History
Baseball was played at Grand and Dodier as early as 1867, and several ballparks occupied the site. The American League Browns opened a park there in 1902. In 1909 they replaced its wooden stands with a steel-and-concrete grandstand, the structure this record covers.
The Cardinals moved in as tenants in July 1920. Owner Phil Ball's 1925 expansion enlarged the stands. The 1944 World Series between the Cardinals and Browns was played entirely in this one park.
In 1953 the Cardinals, now owned by the Busch family of Anheuser-Busch, bought the park from Browns owner Bill Veeck and renamed it Busch Stadium. The Browns' tenancy ended that year. The NFL's Cardinals also played there from 1960 to 1965.
The last game was played on May 8, 1966, before the move to the new downtown stadium, and the old park was razed that year. August Busch donated the land for a youth club, and a ball field there still serves the Boys & Girls Clubs.
Why it matters: Few sites hosted major league baseball longer. It was home to two franchises at once and the setting of the only all–St. Louis World Series.
Timeline
- 1909
The Browns replaced the wooden stands of their 1902 park with a steel-and-concrete grandstand, opening that season.
- July 1920
The Cardinals left Robison Field and began sharing the park with the Browns.
- 1925
Browns owner Phil Ball paid for a $500,000 expansion that enlarged the grandstand.
- 1944All–St. Louis World Series[1]
The Cardinals beat the Browns in a Series where both teams were home clubs in the same park.
- 1953
New Cardinals owner August 'Gussie' Busch Jr. renamed the park, though many fans kept the old name.
- April 9, 1953Cardinals buy the park[1]
The Cardinals bought the ballpark from Bill Veeck for $800,000.
- 1966
The ballpark was torn down within months of the final game.
- May 8, 1966
The Giants beat the Cardinals 10–5. Home plate was then flown by helicopter to the new downtown stadium.
The site today
| Physical status | Site redeveloped[1,2] |
|---|---|
| Current use | Athletic field and clubhouse of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater St. Louis (formerly the Herbert Hoover Boys Club), on land donated by August Busch[1,2] |
| Mapped location | Former venue parcel |
Street View near the former site · Satellite view (external, current imagery)
Teams & events
| St. Louis Browns | American League · 1902–1953 |
|---|---|
| St. Louis Cardinals | National League · 1920–1966 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | National League · 1960–1965 · tenant |
Listed here are organizations that used this physical venue. A franchise's history and a venue's history are tracked separately.
Venue facts
| Official name | Busch Stadium |
|---|---|
| Other names | Busch Stadium (1953–1966); Busch Stadium (I) |
| Location | 2911 N. Grand Blvd., at the northwest corner of Grand Blvd. and Dodier St., St. Louis, Missouri[1,2] |
| Venue type | Ballpark |
| Sports | Baseball, Football, Soccer |
| Level | MLB, NFL |
| Opened | 1909[1,2] |
| Last used for sports | May 8, 1966[1,2] |
| Demolished | 1966[1,2] |
| Physical status | Site redeveloped |
| Original capacity | 17,600[1,2] |
| Final capacity | 30,500[1,2] |
| Capacity notes | Wikipedia lists 17,600 for 1909, 24,040 for 1910–1925, 34,023 after the 1926 remodel and 30,500 for 1953–1966. SABR gives 24,040 after the 1909 renovation and 30,500 after 1925. The 1902 wooden park held 8,000. |
| Surface | Grass |
| Owner / operator | St. Louis Browns (1902–1953); St. Louis Cardinals/Anheuser-Busch (1953–1966) |
| Closure | The Cardinals moved to the new Busch Memorial Stadium downtown in May 1966. |
Documented details
Connected venues
- Replaced by: Busch Memorial Stadium · The Cardinals moved in May 1966. Busch Memorial Stadium is itself defunct and is listed as a research candidate, not a successor record.1966–2005
- Replacement for: Busch Memorial Stadium · Current Busch Stadium (2006) built adjacent; overlaps part of the old footprint1966–2005
- Replacement for: Robison Field · Cardinals moved there on July 1, 19201893–1920
- Related venue: Lloyd Street Grounds · The franchise became the St. Louis Browns in 19021895–1903
Sources
- Sportsman's Park, Wikipedia. Accessed 2026-10-19Supports: address, capacity, closed, coordinates, current land use, demolished, events, opened, teams
- Sportsman's Park (St. Louis), Society for American Baseball Research (Scott Ferkovich). Accessed 2026-10-19Supports: address, 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 (3)
- Capacity after the 1909 rebuild: Wikipedia 17,600 for 1909 and 24,040 from 1910; SABR gives 24,040 after the 1909 renovation.
- Remodel timing: Wikipedia cites remodels in 1922 and 1926 plus a $500,000 refurbishment in 1925; SABR describes one expansion finished by the end of 1925.
- Wikipedia gives the opening date of the AL park as 1902-04-23. The 1909 grandstand's opening date is not stated in Wikipedia text; SABR links it to a 1909-04-14 game only in a URL.
See something wrong or missing? Suggest a correction or submit a source.