Pullman Park

Pullman Park
Location	Butler, PA United States
Building chronology
Built	1934 rebuilt 2008
Tenants
Butler BlueSox
Capacity
1934 capacity- 1,000 2008 capacity = 1,400

Built in 1934, Pullman Park is the last remaining venue of the now defunct Class D Pennsylvania State Association and the Class C Mid-Atlantic League. Located in Butler, PA, roughly an hour north of Pittsburgh, PA, Pullman park was home to the Butler Indians, Butler Yankees, and the Butler Tigers between 1935 and 1951. Beginning in 2009, Pullman Park became the home of the Butler BlueSox of the Summer Collegiate Prospect League

In 2006, a controversial, $5 million restoration project was put into place in hopes of luring another minor league team to Butler County. The City began negotiations with the indpendent Frontier League, however in 2007 the league instead opted to locate their new team to nearby Slippery Rock, PA. The primary goal of the renovations was to update the facilities and expand the stadium's seating capacity from 1,000 to 4,200.

Unique Features

Pullman Park is essentially a gritty and old fashioned minor league stadium. It is located down a small alley behind the intersection of Pillow and Plum streets in Butler. The facilities are simple and the blue collar tradition of Butler is emphasized by the surroundings. Just ten feet behind the first base grandstands is the heavy machinery of a local company which makes trains and railroad machinery and the view beyond the outfield showcases the rolling hills of western Pennsylvania.

While the city and the park designers hope that the redevelopment of Pullman Park will revitalize baseball in Butler, and possibly end more than 50 years without a professional baseball team, some historic ballpark purists are very unhappy with the renovation plans and believe that due to the renovations this is no longer the unique and historic stadium that once hosted so many hall of fame players.

Related Links

• Digital Ballparks page showing the historic Pullman Park pre-renovation
• Butler BlueSox page showing the newly rebuilt Pullman Park
• August 21,2006 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Article