Buff Stadium Sold to Salvage Company - This Forgotten Day in Houston

March 14, 1963:

On this day, the former home of the Houston Buffaloes, Busch Stadium, was sold to a salvage company for nineteen thousand dollars. The stadium was built in 1928 by the St. Louis Cardinals for their Texas League team, the Buffaloes, which is also why the stadium was originally called, Buff Stadium. And, even after Augustus Busch bought the Cardinals franchise in 1953 and renamed the Houston stadium, Busch, local fans still referred to it as Buff Stadium.

In their first game at the stadium, the Buffaloes beat the Waco Cubs seven to five in front of fifteen thousand fans. According to the Chronicle’s J-R Gonzalez, “HISD released students fifty minutes early to allow them to attend that game. And, Texas Gov. Dan Moody tossed the first pitch while Houston Mayor Oscar Holcombe acted as catcher and Jesse H. Jones served as umpire.”

In 2012, Finger Furniture at 4001 Gulf Freeway, the former site of Buff Stadium, announced it was going out of business. But, besides all the sweet deals on sofas and mattresses, if you’re a sports fan, the best thing about this location was the Houston Sports Museum located inside the store. Not only did it have a baseball signed by Babe Ruth and cleats worn by Dizzy Dean – it also featured the original site of Buff Stadium’s home plate.

Did you ever attend a game at Buff (Busch) Stadium? Tweet me, Michael Callahan, @MCallahanTV using #ForgottenDayHOU.