personal ballpark photograpghs, either in color or B/W posted here. Keep them coming if you have them, on all threads.

[alpineinc]

I just love personal ballpark photograpghs, either in color or B/W posted here. Keep them coming if you have them, on all threads.

I do my best!

The Banner Day set above is especially poignant - the last baseball Sunday at the old park, and only two more baseball games after that. And in 6 months, the wrecking ball.

[SultanOfWhat]

...............................

[SultanOfWhat]

I came across these images years apart, but they were taken a fraction of a second apart. 1922 WS Game 3, 4th inning. Ruth runs into Groh and is called out at 3rd. 10-6-22 date stamp.:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Poloshare1.jpg




09 Oct 1921 --- Original caption: Worlds series Baseball - 3rd Game. Nick Altrock and Al Schact doing some comedy stunts.

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Poloshare2.jpg



NEW YORK - 1922. The crowd pours onto the field after a Yankee game at the Polo Grounds in 1922.

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Poloshare5.jpg




13 Apr 1922 --- Original caption: General views of game, showing diamond and crowds. [Image shows that the city seals frieze has been removed, as indicated by NYT articles from the winter of 1921]

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Poloshare6.jpg



13 Apr 1922 --- Original caption: New York, New York: Baseball lid pried off at great opening in New York. Left to right, Bancroft and Wheat place wreath of flowers on Eddie Grant's monument at the Polo Grounds.

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Poloshare7.jpg




12 May 1922, Manhattan, New York City, New York State, USA --- Original caption: New York: Babe Ruth Prepares For Return To Baseball. Babe Ruth in action.

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Poloshare8.jpg


Nice ticket from 1927 with diagram on the back:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Poloshare3.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Poloshare4.jpg

[SultanOfWhat]

LOC image with a good view of the backstop and batting screen, from 1920:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Polobattingscreenin1920.jpg


http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/ggb2006005805/

[Paul W]

single row of seating behind the screen was for the press.

[Bitter Fan]

Nice ticket from 1927 with diagram on the back:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Poloshare3.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Poloshare4.jpg

Supposedly in a meeting to plan the new Meadowlands there was some friction and Wellington Mara blurted out "I was happy in the goddamn Polo Grounds!"

You can see why. I think we've discussed this on the board before, the only reason they left was that the hood was getting too bad. It was an ideal football venue for its time.

[SultanOfWhat]

I just picked this up on ebay (April 1924 issue). Might be some interesting images or info inside.

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/APRIL1924ISSUEOFBASEBALLMAGAZINE_zpse0c6f93d.jpg


Back:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/APRIL1924ISSUEOFBASEBALLMAGAZINEb_zps4ca4b708.jpg


Polo souvenir:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/polomets1_zps665a874e.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/polomets2_zps668d3e08.jpg

[chip]

AWESOME Sultan!

I can finally see those columns on that magazine cover.
That will help me tremendously on my cad drawing.

Thanks a bunch,

chip

[SultanOfWhat]

AWESOME Sultan!

I can finally see those columns on that magazine cover.
That will help me tremendously on my cad drawing.

Thanks a bunch,

chip

I'll post some big scans when the magazine gets here. Those old Baseball Magazine issues are tough to scan, as they are over-sized, but I'll scan this one as best I can.

[chip]

Thanks Sultan

[alpineinc]

Forget that other place across the river - "This Home of the Giants is the Most Famous and Most Beautiful of Baseball Stadiums."

Great pick up, looks to be in great condition too. Looking forward to the scans.

[Chevy114]

If you haven't heard of bad luck Brian, its a picture of a kid who took a bad school photo and now people all over facebook are using his image and putting captions that would only happen to people with horrible luck. Today I found this one and thought it was funny and went well in this section

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[alpineinc]

Say Hey vs the Dodgers, July 1, 1954, Monte Irvin on deck. Willie went 0-2 with two walks but the first place Giants prevailed, 5-2, in their championship season.

115311

[Joe Barrie]

Forget that other place across the river - "This Home of the Giants is the Most Famous and Most Beautiful of Baseball Stadiums."

Great pick up, looks to be in great condition too. Looking forward to the scans.

The scorecard for the Polo Grounders always used the phrase: "The Giants are the greatest name in baseball, and the reasons are many."

[StanTheMan]

Brian Biegel's excellent documentary "Miracle Ball" (the books has the same name) is airing on the Velocity Channel right now and on several more days over the next week.

He solves the mystery of who caught The Shot Heard Round The World.


http://www.legendaryauctions.com/LotImages/61/98569_0005_lg.jpeg

[mandrake]

Supposedly in a meeting to plan the new Meadowlands there was some friction and Wellington Mara blurted out "I was happy in the goddamn Polo Grounds!"

You can see why. I think we've discussed this on the board before, the only reason they left was that the hood was getting too bad. It was an ideal football venue for its time.

My dad was not crazy about the Polo Grounds for baseball (he was a Dodgers fan) but he said the upper deck of the Polo Grounds had the absolute best sightlines of any football stadium he ever went to. He said if you were in the first row of the upper deck 'you could spit down on the field'..not literally , I hope !!!

The hood was getting bad after the '51 projects opened, but the number one complaint for the football Giants was horrible parking. Most fans had to park at YS and walk over the RR bridge to the Polo Grounds. Another concern for the Maras was that Moses and NYC told Stoneham that he wanted them out in a letter in Nov 1953. The Giants moved over to YS in '56 but were never crazy about YS for football and lasted only 16 full seasons. By 1971, the football team had told Lindsay they would leave.

In Chicago, the Bears played at Wrigley and the Cardinals played at Comiskey. There was a reason they did not play at the far larger Soldier Field...college bowls were great for large attendance but fans were far from he action.

[mandrake]

Three years ago, I posted this article that I found, which included a 1953 letter where Robert Moses was trying to kick the Giants out of the Polo Grounds and into Yankee Stadium.http://www.profootballresearchers.org/Coffin_Corner/12-01-389.pdf

[SultanOfWhat]

1933 WS:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/polonew1.jpg


1934, Giants vs Brooks:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/polonew2.jpg


1954 WS:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/polonew3.jpg


The 1924 Baseball magazine has arrived. Should have scans up in a few days.

[idgiesmom]

I don't know if this has been posted on this thread, but last night on TCM I DVRd a 1920 silent movie called "Headin' Home" with Babe Ruth, made just after he was sold to the Yankees. Hokey story, but there are absolutely glorious scenes in what looks like the Polo Grounds at the very beginning and towards the end. Absolutely marvelous views of the frieze before removal.

[mandrake]

I don't know if this has been posted on this thread, but last night on TCM I DVRd a 1920 silent movie called "Headin' Home" with Babe Ruth, made just after he was sold to the Yankees. Hokey story, but there are absolutely glorious scenes in what looks like the Polo Grounds at the very beginning and towards the end. Absolutely marvelous views of the frieze before removal.


The Polo Grounds before the 1923 expansion was my all time favorite ball park :

Hope this link works:

http://archive.org/details/Heading_Home

[idgiesmom]

Yes, that is the film, however the TCM print was much, much clearer. You could see the frieze in all its glory.

[SultanOfWhat]

Here are the scans of the Baseball Magazine article about the Polo Grounds from April 1924, which covers the 1923 expansion. I can't post the actual sized scans here, as they are 4000px+, but hopefully the mods will let me get away with 1600px scans as posted below, as the text used in the magazine is quite small.

The April issue was probably published by March 1, so the photos of the Polo Grounds in the issue were probably taken mid-late February (hence the snow on the field in a few images).

First, an ironic note (from our much later perspective) regarding Yankee Stadium is sounded at the start of the article by author (and Baseball Magazine editor) F.C. Lane:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGroundsBaseballMagazineApril1924.jpg


Here is the cover:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGroundsBaseballMagazineApril1924-001.jpg


Better look at the grandstand and columns:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGroundsBaseballMagazineApril1924-002.jpg



Hard to get scans from these old issues, as they are over-sized, and I was worried about pushing them too flat, as I wanted the pages to remain attached by the staples. [EDIT: larger single pages of the image just below are in the next post]

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGroundsBaseballMagazineApril1924-003.jpg



Snow was on the field for these images. Interesting to see Lane write that the 433-foot-distant CF wall was probably beyond even Ruth's batting power, as he had driven balls into the bleachers of the pre-renovation Polo Grounds on consecutive days (drives of 480 and 490 feet, according to Bill Jenkinson):

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGroundsBaseballMagazineApril1924-004.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGroundsBaseballMagazineApril1924-005.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGroundsBaseballMagazineApril1924-006.jpg


Article text continued:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGroundsBaseballMagazineApril1924-007.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGroundsBaseballMagazineApril1924-008.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGroundsBaseballMagazineApril1924-009.jpg

[SultanOfWhat]

A few more images. I haven't done a detailed comparison, but it looks like the 1923 season ads are still on the walls.

