Duncan Park Stadium
National Register Listing
Street Address:
0 West Park Dr., Spartanburg, SC (Spartanburg County)
NRHP Nomination
Record Number:
S10817742072
Description and Narrative:
Duncan Park Stadium, completed in 1926, was listed in the National Register for its significance under Criterion A in the area of Entertainment/Recreation for its long association with amateur and minor league baseball in Spartanburg, South Carolina. The stadium and surrounding park are named for Maj. David R. Duncan, president of the Spartanburg and Asheville Railroad, whose heirs donated the land on which the park was built. The first game played in Duncan Park Stadium was held on July 8, 1926 between the Spartanburg Spartans and the Macon Peaches, both of the South Atlantic League, before an estimated crowd of 2,500 spectators. Since its opening, the stadium, which includes the original grandstand, has hosted a number of minor league teams, including the Spartanburg Spartans (1929, 1938-40), the Spartanburg Peaches (1947-1955), and the Spartanburg Phillies (1963-1994). In addition, the stadium has hosted American Legion Baseball, Textile League games, and exhibition contests featuring such notables as Lou Gehrig, Bill Dickey, and Jackie Robinson.
Designed by noted Spartanburg architect J. Frank Collins, the covered grandstand of wood construction with steel framing opens to the field of play in five sections. The building has concrete foundation systems, wooden weatherboard siding on all sides not facing the field, and a low sloping wood roof covered with large asphalt panels. The three middle sections of the stands are trapezoidal in plan, tapering towards the field, while the outer sections are more rectangular and are nearly three times the width of one middle section. The dimensions of the playing field remain much as they were originally, though alterations have occurred through the years. A warning track was added in the early 1980s, outfield lights were first installed in 1985, and the current scoreboard dates to 2014. In 1971, 582 wooden seats taken from Connie Mack Stadium in Philadelphia, former home of the Philadelphia Phillies, were added to the stadium, which was then home to the Phillies’ Class A minor league affiliate. Listed in the National Register January 26, 2016.
Period of Significance:
1926 – 1963;1926;1936
Level of Significance:
Local
Area of Significance:
Entertainment/Recreation
National Register Determination:
listed
Date of Certification:
January 26 2016
