Beer at Griffith Stadium

[Brian McKenna]

i read that beer was not sold at giffith stadium while clark griffith was alive - is that correct?

[SteveJRogers]

Bumping because I was made aware that this was also the case for Homestead Gray games.

Essentially meaning that 2019 was the first time you could go to a Washington team’s home World Series game, and purchase an alcoholic beverage!

[3rdGenCub]

Remember that during the 1924 & 1925 WS at Grifftih Stadium there was something called Prohibition, so no beer was served at any ballparks. However, since Griffith Stadium had ads for beer after Prohibition ended, I assume that Clark Griffith allowed alcohol. Beer & other alcholic drinks were too much of a moneymaker for a cash-strapped team like the Senators to pass up.

[MrCubFan]

Checking Newspapers.com, a pay site, in 1955 a columnist made a point of praising the Senators for not allowing beer sales. By 1956, after Clark was gone, some writers were criticizing the Senators for starting to sell beer. That was the year they built the inner fence in left field, and the left field bleachers were dubbed the Beer Garden.

[alpineinc]

Great (15 year) bump!

Beer was first sold at Griffith Stadium on Friday, August 10, 1956, for a series against the Boston Red Sox, after a Class D liquor license was issued August 9. Beer sales, and consumption, was limited to the Beer Garden in the left-field bleachers. This remained in place until the 1960 season, when DC allowed the Senators to sell beer anywhere in the park.

Some clippings:


Griffith - "I'm not in the saloon business". 1947

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Ban lifted, UP wire, 8/11/1956. Philly and Pittsburgh still banned it.

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8/11/1956, Boston Globe reports on the grand opening of the Beer Garden, which was only "half loaded" the first night. Ted Williams also weighs in.

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Pittsburgh Press, 1957

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NY Daily News, April 1960

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[MrCubFan]

Excellent research! I got a chuckle out of the Boston writer's snarky "Class D license" comment. But with the old man out of way after 1955, Calvin had the chance to start running the club like a major league organization.