The first professional baseball game at Kinsley Park was a racially integrated game in 1921.[1] The Cleveland Colored Giants, a team made up of black players, played the Providence Independents, a team made up of white players.[1]
In October 1927,Babe Ruth andLou Gehrig played an exhibition game at the park during their North American post-seasonbarnstorming tour.[2]
The field is best known for hosting the first night game in NFL history on November 6, 1929, between the Steam Roller and theChicago Cardinals.[3] The game ended in a 16-0 Cardinals victory behind the running, passing and kicking ofErnie Nevers, who scored all of the games 16 points. He rushed 23 times for 102 yards and atouchdown. He also completed 10 of 15 passes for 144 yards and another touchdown. He also kicked a 33-yardfield goal and anextra point.
The game was scheduled for Sunday November 3, however heavy rains made the Cyclodome unplayable. Rather than lose a contest with a high probability for a nice payday, the historic night game was hastily scheduled.
The game was considered a success because at least 6,000 spectators attended. According to newspaper accounts, the ball had been painted white so that it would be easier to see. The floodlights were also described as being just as good as daylight for the players. TheProvidence Journal, at the time, described the system as “33 giant projectors on poles 53 feet high, and nine poles on top of the grandstand.” Floodlights were then installed the next year at the Cyclodome and other NFL teams began playing at night as well. According to his 1930 contract with the Providence Steam Roller, which is now in thePro Football Hall of Fame archives,Tony Latone was paid $125 for all NFL daylight games and 60 percent of that sum for NFL "floodlight" games. One of the original team's foundersPearce Johnson explained that the pay reduction for night games was arranged to help pay the installation costs of the floodlights at the Cyclodome.
On October 6, 1929, theAmerican Soccer League had suspended operations on October 9, pending a merger with the rivalEastern League of Professional Soccer. Hoping to regenerate fan interest during the situation, the Gold Bugs had cobbled together an exhibition schedule. The team then began playing under the new lights at Kinsley Park. On October 31, 1929, the Gold Bugs defeated theBoston Soccer Club, 2–1.
Kinsley Park was closed by the end of 1931. It was torn down in 1933 and no trace of the field remains.
Hogrogian, John (1980)."The Steam Roller"(PDF).Coffin Corner.2 (3). Professional Football Researchers Association:1–13. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 2010-11-27.
Carroll, Bob."Steam Rolled"(PDF).Coffin Corner. Professional Football Researchers Association:1–4. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 2010-09-29. Retrieved2010-01-11.
†= Team's stadium under construction or refurbishment at time 1 = A team used the stadium when their permanent stadium was unable to be used as a result of damage.
