Owen J. Bush Stadium was a

baseball stadium A ballpark, or baseball park, is a type of sports venue where baseball is played. The playing field is divided into two field sections called the infield and the outfield. The infield is an area whose dimensions are rigidly defined in part ba ...

Indianapolis Indianapolis ( ), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Indiana, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana, Marion ...

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

, United States. It was home to the

Indianapolis Indians The Indianapolis Indians are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates. They are located in Indianapolis, Indiana, and play their home games at Victory ...

from 1931 to 1996. It was also home to a few

Negro league The Negro leagues were United States professional baseball leagues comprising teams of African Americans. The term may be used broadly to include professional black teams outside the leagues and it may be used narrowly for the seven relativel ...

teams, as well as a

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team, the

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, who won the league's final championship in 1969.

History

The stadium was commissioned by Norm Perry, owner of the Indians, in 1931. He named it Perry Stadium as a memorial to his brother Jim, the former owner of the club who had died in a plane crash during a solo flight from Schoen Field on the eastside of Indianapolis in 1929. The $350,000 stadium was designed by

Osborn Engineering Osborn Engineering is an architectural and engineering firm based in Cleveland, Ohio. Founded in 1892, it is noted mostly for designing sports stadiums. More than 100 stadiums have been designed by Osborn, including such famous parks as Fenway P ...

of Cleveland, Ohio. The firm also built

Yankee Stadium Yankee Stadium is a baseball stadium located in the Bronx in New York City. It is the home field of Major League Baseball’s New York Yankees and New York City FC of Major League Soccer. The stadium opened in April 2009, replacing the Yankee S ...

and constructed or renovated nearly 25 steel and concrete stadiums across America. Bush stadium was built by William P. Jungclaus Company of Indianapolis. Construction began in late May of 1931 and Perry set the inaugural game for September 5, 1931. By late August much remained to be done: The grandstand roof was incomplete. The 13,000 grandstand seats and right field bleachers were not completed until the week before the first game. The game was held despite the main entrance, lobby, and administrative offices not being finished until a few weeks later. Initially there was no stadium lighting because the lighting that had recently been installed at Washington Park was to be moved to the new stadium. The Indians lost to the

Louisville Colonels The Louisville Colonels were a Major League Baseball team that played in the American Association (AA) throughout that league's ten-year existence from 1882 until 1891. They were known as the Louisville Eclipse from 1882 to 1884, and as th ...

, 3–4. The formal dedication was held on July 1, 1932, in which the Indians again lost to Louisville, 6–11. It was renamed Victory Field on January 21, 1942, in response to the onset of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. The name was the winning entry of a fan contest held by the club's new owners. The day of its renaming, the ''

Indianapolis News The ''Indianapolis News'' was an evening newspaper published for 130 years, beginning December 7, 1869, and ending on October 1, 1999. The "Great Hoosier Daily," as it was known, at one time held the largest circulation in the state of Indiana. ...

'' stated that the renaming was chosen "because of its timeliness with current affairs; its popularity among ontestproposals; and its possibilities for elaborate public displays". While Perry sold the baseball club to

Frank E. McKinney Frank Edward McKinney Sr. (June 16, 1904 – January 9, 1974) was the chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 1951 through 1952. He was hand-picked for the post by then-President Harry S Truman. Early life and career Born in Indianap ...

and former player

Donie Bush Owen Joseph "Donie" Bush (; October 8, 1887Sources differ as to Bush's date of birth. Sources listing the date as October 8, 1887, include (i) baseball-reference.com, and (ii) findagrave.com. Sources listing the date as October 3, 1887, include ...

that year, he retained ownership of the stadium. In 1967, the ballpark was sold to the city of Indianapolis, who leased it back to the Indians. On August 30, 1967, it was renamed for Bush, who had served as president of the Indians from 1955 to 1969. ''Note:'' This includes English ivy was planted on the brick outfield walls of Perry Stadium prior to its opening. P. K. Wrigley liked the appearance of the ivy, and subsequently instructed the iconic Wrigley Field ivy in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

to be planted. The ivy in Indianapolis remained after the stadium became Victory Field and then Bush Stadium, but was discontinued in 1996, when the Indians moved to the current

Victory Field Victory Field is a minor league ballpark in downtown Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. It is home to the Indianapolis Indians of the International League. History Victory Field opened on July 11, 1996, with the Indians falling to the Oklah ...

ballpark downtown. During the 1930s, Perry Stadium was home to many Negro league teams. These included the ABCs (1932, 1938, and 1939), American Giants (1933),

Athletics Athletics may refer to: Sports * Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking ** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport * Athletics (physical culture), competitio ...

