Rickwood Field

Rickwood Field is a historic baseball park in Birmingham, Alabama, that opened on August 18, 1910, when the Birmingham Barons beat the Montgomery Climbers before more than 10,000 fans. It was built by industrialist Rick Woodward and was the first minor league ballpark made of steel and concrete.[1][2]

Construction

Rick Woodward, son of Woodward Iron Company owner Joseph H. Woodward, built the park in 1909, and it opened on August 18, 1910. After his father died in 1917 Woodward became chairman of the iron company and used its assets to improve the park and the team. Sources describe the stadium as the first concrete-and-steel ballpark in the minor leagues.[1][2]

Barons and Black Barons

The Birmingham Barons played at Rickwood in the Southern Association from 1910 to 1961 and later in the Southern League. The Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro leagues played there for decades; they rented the park from 1921 and, according to the Encyclopedia of Alabama, used it in 1924-25, 1927-30, 1937-38 and 1940-50. Pitcher Satchel Paige played for the team, and Willie Mays played two seasons for it before joining the New York Giants organization in 1950. From 1943 to 1948 the Black Barons won three Negro American League pennants, and the 1948 team reached the Negro League World Series but lost to the Homestead Grays.[1][2] See Willie Mays and Birmingham Barons.

Preservation and the 2024 game

The Friends of Rickwood formed in 1992 to restore and maintain the park, and the ballpark was used for films including Cobb (1994) and Soul of the Game (1996). After a renovation estimated at $5 million, the St. Louis Cardinals beat the San Francisco Giants 6-5 at Rickwood on June 20, 2024, in the first regular-season major league game played in Alabama, honoring the Negro leagues and Willie Mays, who had died the previous week. Rickwood is also one of only six Negro leagues ballparks still standing.[1][2]

Opening and builder

Rickwood Field opened August 18, 1910, when the Birmingham Barons beat the Montgomery Climbers before more than 10,000 fans. A. H. Rick Woodward, whose family owned Woodward Iron Company, bought the Barons and built the park, named Rickwood after a newspaper poll. It was the first minor-league ballpark of steel and concrete, cost ,000 and seated about 7,000.[3]

Teams and Willie Mays

The Barons played there from 1910 to 1961 and in later stints, and the Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro Leagues played there for decades. Willie Mays played two seasons with the Black Barons there as a teenager before joining the Giants in 1950, and on June 20, 2024, the Giants and Cardinals played at Rickwood to honor Mays, who had died the previous week.[3]

Renovations and preservation

Renovations added a roof over the right-field bleachers in 1924, covered bleachers on the third-base line in 1927, a covered right-field grandstand in 1928 and lights in 1936, among the first parks to host night baseball. The city and Major League Baseball began upgrading the stadium from 2023. The Friends of Rickwood have managed it since 1992, and it is called America’s oldest operating professional ballpark.[3]

FAQs

Is Rickwood Field the oldest ballpark in the U.S.? Sources describe it as the oldest professional ballpark in the country.

Who played at Rickwood? The Barons, the Black Barons, Satchel Paige and Willie Mays, among others.

Sources

1. Encyclopedia of Alabama: Rickwood Field
2. MLB.com: Complete history of the oldest American ballpark, Rickwood Field in Alabama
3. Encyclopedia of Alabama: Rickwood Field

Editorially reviewed by Specialty Digest Editorial TeamLast reviewed November 10, 2026Researched and drafted with AI assistanceReport an issue