Labatt Memorial Park - London, Ontario
Posted by: 
Keldar5
N 42° 58.994 W 081° 15.578
17T E 478832 N 4758985
A baseball field in downtown London.
Waymark Code: WMVEF1
Location: Ontario, Canada
Date Posted: 04/08/2017
Views: 7
This is a baseball field very near to the center of downtown London. The London Majors, a minor baseball team, plays here during the summer months. It has the feel of an old-fashion ball diamond.
From the website:
Heritage Value
Labatt Memorial Park is London's oldest sporting facility and is believed to be the oldest and most continually used baseball ground in the world. In 1877, local pioneer W.J. Reid bought a swampy river flat, in London West, drained it, laid out a baseball diamond and named it Tecumseh Park.
The site was home to several baseball teams, including, London's earliest team, the Tecumsehs. The park also hosted amateur and professional bicycle races, London's first moving picture, in 1895, and, in 1932, a huge civic reception for “Silent Sandy” Somerville, the first Canadian golfer to win the U.S. amateur title.
By the 1930s, interest in baseball waned and the park went into decline. It was rescued by the Labatt family, who bought it, in 1936, and donated it and $10,000 for improvements, to the City of London. The site became known as Labatt Park to commemorate the family's contribution. The flood of 1937 swept away the existing grandstand, and a new grandstand and bleacher seats were immediately built. The park was renovated in 1990, and in 1991, it was voted the best baseball grounds in Canada. The property's composition is significant as it is laid out in the plan of an old fashioned baseball park, which speaks to its continued use as a baseball park, for over 130 years.
Built in circa 1937, the tongue-and-groove clapboard, Roy McKay Clubhouse is one of the few remaining structures, of its kind, in the region. The clubhouse is home to the London Majors and was re-named the Roy McKay Clubhouse by owner Arden Eddie, in 1996, in memory of the former London Majors pitcher, manager and coach, Roy McKay.
Link to Property in The Ontario Properties Database: [Web Link]
Building or Property Type: Entertainment or Recreation Related
County or Regional Municipality: Middlesex
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