(1937) and Crawfords (1940). Later, it would be home to the

Indianapolis Clowns The Indianapolis Clowns were a professional baseball team in the Negro American League. Tracing their origins back to the 1930s, the Clowns were the last of the Negro league teams to disband, continuing to play exhibition games into the 1980s. Th ...

, a barnstorming team that was well known for "comical antics". The Clowns won the

Negro American League The Negro American League was one of the several Negro leagues created during the time organized American baseball was segregated. The league was established in 1937, and disbanded after its 1962 season. Negro American League franchises :''An ...

championship in 1952, with the help of

Hank Aaron Henry Louis Aaron (February 5, 1934 – January 22, 2021), nicknamed "Hammer" or "Hammerin' Hank", was an American professional baseball right fielder who played 23 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), from 1954 through 1976. Considered one ...

. They played in Indianapolis from 1944 to 1962. Later, the Clowns featured

Toni Stone Toni Stone (July 17, 1921 – November 2, 1996), born as Marcenia Lyle Stone, was an American female professional baseball player who played in predominantly male leagues. In 1953, she became the first woman to play as a regular on an American m ...

, the first female Negro leagues player in history. Even after the Indianapolis Indians integrated in 1952, the Clowns continued to play at the stadium. In 1987, Bush Stadium was dressed up in different ways to be used as the stand-in for both

Comiskey Park Comiskey Park was a ballpark in Chicago, Illinois, located in the Armour Square neighborhood on the near-south side of the city. The stadium served as the home of the Chicago White Sox of the American League from 1910 through 1990. Built by Wh ...

and

Crosley Field Crosley Field was a Major League Baseball park in Cincinnati, Ohio. It was the home field of the National League's Cincinnati Reds from 1912 through June 24, 1970, and the original Cincinnati Bengals football team, members of the second (1937) a ...

during the filming of ''

Eight Men Out ''Eight Men Out'' is a 1988 American sports drama film based on Eliot Asinof's 1963 book ''Eight Men Out: The Black Sox and the 1919 World Series''. It was written and directed by John Sayles. The film is a dramatization of Major League Baseball ...

'', which was about the "

Black Sox Scandal The Black Sox Scandal was a match fixing, game-fixing scandal in Major League Baseball (MLB) in which eight members of the Chicago White Sox were accused of intentionally losing the 1919 World Series against the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for p ...

", the throwing of the 1919

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...

. Indianapolis also hosted the Pan Am Games in 1987, and the baseball tournament was held at Bush Stadium. Starting in the 1980s, maintenance problems became more pronounced as the stadium's physical structure deteriorated. In 1985, the city studied what would be needed to upgrade the ballpark in order to attract a Major League team. The initial study indicated that the size and condition of the playing field were adequate, but that seating would need to be increased to at least 40,000, and that the ancillary areas (dugouts, bullpens, concession stands, and ticket booths) would eventually need to be upgraded. A second study that looked at the issue of parking said that between $9.8 million and $52.3 million would be needed for additional parking, with another $22 million for street improvements to handle the additional traffic. On May 9, 1985, Mayor

Bill Hudnut Bill(s) may refer to: Common meanings * Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States) * Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature * Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer * Bill, a bird or animal's beak Plac ...

recommended to the parks board that it not move ahead with the project, citing the cost and the disruption to the neighborhoods around the stadium. By 1990 the conditions at the stadium were dire. There were numerous plumbing and water problems among other issues. In a June 15, 1985, letter, the team's chairman of the board described the "terrible state of Bush stadium" and asked that control of the stadium be transferred from the parks board to the city's Capital Improvement Board. In August 1993, the

