Aztec Bowl was an outdoor

stadium A stadium (: stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage completely or partially surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to stand or sit ...

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

, California, located on the campus of

San Diego State University San Diego State University (SDSU) is a Public university, public research university in San Diego, California, United States. Founded in 1897, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CS ...

(SDSU). The stadium was the home of the

San Diego State Aztecs football The San Diego State Aztecs football team is the college football program that represents San Diego State University (SDSU). The Aztecs compete in NCAA Division I (NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, FBS) as a member of the Mountain West ...

team.

History

Construction of a 10,000 seat stadium began in 1933 following the first of two

Works Progress Administration The Works Progress Administration (WPA; from 1935 to 1939, then known as the Work Projects Administration from 1939 to 1943) was an American New Deal agency that employed millions of jobseekers (mostly men who were not formally educated) to car ...

(WPA) grants. 2,592 more seats were added in 1948. Aztec Bowl hosted the

team until they moved to

San Diego Stadium San Diego Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium in San Diego, California, United States. Opened in 1967 as San Diego Stadium; it was renamed Jack Murphy Stadium for sportswriter Jack Murphy (sportswriter), Jack Murphy from 1981 to 1997. From 1997 t ...

in 1967. The stadium was used for soccer matches and as a musical venue for the

San Diego Symphony The San Diego Symphony is an American symphony orchestra based in San Diego, California. The orchestra performs at Jacobs Music Center and the Rady Shell at Jacobs Park. It serves as the orchestra for the San Diego Opera. History On December 6, ...

, the

Grateful Dead The Grateful Dead was an American rock music, rock band formed in Palo Alto, California, in 1965. Known for their eclectic style that fused elements of rock, blues, jazz, Folk music, folk, country music, country, bluegrass music, bluegrass, roc ...

in 1969,

the Police The Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. Within a few months of their first gig, the line-up settled as Sting (lead vocals, bass guitar, primary songwriter), Andy Summers (guitar) and Stewart Copeland (drums, percussi ...

in 1983 and

Lollapalooza Lollapalooza () is an annual American four-day music festival held in Grant Park (Chicago), Grant Park in Chicago. It originally started as a touring event in 1991, with Chicago becoming its permanent location beginning in 2005. Music genres i ...

in 1994.

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. He was the first Roman Catholic and youngest person elected p ...

, then the

president of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

, gave a commencement address and received the first honorary doctorate given by a California State University at the stadium on June 6, 1963. Then-mayor

Pete Wilson Peter Barton Wilson (born August 23, 1933) is an American attorney and politician who served as governor of California from 1991 to 1999. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, Wilson previously served as a United S ...

's 40th birthday party was held there in 1973. Viejas Arena, the school's basketball arena, has been sitting on the site of the stadium since 1997. The arena was built directly into the canyon hillside, enclosing one end of Aztec Bowl. Two sections of the stadium's original concrete bleachers and cobblestone walls remain visible. The stadium was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1994. A request was made to remove the stadium from the National Register of Historic Places, and was removed on May 30, 2012.

References

External links

Aztec Bowl
at SDSU Library
President John F. Kennedy's 1963 Commencement Speech at San Diego State
at SDSU Library {{National Register of Historic Places Defunct college football venues San Diego State Aztecs football venues Sports venues in San Diego American football venues in California Works Progress Administration in California University and college buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in California Demolished sports venues in California Sports venues completed in 1936 1936 establishments in California North American Soccer League (1968–1984) stadiums National Register of Historic Places in San Diego County, California Sports venues on the National Register of Historic Places in California Former National Register of Historic Places in California Historic district contributing properties in California