Veterans Stadium
| Veterans Stadium | |
|---|---|
| "The Vet" | |
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| Data | |
| place |
 Philadelphia , Pennsylvania
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| Coordinates | 39 ° 54 '23.9 " N , 75 ° 10' 15.8" W |
| owner | Philadelphia |
| start of building | October 2nd, 1967 |
| opening | April 10, 1971 |
| demolition | March 21, 2004 |
| surface | artificial grass |
| costs | $ 50 million |
| capacity | 62,306 seats (baseball) 65,386 seats (football) |
| Societies) | |
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The Veterans Stadium was a stadium in South Philadelphia Sports Complex in Philadelphia , Pennsylvania . The stadium belonged to the City of Philadelphia and was used from 1971 to 2003 by the MLB team Philadelphia Phillies and from 1971 to 2002 simultaneously by the NFL team Philadelphia Eagles as a home.
history
Ten years after the Philadelphia Athletics moved away and fearful of losing another professional team, the citizens of Philadelphia approved $ 25 million in 1964 to replace the dilapidated Shibe Park and Franklin Field . The construction had to be confirmed again at the polls in 1967 due to budget overruns. At a total cost of $ 50 million, it was one of the most expensive stadiums at the time. In 1968 the stadium was named Veterans Stadium by the city council in honor of Veterans of All Wars.
The Phillies played their first game at Veterans Stadium on April 10, 1971 and won in front of 55,352 spectators against the Montreal Expos with 4-1.
The last football game at Veterans Stadium was on January 19, 2003. The Eagles lost to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 10-27. In August 2003, the Eagles moved to the newly built Lincoln Financial Field football stadium . The last game at the stadium had the Phillies, who lost on September 28, 2003 to the Atlanta Braves 2-5. Since 2004 the Phillies have been playing in Citizens Bank Park , a pure ballpark that was built 400 m east of Veterans Stadium.
On March 21, 2004, the demolition of the Veterans Stadium began. Today there are parking spaces at the site. On June 6, 2005, the anniversary of D-Day of World War II , a plaque and memorial was inaugurated on the spot where the stadium used to stand.
Events
In 1976 and 1996 the MLB All-Star Game was played at the Veterans Stadium. The annual football derby between the Army and Navy was also held here 17 times from 1976 to 2001. In addition, a large number of concerts by The Rolling Stones , Genesis , Bruce Springsteen , U2 and Pink Floyd took place in the stadium. A number of religious events were also held, from the annual Jehovah's Witnesses conventions to major evangelistic events by Billy Graham .
The Temple University football team also played their home games at Veterans Stadium from 1978 to 2002. Like the Eagles, they now play at Lincon Financial Field.
The high wire artist Karl Wallenda crossed the playing field unsecured on a rope in 1972 and 1976. On his second appearance, the 71-year-old wore a baseball cap and a balancing pole with a flag on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the declaration of independence .
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Billy Cox: Chasing the Ghost. Sarasota Herald Tribune, accessed September 6, 2017 .