.jpg) The Old Oval and other Syracuse University buildings (Steele Hall, Crouse College, Women's Gymnasium, Hall of Languages) in the background,c. 1898-1907. | |
 Interactive map of Old Oval | |
| Location | 113 Crouse Dr Syracuse, NY 13244 |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 43°2′15.4″N76°8′02.4″W / 43.037611°N 76.134000°W /43.037611; -76.134000 |
| Owner | Syracuse University |
| Operator | Syracuse University |
| Construction | |
| Opened | June 8, 1895 (1895-06-08) |
| Closed | 1907 |
| Demolished | 1929 (filled with earth) |
| Tenants | |
| Syracuse Orangemen | |
Old Oval, also calledThe Oval orUniversity Oval, was amulti-purpose stadium inSyracuse, New York. The field, located open field south of theHall of Languages, opened in 1895 and was the first on-campus home to theSyracuse Orangemen[a]football team prior to the opening ofArchbold Stadium in 1907.
The Old Oval at Syracuse University has a rich history dating back to the 1880s, when it was first developed as abaseball diamond andcinder track. The oval-shaped field was roughly laid out in 1887.[1][2] The field originally was a crop field.[3]
At the time, most team sports were played in the various "Star Parks" around the city of Syracuse, but the university, under presidentsCharles N. Sims and laterJames Roscoe Day, wanted to make the Oval the center of athletics on campus.[4][5] To achieve this goal, work was started in the fall of 1887 on the sloped baseball ground andtrack and field commenced in the spring of 1890 with regrading of the field.[5] Finally, on June 8, 1895, the Oval officially opened as the new athletic field.[1] It was financed byJohn D. Archbold, who refused to let the field be known by his name.[6] In 1895, the grandstand was constructed and the field was formally opened on June 8, 1895, withGeorge H. Bond serving as the master of ceremonies.[6] Archbold later donated $600,000 to build theArchbold Stadium.[7]
This was the Orangemen's first real home field.[8]: 106 In the first game played at the stadium on 1895, the1895 Syracuse Orangemen football team beatSyracuse Athletic Association by a score of 24–0.[9]
Other sports programs also used the field,[10] notably, three-time Olympic gold medallist and Syracuse studentMyer Prinstein amazed the crowds at track and field meets.[11]
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However, in 1907, mostSyracuse Orange athletic events were moved to the newly builtArchbold Stadium, which was considered a more suitable location for such events.[7] No longer an athletic field, the Old Oval was put to variety of uses over the years.
In 1906, architecture professors Frederick William Revels and Earl Hallenbeck, created a plan to convert the Old Oval into a Great Quadrangle. Their work resulted in the construction of Bowne, Carnegie library, Sims, and Machinery halls andArchbold Gymnasium, which were all completed by 1909.[4] It has served as a 200 ft. by 150 ft.rose garden, askating rink, and was even used formilitary drills duringWorld War I. It was also the terminus of atoboggan slide from Mount Olympus. By 1914, the Oval had come to be known as the"Old Oval", and in 1929 it was filled in with earth from various excavations to create the central lawn area known simply asthe quad.[1][2]
The quad was the site of the 1970 student strike following theKent State massacre and the site ofSheets of Expression, in which students spontaneously taped bed sheets to the sidewalks and wrote their observations following the9/11 attacks.[3]
On November 6, 2010, the Old Oval was dedicated as theKenneth A. Shaw Quadrangle, honoring the former Syracuse University chancellor.[3][12] Today, theShaw quad, as it is more commonly called, is a popular spot on campus for students to relax, study, and socialize. It is now an open green space bounded byHendricks Chapel, Link Hall, Carnegie Library, Hinds Hall and Huntington Beard Crouse Hall.
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| Preceded by | Home of Syracuse Orange football 1895 – 1906 | Succeeded by |
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