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGroundsBaseballMagazineApril1924-010.jpg


The caption for this image seems to be incorrect. It suggests that the photo depicts the 1923 WS, but the city seals frieze at the top of the upper deck was removed before the 1922 season started. Therefore, it probably shows a game from the 1921 WS.

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGroundsBaseballMagazineApril1924-011.jpg


Might be easier to read the text in the spread from the post above in slightly larger, separate views:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGroundsBaseballMagazineApril1924-012.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGroundsBaseballMagazineApril1924-013.jpg

[JOVE23]

I don't know about you guys, but I want one of those nose fixing devices.

[chip]

Thanks Sultan,

I'm getting back to work on my cad drawing now.

[alpineinc]

Yep, much better than that other stadium across the muddy river "utterly lacking that wealth of tradition", lol. Great stuff, thanks for posting.

[JOVE23]

Thanks Sultan,

I'm getting back to work on my cad drawing now.

yaaaay! Happy to hear this.

[SultanOfWhat]

Forget in which thread the image was posted ob BBF, but someone shared an Osborn diagram that has rough blueprints of a number of their designs for ballparks. Not sure if these are in the thread, or will be of interest, but here they are:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Poloblu2-001.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Poloblu1.jpg


I'd forgotten about the photo someone posted a while back from July 12, 1923. Some zooms that show the grandstand extensions:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/pologroundsjuly121923.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/pologroundsjuly121923-001.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/pologroundsjuly121923-002.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/pologroundsjuly121923-003.jpg

[JOVE23]

I remember another set of Osbornes that were vertical as well. Did we ever figure out where the cross-section is from?

[alpineinc]

Remember this couple a while back? We never did figure out who these folks were, but going back through this thread I noticed the gentleman was in another photo from the '54 WS (2nd pic), with credentials as well. Maybe a Giants exec? Any new ideas?

http://www.baseball-fever.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=108812&stc=1&d=1337475778


Freddie Fitzsimmons is the Giant in uniform (coach), with our mystery man on the right.

http://www.baseball-fever.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=108281&stc=1&d=1336358808

Original post and discussion of identifying them going forward -> http://www.baseball-fever.com/showthread.php?56604-Polo-Grounds-IV-Brush-Stadium-(1911-1963)&p=2014384#post2014384

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Is the restoration of the Brush Stairway complete? IIRC, it was supposed to be done last month. I was just hoping to visit the site next year (assuming it's safe for tourists to be in that area).

[Chef Bill]

Remember this couple a while back? We never did figure out who these folks were, but going back through this thread I noticed the gentleman was in another photo from the '54 WS (2nd pic), with credentials as well. Maybe a Giants exec? Any new ideas?

http://www.baseball-fever.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=108812&stc=1&d=1337475778


Freddie Fitzsimmons is the Giant in uniform (coach), with our mystery man on the right.

http://www.baseball-fever.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=108281&stc=1&d=1336358808

Original post and discussion of identifying them going forward -> http://www.baseball-fever.com/showthread.php?56604-Polo-Grounds-IV-Brush-Stadium-(1911-1963)&p=2014384#post2014384


OK, after bombing out on Lou Boudreau and Frankie Laine, I'm guessing that could be former Army football great Glenn Davis. I'm guessing that could be NY football Giants assistant coach Vince Lombardi to Fitzsimmons' right. Lombardi joined the Giants in 1954 after several years as an assistant coach at West Point.

Davis won the Heisman trophy in 1946. After serving in the Army, he played two seasons for the LA Rams, and retired due to injury after the 1951 season. He famously dated Elizabeth Taylor in the late '40s. Davis was married to actress Terry Moore from 1951 to '53. The woman in photo appears to be wearing a wedding band. She could be his second wife, Harriet Slack, to whom he was married from 1953 until she passed away in 1995. http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1144&dat=19530417&id=J4QbAAAAIBAJ&sjid=tk0EAAAAIBAJ&pg=2553,762774


Glenn Davis with Army teammate Dock Blanchard and coach Earl "Red" Blaik, probably 1945 or '46.
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With Elizabeth Taylor
116076

Later years
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http://apps.westpointaog.org/Memorials/Article/16466/

[Chef Bill]

Glenn Davis and Elizabeth Taylor

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116078


West Point graduation photo

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[Melottfan]

The gentleman standing next to Fitzsimmons right is, Hal Totten, sports broadcaster from Chichago, and later the last President of the old Southern Association.

[SultanOfWhat]

I'd like to find photos of the 1911 frieze/frescoes installation. This 1911 photo is the closest I've found:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/poloiv.jpg




1913 April 17. Photograph shows two men in suits and four men wearing pin-stripe baseball uniforms with "TAMMANY" printed on the shirt carrying a large floral display around a framed print "Frank Chance The Peerless Leader" which includes a portrait of Chance.

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/poloiv-001.jpg



Slightly better resolution on this 1915 view crop:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/poloiv-002.jpg



One of many examples of why my personal nickname for Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis is "Koo Koo for Cocoa Puffs":

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/poloiv-003.jpg



http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/poloiv-004.jpg



http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/poloiv-004a.jpg



http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/poloiv-004b.jpg



http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/poloiv-005.jpg



http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/poloiv-006.jpg

[mandrake]

http://blogs.wsj.com/dailyfix/2012/10/23/the-giants-win-the-pennant/

Congrats to the GIANTS. 19th pennant in the modern era...14 of which were in the POLO GROUNDS. In 2010, they brought the WS trophy back to Manhattan. Hope they do it again.

[alpineinc]

OK, after bombing out on Lou Boudreau and Frankie Laine, I'm guessing that could be former Army football great Glenn Davis.

I'd have to respectfully disagree on Davis also, for one reason - he was 29 years old during the 1954 WS. That guy ain't no 29, sorry to say.

Since Hal Totten on the left has been confirmed, that may be a clue. He was president of the Class B "Three-I-League" at the time (the Illinois-Indiana-Iowa league), and Fitzsimmons is from Indiana. The mystery gentleman on the right may be from, or a representative of, the midwest as well.

http://www.baseball-fever.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=108281&stc=1&d=1336358808

[alpineinc]

I'd like to find photos of the 1911 frieze/frescoes installation. This 1911 photo is the closest I've found:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/poloiv.jpg

Wow, great photo. I posted a couple LOC pics here a while back of the entire tier under construction, but I can't recall any mid-construction frieze photos at all. Great stuff.

[SultanOfWhat]

This might be the LOC photo referred to above (showing the grandstand under construction in 1911). The sign in the background says "PENNSYLVANIA PORTLAND CEMENT":

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloPennsylvaniaPortlandCement1.jpg


Found this on that firm:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloPennsylvaniaPortlandCement2.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloPennsylvaniaPortlandCement4.jpg



Nice summary of Osborn Engineering's major projects (including the Pennsylvania Portland Cement building in 1904):

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloPennsylvaniaPortlandCement3.jpg

[alpineinc]

Yes, that's one, and here's the other one. I posted both here back in June. Odd that the shots are so rare. Possibly the photographers felt the construction was unsightly and preferred to wait until it was finished, as there are otherwise hundreds of 1911 PG IV photos with the tier completed.

http://www.baseball-fever.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=110434&d=1340942944


Here was a third view I had also posted a couple of times, from the New York Tribune on PG IV's Opening Day, where the photographer was luckily situated to the far left of the festivities and inadvertently captured second tier construction that had just begun.

http://www.baseball-fever.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=109655&d=1339133917

A more typical view of that shot is generally straight on:

http://www.baseball-fever.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=110448&d=1340977436


And here's a fourth, but blurry and dark, from the Evening World the same opening day:

http://www.baseball-fever.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=109712&d=1339305262


Anyway, always searching for additional 1911 PG IV construction pics. I'd bet there's a few more out there, waiting to be unearthed.

[alpineinc]

Here's the first part of another article on that Opening Day, this one from the New York Sun. Sadly, no photos (and none of any kind in the entire edition, in fact).

"What there is now of the massive ground structure predicts that when the entire amphitheatre is erected its vastness will make the Harvard stadium take on the appearance of a coop."

And something I never thought of before - with the old wooden stands, apparently one could stamp their feet on the wooden planks to create a great deal of noise - so perhaps most ballpark sounds pre-1910 or so were just a cacophony of stamping feet, rather than shouts and whistles. Alas, it seems this was about to fade into the past with the advent of concrete stadiums:

"A missing feature was the stamping in applause of a play. The concrete floor deadens that, so that now a greater tax will be imposed on hands and throats."

