Lincoln Park (Cincinnati)

Lincoln Park Grounds

• Tenant: Cincinnati Red Stockings (1867-1870)
• AKA: Union Grounds
• Location: Hopkins and McLean Ave., West End, Cincinnati, OH
• Club owners: Cincinnati Reds Base Ball Club
• Year Built: 1856; The grounds were enclosed in 1868.
• Distinctive look: Foul poles with streamers marked the foul lines about 150 feet beyond the bases
• Seating capacity: 4,000 (by 1869)
• Claim to Fame: Home of first-ever professional sports team in U.S.
• Admission: This was the first time Cincinnati fans paid a fee to watch baseball. Tickets were priced at 25 cents and 50 cents.
• Features: Cupola-capped grandstand (called the "Grand Duchess") included a high platform from which a Zouave Band played; double-gated entrance, through which the home and visiting team's horse-drawn "omnibuses" could enter the ballpark.
• Ballpark "scene": The team's red stockings were all the rage, so it was commonplace for spectator areas to be awash in red - handkerchiefs and scarves fluttering, parasols waving, hats flying in the air.
• What was nearby: Next door, to the east, was Lincoln Park
• Best player: Shortstop George Wright
• What's there now: Esplanade Fountain and a portion of the parking lot of the Museum Center at Cincinnati Union Terminal

The Lincoln Park Grounds was first built in 1856 and was originally the home to the Union Cricket Club. Commonly called Union Park, it would hold cricket matches and baseball games in the summer, and then in the winter was turned into an ice rink. The Cincinnati Red Stockings moved to Lincoln Park Grounds for the 1867 season. Their first game was a 60-24 win over the Louisville Base Ball Club on July 4th. The grounds were enclosed for the 1868 season and a grandstand, popularly referred to the "Grand Duchess" was built. Union Park would remain the home of the Red Stockings until the end of the 1870 season.

When the ballpark was demolished is not known, but it was most likely destroyed before the return of the Red Stockings for the 1876 season.

Sources:

• The Cincinnati Historical Society Bulletin, v. 27 (1969), p. 30
• Jonathan Fraser Light The Cultural Encyclopedia of Baseball, 2d ed. McFarland, Mar 25, 2016, pg. 64
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