"The Rockpile" | |
 Preserved main entrance (left field corner) in 2011 | |
 Interactive map of War Memorial Stadium | |
| Former names | Roesch Memorial Stadium (1937) Grover Cleveland Stadium (1937–1938) Civic Stadium (1938–1960) |
|---|---|
| Address | 285 Dodge Street |
| Location | Buffalo, New York, U.S. |
| Coordinates | 42°54′18″N78°51′22″W / 42.905°N 78.856°W /42.905; -78.856 |
| Elevation | 650 ft (200 m)AMSL |
| Owner | City of Buffalo |
| Operator | City of Buffalo |
| Capacity | 1,882 (since 1992)[2] 46,206 (1965–1989) 36,500 (1937–1964) |
| Record attendance | 50,988 Bennett vs.Kensington, October 21, 1948 |
| Field size | Left field: 330 ft (101 m) Left-center: 362 ft (110 m) Center field: 420 ft (128 m) Right-center: 333 ft (101 m) Right field: 310 ft (94 m) Backstop: 50 ft (15 m) |
| Surface | Natural grass |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | 1935 |
| Opened | October 16, 1937; 88 years ago (October 16, 1937) |
| Renovated | 1960 |
| Expanded | 1965 |
| Closed | May 5, 1989; 36 years ago (May 5, 1989) |
| Demolished | 1989 |
| Construction cost | $3 million ($65.6 million in 2024 dollars[1]) |
| Tenants | |
| Canisius Golden Griffins (NCAA) 1937–1949, 1978–1988 Buffalo Indians-Tigers (AFL) 1940–1941 Buffalo Bills (AAFC) 1946–1949 Buffalo Bulls (NCAA) 1946–1954 Buffalo Bills (AFL/NFL) 1960–1972 Buffalo Bisons (IL) 1961–1970 Buffalo White Eagles (ECPSL) 1962 Buffalo Blazers (NSL) 1976–1980 Buffalo Bisons (EL/AA) 1979–1987 Canisius Golden Griffins (NCAA) 1979–1989 | |
War Memorial Stadium, colloquially known asThe Rockpile, was an outdoorfootball,baseball andsoccerstadium inBuffalo, New York. Opened in 1937 asRoesch Memorial Stadium, the venue was later known asGrover Cleveland Stadium andCivic Stadium. The stadium was home to the Canisius Golden Griffinsfootball andbaseball (NCAA),Buffalo Bulls football (NCAA),Buffalo Indians-Tigers (AFL),Buffalo Bills (AAFC),Buffalo Bills (AFL/NFL),Buffalo Bisons (IL), Buffalo White Eagles (ECPSL),Buffalo Blazers (NSL), andBuffalo Bisons (EL/AA). It also had arace track and hosted severalNASCAR events. The venue was demolished in 1989 and replaced with theJohnnie B. Wiley Amateur Athletic Sports Pavilion, which retains entrances from the original stadium.
The stadium was built on theEast Side of Buffalo for $3 million as aWorks Progress Administration project in 1937. It was built on a large, rectangular block that had once housed the Prospect Reservoir.[3]
The 36,500-seat venue was primarily used for collegefootball when it opened on October 16, 1937, with theTulane Green Wave defeating theColgate Raiders 7–6 in the inaugural game.[4] The name changed several times in its first two years of operation, first being named after RepublicanCharlie Roesch, then for DemocratGrover Cleveland, before settling on the nonpartisan Civic Stadium. TheBuffalo Indians-Tigers became the venue's first professional football team in 1940.
A quarter mile cinder ovalrace track was added to the interior perimeter of the venue in 1940 forauto racing. Bothmidget car racing andstock car racing were popular at the venue, attractingNASCAR events in 1956 and 1958. Due to the small size of the track, drivers were forced to leave the venue to makepit stops at nearby Masten Armory. Fans were also forbidden from sitting in the first five rows of the venue for safety reasons.[5]
Buffalo was awarded an expansion franchise by theContinental League of Major League Baseball in January 1960, and made plans to play at the venue beginning with the 1961 season. However, the league folded before the season began.[6] TheBuffalo Bisons remained in theInternational League and began play at the newly renamed War Memorial Stadium in 1961, as their previous home ofOffermann Stadium had already been slated for demolition.