116114

Link to entire newspaper page (very large jp2 file): http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030272/1911-06-29/ed-1/seq-5.jp2

[EdTarbusz]

Remember this couple a while back? We never did figure out who these folks were, but going back through this thread I noticed the gentleman was in another photo from the '54 WS (2nd pic), with credentials as well. Maybe a Giants exec? Any new ideas?

http://www.baseball-fever.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=108812&stc=1&d=1337475778


Freddie Fitzsimmons is the Giant in uniform (coach), with our mystery man on the right.

http://www.baseball-fever.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=108281&stc=1&d=1336358808

Original post and discussion of identifying them going forward -> http://www.baseball-fever.com/showthread.php?56604-Polo-Grounds-IV-Brush-Stadium-(1911-1963)&p=2014384#post2014384

Antonelli vs Wynn vs Rain would have been game 2.

[SultanOfWhat]

I think I posted the 6-28-11 pic earlier in the thread (Mike Donlin tribute). But it's good that it was posted just above, because it made me realize that while the ballpark re-opened on that date (an incredible 74 days after the fire), the Polo Grounds wasn't entirely rebuilt by that date. In the 1911 pic in post #3367 we see the scaffolding on the city seals "frescoes" while fans are in the stands and a game is in progress, so it seems the Giants resumed play in their home park as the finishing touches were applied.

[alpineinc]

Happy 90th, Ralph.

116176

[StanTheMan]

http://hefferbrew.files.wordpress.com/2012/09/cropped-willie-mays-polo-grounds.jpg

[StanTheMan]

http://i780.photobucket.com/albums/yy90/Bucket2NYY/May1314or16of1923-2.jpg

Love the unfinished staircase to the visitor's clubhouse which appears to lead to nowhere...

[mandrake]

I hope they parade it around Citi Field !

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/30/sp...oots.html?_r=0

It’s understandable. Murphy, the Giants’ avuncular equipment manager, and Mays share a deep friendship. It goes all the way back to Murphy’s first day with the team as the Giants’ bat boy in 1958, the year the club moved to San Francisco from New York.

In 2010, when the Giants won their first World Series as a Bay Area team, Murphy did the same thing as he did Sunday night. And the Giants as a team are basically sticking to their script, too. After they won in 2010, they paid homage to their New York roots by sending Mays, the star catcher Buster Posey and the championship trophy to Manhattan for what amounted to a sentimental victory tour of the city.

And now they’re going to do it again. “We’re bringing it back,” exclaimed Giants General Manager Brian Sabean amid the euphoric celebration here Sunday night after his team won Game 4 to sweep the Tigers. “Tell everyone in New York to get ready, because we’re coming with it.”

That may not be such heartening news to the Mets and the Yankees, the two local teams who would prefer to be parading the trophy around the city themselves. But instead it will the Giants, who played in New York for more than 70 years. It was in January 2011 that the Giants contingent carried out its initial championship visit. Sabean was part of the group, as was the team president, Larry Baer, now the team’s chief executive. They met with two groups of old-time New York Giants fans, all of whom faithfully attended games at the old Polo Grounds in Upper Manhattan and never lost their love for the team, despite being abandoned by it. The fans regaled Mays with their recollections of his majesty at the Polo Grounds, and happily listened to his stories.

In addition, Mays and the rest of the Giants contingent visited a public school in Harlem, where Mays told students about living in their community as a young player on the Giants. And the Giants also took the trophy down to Finnerty’s, a Second Avenue pub that has become a New York hub for transplanted Giants supporters from the Bay Area.

“It was a really cool trip,” Posey said Sunday, not long after his two-run homer helped the Giants win the title.

Although there was real heartache when the Giants, who were founded in 1883, left New York, their departure did not engender the same animosity that the Dodgers encountered in deserting Brooklyn for Los Angeles. For one thing, it was the Dodgers’ owner, Walter O’Malley, who was seen as the catalyst — or culprit — in the decision of both teams to move to the West Coast; for another, the Giants, despite their distinguished history in New York, did not have the romance attached to them that the Dodgers did in Brooklyn.

The bitterness was simply more profound among Dodgers fans and, as such, it might be harder for the Los Angeles Dodgers to ever attempt a victory tour of Brooklyn similar to what the Giants are now doing in Manhattan for the second time.

“The whole thing with New York is that we see ourselves as a 130-year-old franchise,” Baer said. “It’s not just the 55 years in San Francisco. The New York roots are important to us and we don’t forget them, so yeah, I’d like to bring the trophy back. I think we should do it every time we win.”

Shawon Dunston, a spring training instructor and part-time coach for the Giants, grew up in Brooklyn, where he was a high school baseball star. His parents still make the borough their home. Dunston said that when the Giants take the trophy back to New York this time, he wants to be a part of the celebration. He also noted that the current Giants had a strong connection to another New York team — the Yankees.

After all, Sabean worked in the Yankees’ front office, and Dick Tidrow, the Giants’ scouting director, was a pitcher on the Yankees’ championship teams in 1977 and 1978. The Giants coaching staff also includes several other former Yankees, most notably Dave Righetti, the pitching coach.

“We learned from the Yankees,” Dunston said. As for the Giants becoming a West Coast dynasty that would mimic the Yankees’ overall success, Dunston said, “We’re not there yet, but we’re getting close, yes we are.”

In fact, the Giants, who now have seven championships, are still 20 shy of the Yankees. Their first title came in 1905, and all six before now were celebrated in New York at some point. And now the seventh will be, too. Perhaps with Mays again joining in the celebration.

“He was all excited and said, ‘Murph, we won it again,’ ” Mike Murphy said Sunday night in the champagne-drenched Giants clubhouse as he recounted his phone call with Mays. “He said he was on pins and needles the whole game. We waited a long time for the first one. Now it seems like every other year, we win one.”

[SultanOfWhat]

There are a bunch of slides for sale on ebay from a period of Polo Grounds history that is not much covered in this thread: between the departure of the NY Giants baseball team in 1957 and the arrival of the Mets in 1962. The photos are from November 1960, during a game between the Titans and the Dallas Texans.

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloNov1960TitansvsTexans.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Polo1960Nov.jpg



Here's the ebay vendor if anyone's interested:

http://www.ebay.com/sch/m.html?item=360502888588&pt=Art_Photo_Images&hash=item53efa5888c&_ssn=mudnwolf&_ipg=100&rt=nc

[Delaywaves]

Does anyone know anything about the renovation of the John T. Brush Stairway? It was supposed to be completed this past September (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_T._Brush_Stairway#John_T._Brush_Stairway), but I've heard it's been delayed. Has anyone been up there recently?

[alpineinc]

Cliff Melton, 1940

116300

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1940-Cliff-Melton-New-York-Giants-Pitcher-Press-Photo-81-/280958621144?pt=Art_Photo_Images&hash=item416a7055d8

[StanTheMan]

http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg151/bryanusa1950/790FA0F8-76D1-466E-9777-3754C025611D-2016-000002C7065B2654.jpg

http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg151/bryanusa1950/53F1B83F-EA35-4AC2-BE45-9E60BAE9D05F-2016-000002C7030EF912.jpg


http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg151/bryanusa1950/DC412577-9A08-42C4-B7DA-0050ABB942BD-2016-000002C707B60955.jpg

[StanTheMan]

http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg151/bryanusa1950/BD05A0D5-DEB0-4326-8D72-9D42F9D7FB77-2016-000002C704CDF6E0.jpg

[StanTheMan]

http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg151/bryanusa1950/643F8378-504B-48E0-B65C-2D96CB1D7F61-2016-000002C70D99CA37.jpg

http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg151/bryanusa1950/5BB7B868-E3A8-407B-A4A5-57F3D037ED09-2016-000002C70B377213.jpg

http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg151/bryanusa1950/9E29FD2E-A8D7-49B2-91CB-BFBFB223E0CA-2016-000002C700297E03.jpg

http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg151/bryanusa1950/A10C1594-7CE9-4C78-9434-CC27AC62C6A4-2016-000002C709A56A2B.jpg

[Paul W]

the "oh, we gotta show off in the big town" mentality is typical of frisco, the "see - we matter" knee-jerk response is the main part of the inferiority complex that is persuvasive there - they have the same chip on their shoulder about l.a..
doing this once was enough, but again is just small, they know that they can get more adulation in nyc than anything they try to do in frisco..
larry is showing off to his friends and dunston should read up on what a dynasty in pro sports is.
i talked to my friend nbc exec peter d. who went to the pg before it was abandoned and is friends with baer and he thinks that one was enough.

or maybe larry thought it would be safer in nyc, a town that can control itself when one of the franchises wins...

Giants' World Series Win Sparks Riots In San Francisco

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/29/san-francisco-riots-giants-world-series_n_2036551.html

[Lucas718]

Wasn't there supposed to be some big effort to save/restore that staircase? I thought I read somewhere that the NY teams had contributed a large sum of money towards it.

