The Brooklyn Dodgers played at Ebbets Field they left the Big Apple for the west coast. The Brooklyn Dodgers (later the Los Angeles Dodgers) called Ebbets Field home for 44 years and played some of baseballs greatest games and players. After new ballparks were built in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, Dodger owner Charles Ebbets decided to build his a new stadium for his beloved Dodgers. Ebbets found a relatively small piece of land in Brooklyn and named his ballpark Ebbets Field. Ebbets Field opened in 1913.

When Ebbets Field opened, Ebbets proudly showed reporters the park’s amazing structure, quality and comfort. Ebetts was especially proud of the dressing rooms and offices.

To booster his claim that his ballpark was the most comfortable, Ebbets purchased thousands of umbrellas and stored them at the park for fans to use in rainy weather. Known as the “Holiday King” Ebbets was one of the first owners to embrace the concept of special days, including “Orphans Day”. Ebbets Field hat it’s share of devoted fans. There was the soft-ball wannabe and the Ebbets Field regular, Hilda Chester, who after having an heart attack and was advised by her doctors to stop shouting so loud at the games, so she banged her frying pan instead. Hilda Chester’s banging could only be matched by the Brooklyn Sym-Phony, a group of fans who brought anything that would make noise, playing classics like “Three Blind Mice”. The Brooklyn Sym-Phony played “Three Blind Mice” when they thought an umpire was being unfair. The Broklyn Dodgers also held “Music Depreciation Day”, in which all fans who donated a music instrument at the game got in for free.

The Brooklyn Dodgers broke the racial barrier in 1947 by signing Jackie Robinson to a contract. On April 15, Robinson played his first game in the majors at Ebbets Field. In Robinson’s first year, the Dodgers shattered the single-game attendance record at every National League team they faced. In 1949, Ebbets hosted it’s first All-star game with the American League winning 11-7. However, the 1949 All-star game marked am important day in baseball historoy because it was the first midsummer classic to allow Black players to participate.

The Brooklyn Dodgers saw only one World Series title pass through Brooklyn, but it came against there most hated rival, the New York Yankees in 1955. Johnny Podres ended the Brooklyn Dodgers’ long struggle for the crown.

Walter O’Malley became Brooklyn Dodgers sole owner in 1950 and after seeing how poorly maintained Ebbets Field had become, he decided to find another home for his Dodgers. Despite O’Malley’s vision and drive, bumped heads with in the urban planning king, Robert Moses. After months of negotiations, Moses gave O’Malley an ultimatum, either stay at Ebbets or the city will find a park. O’Malley was furious and decided to look elsewhere.

It just so happened that Los Angeles was looking for a baseball team and was extremely interested in bringing the Dodgers to California. Los Angeles had what O’Malley needed; a new ballpark in a desirable place. On September 24, 1957, the Brooklyn Dodgers played their last game at Ebbets Field and beat the Pirates 2-0 in front of only a handful of fans. When “Dem Bums” left Brooklyn, it signaled the end of baseball in Brooklyn and the end of an era, in which Brooklyn fans never truly recovered from.

- John A. Roberts

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Tags | Baseball, Brooklyn Dodgers, Ebbets Field