The venue's race track was removed in 1960 so that the stadium could accommodate both baseball and football for the Buffalo Bisons andBuffalo Bills. The stadium's baseball diamond had an unorthodox southeast alignment (home plate to center field).[7] The east-west alignment of the football field was also unorthodox, running along the third base line.
The stadium was expanded to hold 46,306 fans in 1965.
The venue was poorly maintained, lending to its nickname of "The Rockpile".Brock Yates ofSports Illustrated jokingly wrote in 1969 that the stadium, "looks as if whatever war it was a memorial to had been fought within its confines."[8]
While the Buffalo Bills were popular and regularly filled the venue, the Buffalo Bisons struggled to attract crowds. The Bisons moved mid-season in 1970 and became theWinnipeg Whips.[9]
The stadium was deemed unsuitable forNational Football League play after theAFL–NFL merger, as it sat fewer than the combined league's 50,000 seat requirement for venues and was unable to be expanded.Rich Stadium was constructed for the Bills in suburbanOrchard Park, where the team moved after the1972 season.
The venue sat vacant until 1976 when theBuffalo Blazers of theNational Soccer League began play.[10] A newBuffalo Bisons franchise was founded in 1979 that returned baseball to the venue. That same year,Canisius College signed a 10-year agreement to use the venue for its college events.
The Natural was filmed at the venue in 1983.[11][12]
The Bisons moved to newly constructedPilot Field following the 1987 season.[13] The final event at the venue saw theAkron Zips defeat theCanisius Golden Griffins 11–2 on May 6, 1989.[14] Canisius moved its football and baseball teams to the newly builtDemske Sports Complex.
War Memorial Stadium was demolished in 1989 and replaced with the Johnnie B. Wiley Amateur Athletic Sports Pavilion, a high school athletic field. Built in 1992 for $6.8 million, the complex incorporates the original entrances from War Memorial Stadium.[15] It was previously home to the Buffalo Gladiators, an amateur football team.
The originalflag pole from center field at War Memorial Stadium was preserved and installed atPilot Field (now known as Sahlen field) in July 1990, where it stands to this day.[16]
A preseasonneutral siteCanadian Football League game between theHamilton Tiger-Cats and theToronto Argonauts took place at the venue on August 11, 1951. Hamilton defeated Toronto by a score of 17–11.
The venue was host to theCoaches All-America Game from 1961 to 1965. Originally called the Graduation Bowl in its inaugural year, the game was an exhibition between the best college seniors in America who were turning professional.
The stadium hosted three postseasonAmerican Football League games:
The stadium hosted twoMajor League Baseball exhibitions:
A touringOld-Timers' Game staged Buffalo's Grand Old Game at the venue on June 23, 1984. The American League All-Stars defeated the National League All-Stars 6–1.[19]
The stadium hosted twoNASCAR events:
The 1984 filmThe Natural was filmed at War Memorial Stadium, with it representing the home ballpark of the fictional New York Knights.[21]
| Events and tenants | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Canisius Stadium | Home of the Canisius Golden Griffins 1937 – 1949 1978 – 1988 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by Inaugural | Home of the Buffalo Indians-Tigers 1940 – 1941 | Succeeded by – |
| Preceded by Inaugural | Home of the Buffalo Bills 1946 – 1949 | Succeeded by – |
| Preceded by | Home of the Buffalo Bulls 1946 – 1954 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by Inaugural | Home of the Buffalo Bills 1960 – 1972 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by Inaugural | Host of the Coaches All-America Game 1961 – 1965 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Home of the Buffalo Bisons 1961 – 1970 | Succeeded by – |
| Preceded by Inaugural | Home of the Buffalo White Eagles 1962 | Succeeded by – |
| Preceded by Inaugural | Home of the Buffalo Blazers 1976 – 1980 | Succeeded by – |
| Preceded by Inaugural | Home of the Buffalo Bisons 1979 – 1987 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Home of the Canisius Golden Griffins 1979 – 1989 | Succeeded by |
Links to related articles | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