[Mr. Laser Beam]

^ They're working on restoring the staircase now.

[SultanOfWhat]

Recent report of a visit:

http://letsgosox.blogspot.com/2012/10/marco-polo.html

[Joe Barrie]

the "oh, we gotta show off in the big town" mentality is typical of frisco, the "see - we matter" knee-jerk response is the main part of the inferiority complex that is persuvasive there - they have the same chip on their shoulder about l.a..
doing this once was enough, but again is just small, they know that they can get more adulation in nyc than anything they try to do in frisco..
larry is showing off to his friends and dunston should read up on what a dynasty in pro sports is.
i talked to my friend nbc exec peter d. who went to the pg before it was abandoned and is friends with baer and he thinks that one was enough.

or maybe larry thought it would be safer in nyc, a town that can control itself when one of the franchises wins...

Giants' World Series Win Sparks Riots In San Francisco

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/29/san-francisco-riots-giants-world-series_n_2036551.html

Not my take on it at all. I started watching the Giants at the Polo Grounds during WW 2, and since my high school was in Manhattan we went to the Polo Grounds for "Field days".

I haven't lived in NY since 1969, and am long over my annoyance about the Giants' leaving for SF.

I don't think they "can get more adulation in nyc than anything they try to do in Frisco" because the Giants were NYC's third team ever since around 1941. It's doubtful that I will see what they do in NYC, but I appreciate their gesture. I don't see the Dodgers doing this sort of thing. Besides lots of Manhattan may be gone sooner than ever expected, but without a riot about the SF Giants.

[StanTheMan]

The pics I posted were not dated, so please don't mistake them as indicative of the current state of the staircase. See the blog post linked above for that. Although technically it is incorrect in naming the staircase as the "last remnants of the Polo Grounds.". A common error... The two were never connected. Was the staircase used by many Giants fans? Sure, but just to get from Edgecombe Ave to the Harlem Speedway and then they had to cross the street to the PG home plate gates and or ticket windows.

[SultanOfWhat]

From the 1922 World Series program, more on the firm that provided the concrete for the Polo Grounds during the 1911 re-build.

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/paportlandcement.jpg

[SultanOfWhat]

Some postcards from eBay. Not the greatest scans, so they remind me of an old 1950s TV signal, but here they are:


Matches ads seen in photos from the 1913 WS:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PGpostcard-002.jpg


1923:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PGpostcard-003.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PGpostcard-006.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PGpostcard-004.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PGpostcard-005.jpg

[Joe Barrie]

Rearding entry # 3393, I don't know about the first pictures, but the last two are from at least 1942 or thereabouts because the PG now has light towers.

[Lefty Bunter]

I agree with Joe. The Dodgers would never recognize NY the way the Giants have.

I also agree that the Giants were the 3rd team in NY; in fact, if I recall correctly, NYC made little, if any, effort to keep them from leaving in 1957.

Stoneham had every reason to move; O'Malley did not.



Not my take on it at all. I started watching the Giants at the Polo Grounds during WW 2, and since my high school was in Manhattan we went to the Polo Grounds for "Field days".

I haven't lived in NY since 1969, and am long over my annoyance about the Giants' leaving for SF.

I don't think they "can get more adulation in nyc than anything they try to do in Frisco" because the Giants were NYC's third team ever since around 1941. It's doubtful that I will see what they do in NYC, but I appreciate their gesture. I don't see the Dodgers doing this sort of thing. Besides lots of Manhattan may be gone sooner than ever expected, but without a riot about the SF Giants.

[Paul W]

...I don't think they "can get more adulation in nyc than anything they try to do in Frisco"...

"adulation" = media attention today - times articles etc., larry has a history in the biz
in nyc before the gi-ants.
this has more to do with larry b. showing off than distant franchise history

[SultanOfWhat]

Ruth scoring after a home run in the fourth inning of game 2 of the 1923 World Series. Bill Jenkinson's comments: "465 feet, Far over right field grandstand roof."


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/1923WSPoloGroundsgame2.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/1923WSPoloGroundsgamerotated.jpg



Here's a nice image from game 4 of the 1923 World Series:

Action from 1923 World Series. In this scene George Kelly is hitting in the second inning of the fourth game. Western Newspaper Union 10/15/23 – 8 x 10. World Series Game 4 Played on Saturday, October 13, 1923 (D) at Polo Grounds V. New York Yankees 8, New York Giants 4.

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/1923WSPoloGroundsgame4-001.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/1923WSPoloGroundsgame4b.jpg

[SultanOfWhat]

Letter written on Giants' letterhead. Officers, addresses, and even a phone number for the Manhattan offices:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Giantsletterhead19231.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Giantsletterhead19232.jpg

[JOVE23]

Here is that building today: Link (https://maps.google.com/maps?q=15+west+44th+street+new+york&hl=en&ll=40.755238,-73.981011&spn=0.005453,0.010332&sll=40.755299,-73.980925&layer=c&cbp=13,26.27,,0,0.5&cbll=40.755193,-73.980899&gl=us&hnear=15+W+44th+St,+New+York,+10036&t=h&z=17&panoid=kRnCgC96W3FONIDH-r7VHw)

[64Cards]

I recently saw a movie on TCM "Easy Living" [1949] that had a lot of great interior and exterior shots of the PG in football configuration. As for the flick, rather ordinary. Victor Mature, who seemed to be in a lot of the bibical epic films of the period gets to play an aging pro football star in this, as the QB of the NY Chiefs. The LA Rams are cast as his teamates, they even wore the Ram helmet with the horns painted on it. No explanation why a team called the Chiefs would wear a helmet with such a design. Lucille Ball plays the daughter of owner/coach Lloyd Nolan, even though Nolan is actually only 9 years older than Lucy. She doesn't do anything funny, just sits around chain smoking and suffering cause she's in love with Mature who is already married to the gold digging Lizabeth Scott. Worth watching only to see the PG.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/d/d3/Easy_Living_FilmPoster.jpeg/220px-Easy_Living_FilmPoster.jpeg

[alpineinc]

Probably here before, so, here it is again. '62 or '63. Let's play two!

116582

http://www.flickr.com/photos/poppypop/8162411151/

[alpineinc]

Cool ad from 1935.

116583

http://www.flickr.com/photos/captainspaulding/8142182765/

[Melottfan]

The gentleman to the right in post #3369, is Mark Cox, of the Three "I" League.

[Chef Bill]

Outstanding...the mystery is solved.

But you can't just leave us hanging like that Mel! Who is Mr. Cox, and why was his presence at the Polo Grounds important enough for a photographer to take multiple pictures of him?

[alpineinc]

The gentleman to the right in post #3369, is Mark Cox, of the Three "I" League.

Cool, I was on the right track with the Three "I" League. So all 3 in the photo have midwestern ties. Odd that a photo of him and his lady companion would be taken in the stands, however.

[Melottfan]

Mr. Cox may have known the photographer, my guess.

[alpineinc]

Great rarer early era vertical shot of the PG IV stands. John "Shano" Collins, White Sox, 1920. Bain photo.

116771
Larger size (http://www.shorpy.com/files/images/31145u.jpg)

http://www.shorpy.com/node/1450

[alpineinc]

September 1954. From Kodachrome slides.

John (Windy) McCall
117177

Sal Maglie
117178

Spencer Tracy
117179

117180

117181


http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-KODACHROME-50s-POLO-GROUNDS-brooklyn-BASEBALL-PHOTO-JOHN-MCCALL-giants-/251193291822?pt=Art_Photo_Images&hash=item3a7c49742e
http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-KODACHROME-50s-POLO-GROUNDS-AMATEUR-BASEBALL-PHOTO-SAL-MAGLIE-giants-/251193293294?pt=Art_Photo_Images&hash=item3a7c4979ee
http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-KODACHROME-50s-POLO-GROUNDS-AMATEUR-BASEBALL-PHOTO-SPENCER-TRACY-ACTOR-/251193294979?pt=Art_Photo_Images&hash=item3a7c498083
http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-KODACHROME-50s-POLO-GROUNDS-AMATEUR-BASEBALL-PHOTO-1954-ny-LOT-3-/290824523509?pt=Art_Photo_Images&hash=item43b67e0ef5

[alpineinc]

Another shot of Spencer Tracy after a game at PG, with Laraine Day.

117182

[alpineinc]

Opening Day, April 26, 1923, Giants vs Braves, expansion in progress, most or all seen before, especially the last two, but cropped to highlight construction just for fun. Third one has nice close up of brand new Yankee Stadium as well. Also, Giants scored 6 in the 8th to win it off Rube Marquard in his last full season, 7-3.

