The corner of Findlay Street and Western Avenue hosted professional baseball from 1884 until June 1970. Home of the Cincinnati Reds, the earliest ballpark incarnation at that corner, League Park, lasted until 1900, when the grandstand was destroyed by fire. Portions of League Park undamaged by the fire, mainly seating in right field (the former League Park grandstand before the field was repositioned), were incorporated into a second ballpark, known as the Palace of the Fans, which lasted until 1911. The following three photographs show the demolition of the Palace of the Fans in preparation for construction of a new ballpark.
In this second photograph, the building in the background is the Oliver Schlemmer Co. Plumbing, Heating & Power Work building. The concrete pillars in the foreground are what is left of the old League Park grandstand, which was also used as Palace of the Fan’s right field pavilion.
If only you could go back in time and grab some pieces of the old ballpark before they were discarded.
The third ballpark constructed at the corner of Findlay and Western was Redland Field, later known as Crosley Field, in honor of the Reds’ owner Powel Crosley, Jr.
The right field bleachers and grandstand of Crosley Field were located at the corner of Findlay and Western.
Western Avenue ran parallel to left and center field while Findlay Street ran along the first base line. Only a few of the buildings shown in this aerial view of Crosley Field remain now at the former site.
The buildings fronting Western Avenue are now long gone, having been demolished for construction of I-75. The same is true for much of the buildings surrounding the grandstand. They were demolished to make room for parking at Crosley Field. One notable exception, however, is the building shown at the bottom left corner of the postcard.
The building, with its distinctive tall, brick smoke stack, is located just behind what was the third base/left field grandstand and remains from the time of Crosely Field.
A brick wall that ran from the front of the building east along York Street toward the corner of the left field grandstand remains as well.
Dalton Avenue now intersects the site, running from left/center field, through right field, to the former first base grandstand. Several buildings constructed on the site pay homage to Crosley Field. Phillips Supply Company, located on Findlay Street, has an address of One Crosley Field Lane.
In front of the building used to be six red-painted wooden seats which have since been replaced by plastic seats from Riverfront Stadium.
Also on the former site is Hills Floral Products, located at 1130 Findlay, near where that street intersects with Western.
In front of the building, where the right field grandstand once stood, is a plaque honoring Crosley Field. Inside the front lobby of the building are pictures and artifacts discussing Crosley’s history at the site.
If you take the time to visit the Crosley Field site, be sure to stop at the playground located where the left field grandstand once stood. They may not play professional baseball there anymore, but at least you can sit on a park bench (or ride a swing) in the same location where fans of the Cincinnati Reds once sat to watch the game of baseball being played.
