Detroit's Field of Dreams: the Grassroots Preservation of Tiger Stadium Rebecca M
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Clemson University TigerPrints All Theses Theses 5-2012 Detroit's Field of Dreams: The Grassroots Preservation of Tiger Stadium Rebecca M. Long Clemson University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://tigerprints.clemson.edu/all_theses Part of the Historic Preservation and Conservation Commons Recommended Citation Long, Rebecca M., "Detroit's Field of Dreams: The Grassroots Preservation of Tiger Stadium" (2012). All Theses. 1371. https://tigerprints.clemson.edu/all_theses/1371 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses at TigerPrints. It has been accepted for inclusion in All Theses by an authorized administrator of TigerPrints. For more information, please contact [email protected]. DETROIT’S FIELD OF DREAMS: THE GRASSROOTS PRESERVATION OF TIGER STADIUM A Thesis Presented to The Graduate Schools of Clemson University and the College of Charleston In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Science Historic Preservation by Rebecca M. Long May 2012 Accepted by: Robert Russell, Ph.D. Barry Stiefel, Ph.D. James Ward Abstract From 1987 until the time of this writing, several grassroots organizations have fought for the preservation of Detroit’s Tiger Stadium and its historic field. The goal of this thesis is to chronicle those efforts, examine how these organizations fit into the history of preservation movements, and delve into what continues to draw people to this historic site: its ‘power of place.’ In order to accomplish these objectives, this thesis will detail the history of the site from its storied time as the home of Major League Baseball’s Detroit Tigers from 1896-1999, up to the preservation efforts which have been the site’s predominate topic of discussion for the last twenty-five years. Analyzing this history and comparing it the origins of the preservation movement, provides a clearer understanding of the magnetism of the site and how these grassroots organizations represent a reversion to the origins of the preservation movement in America. ii Acknowledgements There are several people whose guidance, help and understanding have been integral to the process of creating this thesis. First and foremost, I would like to thank my advisers: Robert Russell, Ph.D., Barry Stiefel, Ph.D., and James Ward. Without their input and guidance this thesis would not have been possible. Of this group I would like to especially express my gratitude to my primary adviser, Robert Russell, Ph.D. His suggestions and guidance have been invaluable along my journey to unearth the story of Tiger Stadium’s preservation efforts. Without his direction and counsel there are avenues of analysis and exploration that would not have been fully investigated, and I am deeply indebted to him for this leadership. In addition to my advisers, I also owe a debt of gratitude to Peter Comstock Riley, Bill Dow of the Tiger Stadium Fan Club, and Gary Gillette of the Old Tiger Stadium Conservancy. All three of these men graciously volunteered their time and intimate knowledge of the grassroots efforts to preserve Tiger Stadium and now its field. It is their information that filled in the holes left by the newspaper articles that simply did not tell the entire story. Of these three, I would especially like to thank Peter Comstock Riley. Without your assistance and contacts I would not have had access to the significant preservation players who contributed to this thesis. Lastly, I would like to thank my friends and most importantly my family who listened to me talk about Tiger Stadium for the better part of a year. Your patience and willingness to listen was extremely appreciated. In closing, I would like to thank all of the past and present grassroots preservationists involved in the efforts to preserve ‘The iii Corner.’ Your extraordinary efforts and perseverance over the last twenty-five years, no matter the outcome, speak to the power of memory and the importance of our shared built heritage; a message that has been an invaluable lesson in my growth as a preservationist. iv Table of Contents Abstract ............................................................................................................................................ ii Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................................... iii Table of Figures .............................................................................................................................. vii Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 1 Methodology ................................................................................................................................... 6 Examination of Utilized Source Material ......................................................................................... 9 Books ........................................................................................................................................... 9 Academic Journals ..................................................................................................................... 15 Ephemeral Sources .................................................................................................................... 17 Chapter 1 To Decipher the Present, One has to Understand the Past ......................................... 22 Bennett Park and Early Baseball in Detroit ............................................................................... 22 Navin Field: The Birth of a Landmark ....................................................................................... 31 The 1930s: The Depression, the G-Men, the Lions, Joe, and Lou ............................................ 36 World War II and the Fight for Racial Equality .......................................................................... 49 John Fetzer and the Anchor of the City ..................................................................................... 56 Chapter 2 The Pizza Years: The Turn of the Tide for Tiger Stadium ............................................. 64 The Bless You Boys and Tom Monaghan ................................................................................... 64 The Tiger Stadium Fan Club ....................................................................................................... 72 The Last Days of Tiger Stadium ................................................................................................. 90 Chapter 3 The Final Decade ........................................................................................................... 93 The Proposals ............................................................................................................................ 93 The Old Tiger Stadium Conservancy ........................................................................................ 102 Navin Field ............................................................................................................................... 106 Chapter 4 An Earlier Time ........................................................................................................... 113 Mount Vernon ......................................................................................................................... 115 Monticello ............................................................................................................................... 116 Chapter 5 Ernie Harwell Field: if you demolish it they will come… ............................................. 123 Appendix ...................................................................................................................................... 140 v The Cochrane Plan ................................................................................................................... 140 Bibliography ................................................................................................................................. 168 vi Table of Figures Figure 1-1: Western Market, future site of Bennett Park, circa 1880-1890 Seeking Michigan, “Detroit-Future Site of Tiger Stadium, Corktown,” accessed November 2, 2011 ......................... 23 Figure 1-2: Drawing of Bennett Park ............................................................................................ 25 Figure 1-3: Bill Yawkey (left) and Frank Navin, Undate Photograph ............................................ 26 Figure 1-4: Ty Cobb, 1917. ............................................................................................................ 29 Figure 1-5: Undated photograph of Navin Field ........................................................................... 31 Figure 1-6: Navin Field, 1935 World Series .................................................................................. 40 Figure 1-7: Briggs picketers .......................................................................................................... 44 Figure 1-8: Lions Playing in Briggs Stadium, October 16, 1938 .................................................... 45 Figure 1-9: Lou Gehrig in Tiger Stadium, May 2, 1939 ................................................................. 48 Figure 1-10: Tiger Stadium ........................................................................................................... 57 Figure 1-11: Tiger Stadium Interior .............................................................................................