117183

117184

117186

117187

Same, tighter
117188


Original photos -

http://lcweb2.loc.gov/service/pnp/ggbain/35800/35834v.jpg
Huge size (http://lcweb2.loc.gov/master/pnp/ggbain/35800/35834u.tif)

http://lcweb2.loc.gov/service/pnp/ggbain/35800/35835v.jpg
Huge size (http://lcweb2.loc.gov/master/pnp/ggbain/35800/35835u.tif)

http://lcweb2.loc.gov/service/pnp/ggbain/35800/35828v.jpg
Huge size (http://lcweb2.loc.gov/master/pnp/ggbain/35800/35828u.tif)

http://lcweb2.loc.gov/service/pnp/ggbain/35800/35829v.jpg
Huge size (http://lcweb2.loc.gov/master/pnp/ggbain/35800/35829u.tif)

[StanTheMan]

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGroundsGrandStanddestroyedbyfireApril14th1911. jpg

[StanTheMan]

Sign can be read. Apologies of this is a repeat...


http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qXz-rKxZcdw/UHysBS2LhPI/AAAAAAAARuI/1XBz5a63UtY/s1600/B03_sign.jpg

[SultanOfWhat]

Polo Grounds on the right in this photo captioned as showing 155th St. and 8th Avenue.

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Polo155th8th.jpg




NYT article on the Polo Grounds fire of 1911. I have no idea how patrolmen got their hands on hand grenades to throw at the fire in an attempt to put it out.

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGroundsfire.jpg

[POLO GROUNDS 1957]

Very nice photo thanks for posting it.

[SultanOfWhat]

1924:

A Vintage 1924 ORIGINAL Photograph issued by Times Wide World Photos capturing the 1924 National League Champions, the New York Giants. The 1st team to win four straight Pennants are shown here posing for their team picture just prior to facing Walter Johnson and the Washington Senators. A significant photo as it features a young Hack Wilson, the pudgy rookie outfielder who would go on to a Hall of Fame career. Two other rookies also appear that would also be Cooperstown bound as well, Bill Terry and Freddie Lindstrom. This is a star studded cast, an amazing (8) Hall of Famers are depicted (including... George Kelly ... Ross Youngs ... Frankie Frisch ... Billy Southworth ...Travis Jackson)


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/POLOGROUNDSNewYorkGiants1924.jpg



1925:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/POLOGROUNDSNewYorkGiants1925OriginalPhoto.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/POLOGROUNDSNewYorkGiants1925back.jpg


1933:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/polo1933a.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/polo1933b.jpg





1949:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/POLOGROUNDSNewYorkGiants1949.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/POLOGROUNDSNewYorkGiants1949back.jpg

[presspins]

I love this photo...
I'm trying to visualize the exact location where this was taken...

Also I see an entrance way in the middle of the image, did this entrance provide a path directly to the Polo Grounds?

[presspins]

Sorry about that, I'm referring to Sultans vintage-valt75 photo, posted 12/7

[SultanOfWhat]

Nice image of former-player-turned-baseball-entertainer Nick Altrock in the box seats at the Polo Grounds, dated October 10, 1922. Sportswriter Grantland Rice is on Altrock's right (wearing hat).

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloNickAltrockOct1019221.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloNickAltrockOct1019222.jpg

[SultanOfWhat]

Cleaning out my Polo Grounds "share" file for now:

Forgot to retain the date on this one. Nice look at the very simple scoreboard:


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/polosharenew1.jpg


How people followed the World Series before radio (photo from 1912):

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/polosharenew2.jpg


From 1913 WS:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/polosharenew3.jpg


Now I'm hungry:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/polosharenew4.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/polosharenew5.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/polosharenew6.jpg


August 25, 1921:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/polosharenew7.jpg


Nicer view of this one (1921):

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/polosharenew8.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/polosharenew9.jpg


A program from the famous fight in which Firpo pushed/knocked Dempsey out of the ring, only to see Dempsey climb back up and knock Firpo out in the second round:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/polosharenew10.jpg

[SultanOfWhat]

Last 4:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/polosharenew14.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/polosharenew13.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/polosharenew11.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/polosharenew12.jpg

[alpineinc]

Friday, May 1, 1936 - ILGWU chorus, perhaps singing "look for...the union label..."?

From the NYT:

45,000 Attend Rally Of Worker's Groups

A group of labor unions and the Old Guard of the Socialist party celebrated May Day yesterday with a rally and open-air festival at the Polo Grounds that attracted a crowd estimated by the police at 45,000.

From noon to almost 6 o'clock there was a program featuring athletic games, pageants, a chorus of 500 mixed voices, concert and radio singers and addresses by labor leaders...


http://i270.photobucket.com/albums/jj90/alpineinc/LW-STADIUM_zpsa8f81134-1.jpg

http://baseballresearcher.blogspot.com/2009/11/may-day-at-polo-grounds.html

[Blue387]

The Polo Grounds make an appearance in the trailer for the upcoming Jackie Robinson film, 42.

118529

[SultanOfWhat]

Exterior view from the day of the Dempsey-Firpo fight in 1923:


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Polo1923exteriorDempsey-Firpo1.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Polo1923exteriorDempsey-Firpo.jpg

[alpineinc]

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2013/01/20/sports/baseball/20musial-1/20musial-1-superJumbo.jpg

[idgiesmom]

119374

Final Testing of New Lights at Giants' Stadium
Boxes placed on the field serve as targets for final testing of Westinghouse's new floodlighting system at New York Giants' Stadium. 07-06-1940

[Blue387]

Another shot of the Polo Grounds in the 42 trailer:

119375

[StanTheMan]

Wait....

What is that photo from?

[Mr. Laser Beam]

42, the Jackie Robinson movie that's due out in spring.

I'm just guessing that places like the Polo Grounds and Ebbets Field are being re-created via computer animation.

[StanTheMan]

That looks to be computer generated. Advertising on about half the outfield walls, perhaps more ads in left than in right, etc. The screenshot is from a great angle though. I'll definitely consider seeing the film.

[Blue387]

I'm just guessing that places like the Polo Grounds and Ebbets Field are being re-created via computer animation.

Polo Grounds, Ebbets Field and Forbes Field in the trailer.

118545

[The Monument]

Great in-season construction shots on the previous page! Now I know that it was '23 when the PG frieze was covered up. To answer presspins question, you are looking northwest at the home plate-first base side of the PG from across the street.

[SultanOfWhat]

Great in-season construction shots on the previous page! Now I know that it was '23 when the PG frieze was covered up.


The city seals frieze at the top of the upper deck was removed before the 1922 season, due to peeling. The lion/shield frieze at the bottom of the upper deck was retained at least through the 1923 World Series on the original portion of the grandstand (constructed in 1911).

I get a kick out of finding old letterhead, which often lists officers, addresses and even telephone numbers. Here is a letter from 1916:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGrounds1916letter1_zpsb5f454dc.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGrounds1916letter2_zps868645d7.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGrounds1916letter4_zpsaac129c6.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGrounds1916letter3_zps62eda0f7.jpg

Those phone numbers in 1916 ("Gramercy 835" and "Gramercy 836") were presumably only 5 digits. For instance, in later years, a typical 7-digit phone number would say "GRamercy 4 - 1234". I assume that the Gramercy exchange means that the phone would ring at 200 5th Avenue, and not uptown at 157th St. at the Polo Grounds.

[SultanOfWhat]

While researching the Polo Grounds, I came across this interesting item (underlined in red below) on the Wikipedia page for Charles Stoneham, former Giants owner:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGroundsdispute19201_zps60149b0a.jpg


I'd heard of some wrangling over the Yankees' lease of the Polo Grounds before Yankee Stadium was built, but I hadn't read about the Boston angle before.

First, here is what I could find in the New York Times archive about the 1920 dispute:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGroundsdispute19202_zps29ad15c1.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGroundsdispute19203_zps03f68b95.jpg


Then a brief note about a meeting called to attempt a resolution:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGroundsdispute19204_zps111fe811.jpg


The next day, news that the Yankees would be able to remain at the Polo Grounds:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGroundsdispute19205_zps1ca96cb4.jpg


The Wikipedia note had a footnote that led to this article, written by Glenn Stout in 2002:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGroundsdispute19206_zps26d66ad7.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGroundsdispute19207_zps2c2f8dec.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGroundsdispute19208_zpsa104bd58.jpg


I couldn't find mention of the Yankees' apparent threat of a move to Boston in the NYT archives, but something else might come up online. In any event, such a move, had it occurred, would have been temporary, as Ruppert was based in New York, and would not have abandoned that market. Giants' owner Stoneham thought better of losing the $65,000 annual rental fee the Yankees were paying him, and probably didn't want to be seen as a man who had ambushed a fellow owner and left him with no place to play his home games, as well as running Ruth (in the process of becoming the most popular player in baseball) out of town. American League president Ban Johnson, badly stung by Yankee / Red Sox victories over the Mays case, and by the move toward a national commission for baseball that would oversee both leagues under a commissioner (largely engineered by Frazee and Ruppert) made his play to rid himself of these troublesome owners. But Johnson couldn't pull it off, and probably reflected that causing the American League team in New York to leave, even temporarily, wasn't in the best interests of the League.

