History
In March 1911 a fire destroyed the wooden stands at the Senators' Boundary Field. A steel-and-concrete replacement by Osborn Engineering was built on the same site. Opening Day came on April 12, 1911, with construction still under way, and the stands were finished that July.
First called National Park, it took the name of Senators owner Clark Griffith in the 1920s. It hosted World Series games in 1924, 1925 and 1933 and All-Star Games in 1937 and 1956. The Redskins played there from 1937 through 1960.
The Homestead Grays played many home games there in the 1940s and drew large crowds. The park also hosted concerts, religious crusades and other community events.
The Redskins left for the new D.C. Stadium in 1961. The original Senators moved to Minnesota, and the expansion Senators played one season at Griffith before following the Redskins in 1962. The last game was on September 21, 1961, and the stadium was razed in January 1965. Howard University Hospital now occupies the site.
Why it matters: It was the home of Washington baseball for half a century and an important venue for Negro league baseball and the Black community of Washington.
Timeline
- March 17, 1911Predecessor burns[2]
A fire destroyed the wooden stands of Boundary Field (National Park) on the same site.
- April 12, 1911
The Senators played the Red Sox on Opening Day while the new steel-and-concrete stands were still being built.
- July 24, 1911
Work on the new stands was finished in midseason.
- 1924World Series in Washington[1]
The park hosted World Series games in 1924, 1925 and 1933.
- December 7, 1941Pearl Harbor news[1]
News of the Pearl Harbor attack came over the public-address system during a Redskins game.
- April 17, 1953Mantle's tape-measure homer[1]
Mickey Mantle hit a home run that cleared the left-field bleachers.
- September 21, 1961
The Minnesota Twins beat the expansion Senators before about 1,500 fans.
- January 26, 1965
The stadium was razed, and the land later went to Howard University's hospital.
The site today
| Physical status | Site redeveloped[1,2,3] |
|---|---|
| Current use | Howard University Hospital[1,2,3] |
| Surviving remnants | No structure remains; a marker inside the hospital shows where home plate was.[1,2] |
| Mapped location | Former venue site |
Street View near the former site · Satellite view (external, current imagery)
Teams & events
| Washington Senators | American League · 1911–1960 |
|---|---|
| Washington Redskins | NFL · 1937–1960 |
| Washington Senators (expansion) | American League · 1961 |
| Homestead Grays | Negro leagues · 1940–1948 · secondary |
Listed here are organizations that used this physical venue. A franchise's history and a venue's history are tracked separately.
Venue facts
| Other names | National Park (1911–1922); American League Park (II) |
|---|---|
| Location | Between Georgia Ave. and 5th St. NW and between W St. and Florida Ave. NW, LeDroit Park / Howard University area, Washington, Washington, D.C.[1,2] |
| Venue type | Ballpark |
| Sports | Baseball, Football, Boxing & wrestling |
| Level | MLB, NFL, Negro Leagues |
| Opened | April 12, 1911[1,2,3] |
| Last used for sports | September 21, 1961[1,3] |
| Demolished | January 26, 1965[1,2,3] |
| Physical status | Site redeveloped |
| Original capacity | 27,000[1,2,3] |
| Final capacity | 27,550[1,2,3] |
| Capacity notes | Sources differ on the original figure: Wikipedia 27,000 (1911–1932), ballparksofbaseball.com 27,410 at completion, and SABR 15,000 seats planned for 1911. Final capacity was 27,550 in 1961. Football capacity was listed at 35,000 (1937–1960). |
| Architect | Osborn Engineering[1,2,3] |
| Construction cost | $100,000 per Wikipedia; about $125,000 per SABR (1911)[1,2] |
| Surface | Grass |
| Owner / operator | Washington Senators (Clark Griffith and family) |
| Closure | The original Senators moved to Minnesota after 1960. The Redskins moved to D.C. Stadium in 1961 and the expansion Senators followed in 1962, after which the site was sold to Howard University. |
Documented details
Connected venues
- Replaced by: RFK Stadium · Opened as D.C. Stadium. The Redskins moved there in 1961 and the Senators in 1962 (per Wikipedia). Not added as a successor record because its current status was not verified in this batch.1961–2019
- Replacement for: Boundary Field (National Park) · Rebuilt on the same site after the March 1911 fire.1891–1911
Sources
- Griffith Stadium, Wikipedia. Accessed 2026-10-19Supports: address, architect, capacity, closed, construction cost, coordinates, current land use, demolished, events, opened, remnants, teams
- Griffith Stadium (Washington, DC), Society for American Baseball Research (John Schleppi). Accessed 2026-10-19Supports: address, architect, capacity, construction cost, current land use, demolished, opened, remnants
- Griffith Stadium, Ballparks of Baseball. Accessed 2026-10-19Supports: architect, capacity, closed, current land use, demolished, opened
Research confidence
Key facts on this page (opening, closing, status and location) are each supported by sources, with key dates corroborated by at least two independent sources. Last reviewed 2026-10-19.
Where sources disagree (4)
- Opening date: the Wikipedia infobox gives 1911-07-24, when construction was finished. SABR and ballparksofbaseball.com give Opening Day, 1911-04-12, which this record uses.
- Construction cost: Wikipedia $100,000 vs SABR about $125,000 (with $135,000 originally planned).
- Original capacity: 27,000 (Wikipedia) vs 27,410 (ballparksofbaseball.com) vs 15,000 planned seats (SABR).
- Exact demolition day (1965-01-26) is from Wikipedia only; ballparksofbaseball.com gives January 1965 and SABR gives 1965.
See something wrong or missing? Suggest a correction or submit a source.