Encyclopedia Dubuque
"Encyclopedia Dubuque is the online authority for all things Dubuque, written by the people who know the city best.”
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Affiliated with the Local History Network of the State Historical Society of Iowa, and the Iowa Museum Association.
FOURTH STREET BASEBALL FIELD
FOURTH STREET BASEBALL FIELD. In 1930 the dream of night baseball came to Dubuque in the hopes of stimulating interest and operating profitably. (1) The Fourth Street Baseball Field was said to have the best lighting system of its day. It was also the first municipally-owned baseball field in the United States. This was five years before lighted baseball came to the major leagues.
In 1960 Dubuque Baseball Inc. was given the field for the token receipt of one dollar. The ball club assumed full maintenance responsibilities on the 63 days games were scheduled. The Dubuque Recreation Commission had previously charged the club $2,500 annually. Recreation Direction Nicholas SUTTON explained that the fee was usually wiped out by maintenance costs paid by the city. A spokesperson for the club said that members of the painters' union were planning to immediately paint the buildings with paint supplied by the city. (2)
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Source:
1. "Dubuque Will Keep Franchise," Telegraph Herald, July 22, 1910, p. 78
2. "Baseball Club Gets Park for Token Rental," Telegraph Herald, April 12, 1960, p. 1
See: BASEBALL