[ericlc129]

If you take a look at the glare and colors and shadowing, you'll see Hollywood didn't do it's homework...again. The shading on the left/centerfield frieze should be at a 30 degree gradient instead of the 27 degree that it's shown. Plus the scoreboard should be shaded just a hair on the upper right corner. :hissyfit:



NOTE THE SATIRE....

[SultanOfWhat]

If you take a look at the glare and colors and shadowing, you'll see Hollywood didn't do it's homework...again. The shading on the left/centerfield frieze should be at a 30 degree gradient instead of the 27 degree that it's shown. Plus the scoreboard should be shaded just a hair on the upper right corner. :hissyfit:



NOTE THE SATIRE....

Not sure of what help the snarky comments are.

BTW, if that version of the Polo Grounds is from the "42" trailer supposed to depict 1947, whoever created that digital version of the Polo Grounds was too lazy to Google "Polo Grounds 1947". If they had, they would have immediately found out what the advertisements looked like in the ballpark in 1947.

Here's the film version:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGrounds1947ads1_zps7853b1ee.png


Here are the actual Polo Grounds ads from 1947 (RF on top, LF on bottom):

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGrounds1947ads2_zpsd3e73c3b.jpg


Another view of the 1947 ads (RF):

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloGrounds1947ads3_zpse20833de.jpg

[Paul W]

as i mentioned before, movie folks will allow accuracy up to the point that it interferes with their production or costs them $$$'s.

[alpineinc]

NOTE THE SATIRE....

Some of the discussions regarding "42" or other recent re-creations of these stadiums may seem to be about banal minutiae that no one would care about, but in this era we're talking about these being the definitive representations of these classic parks to this point, as most folks living today have never been there, nor even seen a decent color video of them.

Think of the Titanic movie, and the great pains that were taken for it to be as authentic as possible, and with good reason, because by default, many will consider that the most accurate record of the great ocean liner yet available at this point in history. Same goes with other icons of the pre-video era.

It doesn't have to be perfect, but as Sultan and Paul and others have alluded to, it shouldn't be lazy and half-assed either.

[Paul W]

...It doesn't have to be perfect, but as Sultan and Paul and others have alluded to, it shouldn't be lazy and half-assed either.

ya' mean like having joe jackson hitting right handed in field of dreams? YIKES!!
they could have used the flopped uni, flip the negative trick but it wasn't that important to the filmmakers.

[alpineinc]

Okay, I know it's early in the day, but it's time once again to pop a Rheingold and light up a Viceroy, more Polo Grounds Mets goodness has been bestowed upon us!

Appears to be from Friday, July 5, 1963, vs the Pirates. And yes, the Mets lost, 3-1, thanks to a 2-run HR by Clemente off Tracy Stallard in the 8th inning, which would be their 8th straight loss. They would go on to lose 15 straight before halting the streak, and lose 111 that year (3rd worse Mets total ever).

Official attendance was listed as 6,779, but the NYT article of the game states 17,116, which appears more likely.


Casey and likely Ernie White chatting with what appears to be the new Miss Rheingold for 1964 (or at least a candidate)! Solly Hemus is at home plate hitting fungoes.

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Duke Snider comes to the the plate in the bottom of the 2nd inning, with Frank Thomas on deck. Don Cardwell pitching, Jim Pagliaroni the catcher, Bob Bailey at third, Johnny Logan at short. Snider would strike out.

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Bottom of the 5th inning. "Duke Snider, an All-Star Game outfielder currently batting .221, tapped the ball down to the Pirate first baseman, Donn Clendenon, and Clendenon decided upon a foot race. Snider won it. Clendenon stabbed the bag with his long left leg, but the Duke beat him by a foot.", as the Mets fans rejoice. Tim Harkness then doubled him in for the early lead, but it would be Mets' only run of the afternoon.

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http://www.flickr.com/photos/yashicad/with/8390042485/#photo_8390042485

[alpineinc]

..........

[chip]

I think that photo is at Wrigley.

[Fedleaguer]

ya' mean like having joe jackson hitting right handed in field of dreams? YIKES!!
they could have used the flopped uni, flip the negative trick but it wasn't that important to the filmmakers.

Or like having the A's players wearing green uniforms, or mentioning that Terrance Mann saw the Dodgers play in Brooklyn in 1958, or characterizing one of manager John McGraw's fingers as bony.
I could go on, but it's still my favorite movie.

[alpineinc]

I think that photo is at Wrigley.

Yep, looks like you are correct, off to the Wrigley thread with it.

[alpineinc]

Post Giants, pre Mets. 1960.

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[alpineinc]

Did not know that actor Vic Morrow was once a vendor at the PG.

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[Paul W]

ed randall mentioned at the end of his show on sunday that the brush stairway is on the verge of opening up.

[SultanOfWhat]

ed randall mentioned at the end of his show on sunday that the brush stairway is on the verge of opening up.

http://newyorkgiantspreservationsociety.com/?p=1241


In 2011, the New York City Parks and Recreation Department launched a $950,000 restoration project and now the stairway is scheduled for a “soft opening” this spring. Major League Baseball gave $50,000 to the project, along with other old Polo Grounds tenants — the San Francisco Giants; the Yankees, who played there from 1913-23; the Mets; the New York Jets (nee Titans), who played their first four AFL seasons there, and the New York football Giants, who played there from 1925-55.

About halfway up the stairway there is a landing, before the steps turn left to the top of the hill. Steel letters in the concrete landing say, “The John T. Brush Stairway. Presented by the New York Giants.”

The original steel lettering has remained intact for the past century, although corners of the landing have broken away. During restoration, the landing is being returned to its original look.

“The letters were removed and are being reinstalled,” said Philip Abramson, parks department spokesman. “The stairway reconstruction maintains the location and characteristics of the prior stairway. While incorporating similar material elements of steel and concrete, the stairway is being upgraded to meet today’s building code. The lower landscaped area of the stairway will include new picnic tables and add a game table, benches and landscape elements.”

A rededication ceremony is anticipated, with details forthcoming when the project is complete. Fans of the New York Giants baseball team hope it will be on July 9, on the stairway’s 100th anniversary. For them, it’s the most exciting development at the site since their team won the 1954 World Series.

[alpineinc]

Sultan found a great old NY Giants letterhead a while back, here's another one on EBay now, including the envelope (guy was in quite a hurry to open it, too, lol).

Apparently, Gerald Hughes was a pitcher in the Giants' farm system, with the only available stats being that he pitched one season in the minors, appearing in only 2 games for the Class A Bridgeport (CT) Bears in 1929, never to make the major leagues. But, obviously, the letter was a treasured keepsake for years.

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http://www.ebay.com/itm/1928-NY-GIANTS-LETTERHEAD-SIGNED-JAMES-J-TIERNEY-w-ENVELOPE-/110990938265?pt=Vintage_Sports_Memorabilia&hash=item19d7935099

[SultanOfWhat]

That 1928 letterhead is a nice find. Interesting to see that the other 3 officers besides McGraw had turned over since the 1916 letterhead. Also, the telephone number had changed to 4 digits after the exchange, rather than the earlier 3.

[alpineinc]

Get ready for this one. Sunday, July 8, 1962, top of the 3rd inning, one out, Stan the Man on deck, Bill White up, Jay Hook pitching, Sammy Taylor catching. White would strike out, and Musial would walk, but Stan would hit three HRs that day as the Cards routed the Mets 15-1. Bob Gibson went all the way, and threw in a HR of his own.

120627

http://www.reddit.com/r/baseball/comments/18tkuh/stan_musial_waits_on_deck_vs_mets_at_the_polo/

[Paul W]

si.com photo string of "polio" grounds...

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/multimedia/photo_gallery/1203/mlb-polo-grounds/content.2.html

[alpineinc]

Great stuff here.

Appears to be Labor Day, Monday September 6, 1920, a DH against the Philadelphia Athletics. The Yankees are wearing black armbands, or "mourning bands of crepe" as the NYT put it, mourning the death of Cleveland's Ray Chapman, who was hit by a pitched ball from the Yankees' Carl Mays (also at the Polo Grounds) back on Monday, August 16.

All previous sources I could find suggested that the Yankees only wore the armbands on Wednesday, August 18, the first game back, against the Indians (also being, I believe, the first time the Yankees wore any type of armband in their history), while Cleveland wore armbands for the rest of the 1920 season. However, these photos, apparently all annotated (markings on back of last photo shown below), suggest otherwise. These games in particular would be the 13th and 14th contests after Chapman's death, so one would assume they were to wear them until the end of the 1920 campaign. The light-colored caps also match the A's, and not the Indians (in the fourth photo - the first three appear to be Yankees' BP).

