Baseball and Dodgertown
Posted by: 
Markerman62
N 27° 38.634 W 080° 25.369
17R E 556936 N 3057889
At the former spring training facility for the Dodgers in Vero.
Waymark Code: WMNHQB
Location: Florida, United States
Date Posted: 03/19/2015
Views: 7
Dodgertown was the spring training facility of the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers. Originally part of a World War II Naval Air Station, Dodgertown became the spring training home of the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1948, when local business leader Bud Holman convinced the Dodgers to set up a spring training facility in Vero Beach. Here, Dodger President Branch Rickey sought to create a "baseball campus" where players could live and play together. Dodgertown was the South's first racially integrated spring training camp, where 600-plus players from the Brooklyn Dodgers 26 minor league teams played. Hall of Fame players Jackie Robinson and Roy Campanella were among the first African American players to train here. In 1953, Dodger President Walter O'Malley privately built the 6,500-seat Holman Stadium, a state-of-the-art ball park at Dodgertown. During its history, 6 world Championshops and 14 National League Pennant-winning teams played at Dodgertown. In 2001, the Dodgers sold Dodgertown to Indian River County, then leased it back until 2008, when their spring training facilities moved west to Arizona. In 2012, the O'Malley family stepped up to manage historic Dodgertown as a year-round multi-sports complex.
Marker Number: F-812
Date: 2014
County: Indian River
Marker Type: Roadside
Sponsored or placed by: The Indian River County Historical Society, Tourist Development Council of Indian River County and the Florida Department of State
Website: [Web Link]
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