National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is a professional baseball organization below Major League Baseball (MLB), constituted of teams affiliated with MLB clubs. It was founded on September 5, 1901, in response to the growing dominance of the National L ...

warned that either major repairs needed to be done or a new stadium constructed; failure to do so could result in the transfer of the team to another city. A study by the Capital Improvements Board estimated that repairs to Bush Stadium would cost $16.3 million while a new stadium downtown would cost $18 million. A downtown stadium was projected to double attendance and add millions to the downtown economy, so that option was taken. The 1995 season of the Indians was marketed as the "Bush Stadium Sunset Season". The final game was played on July 3, 1996, and the first game at the new

White River State Park White River State Park is an urban park in downtown Indianapolis, downtown Indianapolis, Indiana. Situated along the eastern and western banks of its namesake White River (Indiana), White River, the park covers . The park is home to numerous att ...

was played on July 11. In 1997,

Tony George Anton Hulman "Tony" George (born December 30, 1959) is the former Chairman, President, and CEO of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Hulman & Company, serving from 1989 to 2009. He was also formerly on the Board of Directors of both entities. ...

, president of the nearby

Indianapolis Motor Speedway The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is a motor racing circuit located in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of Indianapolis, Indiana. It is the home of the Indianapolis 500 and the Brickyard 400, and and formerly the home of the U ...

, leased the property and converted it into a dirt track named the 16th Street Speedway for

midget car Midget cars, also Speedcars in Australia, is a class of racing cars. The cars are very small, with a very high power-to-weight ratio, and typically use four-cylinder engines. They originated in the United States in the 1930s and are raced on most ...

auto racing. The ivy was removed from the outfield walls around this time. As happened with a similar venture involving Philadelphia's

Baker Bowl National League Park, commonly referred to as the Baker Bowl after 1923, was a baseball stadium home to the Philadelphia Phillies from 1887 until 1938, and the first home field of the Philadelphia Eagles from 1933 to 1935. It opened in 1887 with ...

several decades earlier, the auto racing venture failed (after two years). The property closed and the stadium fell into disrepair, with no apparent future. The Indy Parks Department had control of the land, which was zoned as a park. At the time, it was estimated that renovations, which would include removal of

asbestos Asbestos ( ) is a group of naturally occurring, Toxicity, toxic, carcinogenic and fibrous silicate minerals. There are six types, all of which are composed of long and thin fibrous Crystal habit, crystals, each fibre (particulate with length su ...

and lead paint, could cost around $10 million. Between 2008 and 2011 the Stadium was used as a storage site for cars traded in as part of the

Cash for Clunkers The Car Allowance Rebate System (CARS), colloquially known as "cash for clunkers", was a $3 1000000000 (number), billion Federal Government of the United States, U.S. federal scrappage program intended to provide economic incentives to U.S. r ...

program.

In 2011, it was proposed that the stadium be turned into an apartment complex, and on March 15, 2012, demolition began on portions of the 81-year-old structure. The 138 loft units were completely leased when the complex opened on July 27, 2013. The dirt portion of the infield has now been paved with stamped red concrete, but the lights that lit up the field at night still stand. Much of the exterior façade has been preserved, and many of the historic features, such as the owner's suite and the ticket booth, have been incorporated into the loft apartments. There are studio, one, and two-bedroom units in the complex. The cost of the project was $13 million, of which the city funded $5 million. The Stadium Lofts complex includes both the loft apartments within the former stadium building and newly constructed flats.

Dimensions

Original *Left Field – *Left Center Field – *Center Field Corner – *Right Center Field – *Right Field – 1945 (home plate moved about 20 feet toward center field) *Left Field – *Left Center Field – *Center Field Corner – *Right Center Field – *Right Field – 1967 (inner fence constructed across center field) *Left Field – *Left Center Field – *Deep Left Center – *Center Field Inner Fence – *Deep Right Center – *Right Center Field – *Right Field –

References

Footnotes

Sources

*''Ballparks of North America'', by Michael Benson.

External links