Source also suggests that it is Babe Ruth about to enter the dugout at left in the first photo, but can't be confirmed. Source also claims they are Type 1 photos that have never been published before. The Yankees would take both games of this DH, to move to one game behind the league-leading Indians, while the A's were firmly in last place, and would finish there. The Indians would eventually take the 1920 pennant, by 2 games over the White Sox and 3 over the Yankees, and would win the championship in 7 games over Brooklyn. Chapman's wife was voted a full WS share.

No larger sizes available.

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http://www.ebay.com/itm/1920-YANKEES-BABE-RUTH-PRE-GAME-BATTING-PRACTICE-Vintage-Baseball-Photo-/370760843125?pt=Vintage_Sports_Memorabilia&hash=item5653117f75
http://www.ebay.com/itm/1920-YANKEES-MILLER-HUGGINS-GAME-ACTION-BABE-RUTH-Vintage-Baseball-Photo-/360594902251?pt=Vintage_Sports_Memorabilia&hash=item53f5218ceb
http://www.ebay.com/itm/1920-YANKEES-MILLER-HUGGINS-GAME-ACTION-Vintage-Baseball-Photo-/370760843123?pt=Vintage_Sports_Memorabilia&hash=item5653117f73
http://www.ebay.com/itm/1920-YANKEES-GAME-ACTION-FULLY-IDd-Vintage-Baseball-Photo-/360594902281?pt=Vintage_Sports_Memorabilia&hash=item53f5218d09

[alpineinc]

1910's, THREE glorious photos, Giants vs Phillies per source, likely the same game. Last photo has both fans and players scrambling to the exit! It appears even one player is in catching gear. Be sure to click through to the largest sizes to really check them out!

121170
1600x1191 (http://i.ebayimg.com/t/c-1910-GIANTS-v-PHILLIES-Amazing-Game-Action-Baseball-Photo-/00/s/MTE5MVgxNjAw/$T2eC16J,!)sE9swm(wBWBQc0beKkG!~~60_10.JPG)

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1600x1154 (http://i.ebayimg.com/t/c-1910-PHILLIES-v-GIANTS-Baseball-Game-Photo-Visitors-Dugout-/00/s/MTE1NFgxNjAw/$T2eC16Z,!zoE9s5ngMHbBQc0celt9w~~60_10.JPG)

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1600x1162 (http://i.ebayimg.com/t/c-1910-GIANTS-v-PHILLIES-Baseball-Photo-POSTGAME-FRENZY-ON-FIELD-AMAZING-/00/s/MTE2MlgxNjAw/$(KGrHqJ,!n4FBWBKqw3LBQc0b5nnHg~~60_57.JPG)


What is puzzling to me is that the Giants uniforms do not match any from the 1910's, with the all-white caps (white cap and white bill), so they are possibly wearing a rare alternate this date. Makes it much harder to pinpoint the year then, though, except that it's definitely not 1910 (zoom of the action, below). Also, is that a cloverleaf-shaped base?

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http://www.ebay.com/itm/c-1910-GIANTS-v-PHILLIES-Amazing-Game-Action-Baseball-Photo-/370754909736?pt=Vintage_Sports_Memorabilia&hash=item5652b6f628
http://www.ebay.com/itm/c-1910-PHILLIES-v-GIANTS-Baseball-Game-Photo-Visitors-Dugout-/370754909719?pt=Vintage_Sports_Memorabilia&hash=item5652b6f617
http://www.ebay.com/itm/c-1910-GIANTS-v-PHILLIES-Baseball-Photo-POSTGAME-FRENZY-ON-FIELD-AMAZING-/360588220370?pt=Vintage_Sports_Memorabilia&hash=item53f4bb97d2

[SultanOfWhat]

Wow, some great photos still coming to light. I'd seen the first two Polo Grounds/armband photos before, but in smaller versions. I think that is definitely Ruth near the dugout.

I was actually thinking about those armbands, after coming across this photo of Wally Pipp in the Polo Grounds:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/YSimages-007_zps385915c7.jpg



I wonder why those people are running across the field. Maybe to try and get into a subway car ahead of others, or maybe just for fun. Terrific photo, whatever the reason.

[FENWAY FRANKY]

Is that Grant's Tomb in the LF background?
Wonder whose buried there?

[alpineinc]

Found two more great ones from the same seller, so I put them all together, scroll up a couple posts to check them all out if you've already gone by it.

[Joe Barrie]

[QUOTE=FENWAY FRANKY;2125481]Is that Grant's Tomb in the LF background?
Wonder whose buried there?[/QUOT

The tall structure is a water tower located near the Manhattan end of High Bridge.

[SultanOfWhat]

Here's a LOC photo (cropped) from August 20, 1913. Those hat bills are reading quite light (note especially McGraw's, and the bat boy's):

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/NYG1913_zpsfbad5817.jpg


EDIT: I think the photo of the fans running on the field is similar to one we've seen before, but from a different angle, and maybe a few days apart. An LOC photo of the 1913 WS has the same billboards, and the same pandemonium:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/Polo1913comp_zps1ab1e496.jpg


Sunlight and shadow don't match, so probably not the same day. But possibly both from 1913, and maybe the "new" one is from the Series, as well.


Billboards comparison ("new" pic on the bottom):

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/1913WSversusnewpic_zps76943c92.jpg

[FENWAY FRANKY]

Thanks Joe!
Figures....I'm from Boston.

[alpineinc]

EDIT: I think the photo of the fans running on the field is similar to one we've seen before, but from a different angle, and maybe a few days apart.

I initially thought that as well, assuming that the seller saw "New York vs Philadelphia" on the photos and assumed the Phillies, but the visiting caps don't seem to match the A's at all, who appeared to have worn the structured "pillbox" cap all season, even through the WS. The original "running" photos definitely has a team wearing a dark regular cap and dark stockings. Again, it could be an alternate of some kind, but still a bit of a mystery here it seems.

First pic from the 1913 WS below, with a Philly A back center.

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2nd pic WS action, A's RF Eddie Murphy in foreground. Doesn't seem to match running photo (zoom at bottom), and especially earlier action photo.

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The Giants did end the season with six (!) games against the Phillies in three days (actually seven, finishing out the 9th inning of a suspending game as well!), oddly enough even with the pennant clinched (imagine the outcry today). Maybe they're from that series?

[alpineinc]

Have we seen this yet? Beautiful yet short color "home movie" of the last Giants game at the PG.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1K5RuoIhmFs

[alpineinc]

Another short home movie of the PG, found by YankeeStadium1923 and posted in the OYS thread. Second half is the Polo Grounds.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xonOxmDsxUo

[SultanOfWhat]

1921 WS:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloBBF-002_zpsf1dc6181.jpg


1921 WS, Ruth steals the first of two consecutive bases:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloBBF-003_zpsd59ad7b7.jpg


1923 11-10 at Polo Grounds [Typewritten and mounted on verso] Cornell defeated Columbia today at the Polo Grounds, 35 to 0, but the victory was entirely too small for Cornell's lugubrious coach, the inimitable Gil Dobie, and he departed with his wonder team more pessimistic than ever. Photo shows one of the numerous Cornell drives, Paterson getting away with a forward pass. 11/10/23. [GEM and Van Heusen billboards visible at left]

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloBBF-004_zps3e47da9a.jpg


An AT&T engineer tests out his company's equipment for broadcasting the third game of the 1924 World Series at the Polo Grounds in New York, New York, New York, October 6, 1924. (Photo by Underwood Archives/Getty Images)

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloBBF-005_zps4be0a655.jpg


[On verso] Photo shows the first double play of the third game in the World's Series, at the Polo Grounds, New York, Monday. In foreground first sacker Bill Terry of the Giants is seen putting out Bluege, Senator's third sacker, whose hot grounder had been picked up by pitcher McQuillan. Terry then pegged to Frankie Frisch and the Giants second sacker and captain put out first sacker Judge of Washington. Catcher Hank Gowdy is seen running up in foreground. 10/6/24.

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloBBF-006_zpsbb5a770c.jpg


http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloBBF-007_zps5f7275d4.jpg


1940 Tulane Green Wave Backfield Drills At Polo Grounds

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/af252/bucket3nyy/PoloBBF-008_zps629e90ba.jpg

[Paul W]

mayor hylan and landis taking a walk, early 20's.
field looks like it could use some seeding...

[Paul W]

late 30's or 40's, wabc radio was part of cbs then.
later those call letters were back for the last 2 years...

[SultanOfWhat]

mayor hylan and landis taking a walk, early 20's.
field looks like it could use some seeding...

That photo is from April 26, 1923, Opening Day during the renovations. There's a huge version at the LOC website.

It's often helpful to consider the LOC inventory number written on the photo when trying to date them. They don't represent the photographic dates, but if the same 4 digit number is seen on two or more photos, you can count on the photos being from the same time period, usually the same day.

[chinese home run]

WABC was the flagship station of the Columbia Broadcasting System in New York City and would have those call letters until 1943. NBC had two networks- the "Blue" network and the "red" network- one was primarily entertainment while the other was mostly news. NBC was instructed to sell off one of the networks and did so in 1943 to Edward Nobles, the owner of the Life Savers candy company. The network that Nobles bought was renamed the American Broadcasting Company; naturally , I can't remember which of the two he bought- DOH!

[mjrbaseball]

WABC was the flagship station of the Columbia Broadcasting System in New York City and would have those call letters until 1943. NBC had two networks- the "Blue" network and the "red" network- one was primarily entertainment while the other was mostly news. NBC was instructed to sell off one of the networks and did so in 1943 to Edward Nobles, the owner of the Life Savers candy company. The network that Nobles bought was renamed the American Broadcasting Company; naturally , I can't remember which of the two he bought- DOH!

Nobles bought the NBC Blue Network, which by far the smaller of the two, and had weaker stations than the Red. (Of course, NBC did a little juggling as the sale approached to make sure it kept the dominant station in cities where it had two.)

[Paul W]

WABC was the flagship station of the Columbia Broadcasting System in New York City and would have those call letters until 1943. NBC had two networks- the "Blue" network and the "red" network- one was primarily entertainment while the other was mostly news. NBC was instructed to sell off one of the networks and did so in 1943 to Edward Nobles, the owner of the Life Savers candy company. The network that Nobles bought was renamed the American Broadcasting Company; naturally , I can't remember which of the two he bought- DOH!

first few years their ny station was weaf.

[mjrbaseball]

first few years their ny station was weaf.

WEAF was at 660 kHz and was the original NBC Red station. WJZ at 770 was NBC Blue. WABC at 880 was CBS.

WEAF changed its call letters to WRCA and then to WNBC. WABC changed to WCBS, and when NBC Blue became ABC, its flagship station claimed the then-unused WABC call sign.

[alpineinc]

Yankee manager (Wild) Bill Donovan, 1915-1917, an early water cooler ad? Would have to be from this era, but oddly enough he's wearing 1912 stockings.

The Distillata water company is still in business today.

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http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-New-York-Yankees-Manager-Photo-Bill-Donovan-/330569664440?pt=Vintage_Sports_Memorabilia&hash=item4cf77cc7b8

[alpineinc]

Opening Day, Wednesday, April 11, 1917. Unidentified Yankee shaking hands with General Leonard Wood, who was a member of the Rough Riders with Teddy Roosevelt, and threw out the first pitch. At right, manager Wild Bill Donovan in uniform, Colonel Ruppert in bowler.

Yankees fell to the Red Sox ("champions of this planet or any other", NYT), with Babe Ruth going all the way for the Sox on a 3-hitter. Only 9,500 were on hand for the festivities.

If anyone's going to the Yankees and Mets Opening Days in NYC tomorrow, imagine if the gates weren't opened until 1pm! - "The gates opened at 1 o'clock, and the first bag of peanuts was sold at 1:05. The fences are gaudy with new signs, and nature has painted the grass a nice Nile green. There were signs of Spring and life everywhere except up in the clock on the right field fence, which hasn't recovered from its winter nap. There was also a painful slump in the ice cream cone market." - NYT

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4903x3317 (http://lcweb2.loc.gov/master/pnp/ggbain/24100/24199u.tif)

http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/ggb2005024445/

[Paul W]

WEAF was at 660 kHz and was the original NBC Red station. WJZ at 770 was NBC Blue. WABC at 880 was CBS.

WEAF changed its call letters to WRCA and then to WNBC. WABC changed to WCBS, and when NBC Blue became ABC, its flagship station claimed the then-unused WABC call sign.

yer right!
another pix w/wabc...

[Paul W]

polio grounds in the 30's...

[locke40]

I believe this is the Polo Grounds. Correct me if I'm wrong.122338

[SultanOfWhat]

Yes, it certainly is. Before the fire of April 1911.

[alpineinc]

I believe this is the Polo Grounds. Correct me if I'm wrong.

Fun pic. From 1910, probably the home opener. In the PG III thread.

[alpineinc]

Circa 1911-1915, if not here before. LOC photo.

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1600x1132 (http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-t58KNgB80A8/UFNWy8NhBQI/AAAAAAAANvs/Hvqi7OnaQPQ/s1600/Reporters+%2528telegraphers%2529+at+a+baseball+gam e+at+the+Polo+Grounds+in+New+York+City%252C+1910-1915.jpg)

http://historyinphotos.blogspot.com/2012/09/g-g-bain.html

[Blue387]

Ralph Kiner in 1963, in the broadcast booth at the Polo Grounds. I could be wrong but I think the man in the background could be Bob Murphy.

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http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/13/sports/baseball/ralph-kiner-reflects-on-50-years-as-a-mets-voice.html?pagewanted=all

[Blue387]

Cleaned Up for Posterity, a View of the Polo Grounds Is Nearing Its End
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/09/sports/baseball/memories-of-polo-grounds-and-mets-on-anniversary-of-final-opener.html

[Paul W]

neil leifer pix 4/21/63...

[Paul W]

not sure if previously posted, good sharp image.

[Anubis2051]

not sure if previously posted, good sharp image.

Is that from the Mets days?

[alpineinc]

Is that from the Mets days?

Yes, also posted a couple of months back, July 5, 1963, couple more in the set as well, real beauties -> http://www.baseball-fever.com/showthread.php?56604-Polo-Grounds-IV-Brush-Stadium-(1911-1963)&p=2117564#post2117564

[Paul W]

Is that from the Mets days?

yep, believe it's '63

[tdinan]

Article in today's NY Times:

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/09/sports/baseball/memories-of-polo-grounds-and-mets-on-anniversary-of-final-opener.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

[ericlc129]

not sure if previously posted, good sharp image.

Wow. Talk about open air. Good stiff crossbreeze could really do a number on the ball down the line.

[StanTheMan]

Wow. Talk about open air. Good stiff crossbreeze could really do a number on the ball down the line.

Sunlight could also go through the opening as well of course. Cue THAT scene from Miracle Ball when they actually find the ball in midair, backlit, previously undetected/overlooked in the famous Pafko at the Wall photo.

[alpineinc]

In honor of "42", Branch Rickey (foreground) at the PG as a Player/Manager for the St Louis Browns, in 1914.

He only had 2 at bats that year, in his final playing season; his final at bat was in Philadelphia, but not sure if his other at bat was in New York, or if he's just hitting fungoes here, not preparing to play that day.

Rickey managed the Browns from 1913-1915, and then after serving in WWI, jumped across town to be manager (through 1925), and also "GM" of the Cardinals, until 1942, then on to the Dodgers in 1943.

122742

http://www.legendaryauctions.com/LotDetail.aspx?inventoryid=78859

[YankeeStadium1923]

Polo Grounds Mid 1950's

[YankeeStadium1923]

Polo Grounds....Yankee Stadium.....Polo Grounds.

8:05 Large Concourse step....Polo Grounds cat walks and Knickerbocker sign


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RiEBCHBTOKA

[YankeeStadium1923]

View of subway and Polo Grounds.

6:35 Aerial view of Polo Grounds and Yankee Stadium


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-u3YShG_7s8

[YankeeStadium1923]

1958 Polo Grounds Ramps

123459

[alpineinc]

Wow, great shots throughout both films of both stadiums. Great find!!

[Paul W]

4/40, behind 1st an angle not seen much...

[JOVE23]

I wish the geometry of this park wasn't so weird because it's certainly hard to try to build it in 3D.

[chip]

TELL ME ABOUT IT!!!!!

I’ve been trying to draw this stadium in cad for years
and I still can’t figure out those outfield columns and trusses.
Every time I think I have the columns in the correct locations
I place the portals and walkways but they never seem to line up
correctly. Then it’s even worse when I try to add seats. :hissyfit:
When I draw up these ballparks I can fudge things in and get
them really close to exact and even make some discoveries that
show how these places got designed and built. But as far as the
Polo Grounds goes - it just makes me want to jump off a bridge.

Anyway good luck! :crossfingers:
Can you post what you have so far?
I’ll try and help you out.

[StanTheMan]

I don't know if I have ever noticed the direction North indicated as seen here. If so, I've just missed it I guess. No other reason for this post I guess.


http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/01/T%26T_Polo_Grounds_diagram_1951.JPG