Скачать или смотреть The Demise of Baltimore’s Memorial Stadium

Memorial Stadium became the convenient excuse for Robert Irsay to bolt Baltimore and relocate the Colts to Indianapolis. The ethics of his abrupt departure will be forever debated and condemned within Baltimore. His sustained criticism of the facility was accurate however in comparison with newly constructed football stadiums during that era.

Memorial Stadium was originally constructed on a tract of land during the 1920s called Venable Park. Two stadiums were built on the land known respectively as Baltimore Stadium and Babe Ruth Stadium. A reconstructed multi-sport stadium with an upper deck replaced both during the middle of 1954. Once completed, it would be renamed as Memorial Stadium. The St. Louis Browns arrived that same year and became known as the Orioles. The football Colts, two major universities and high-profile local high school football rivalry games would share the venue.

The stadium was stricken by two freak accidents during its history. One involved an overcrowded escalator collapsing and the other a small private plane crash into the upper deck at the conclusion of a Colt’s playoff game that they had lost.

During the aftermath following the Colt’s departure, the city of Baltimore came to the realization that they would require an upgraded stadium to retain the Orioles and a tangible venue to attract a replacement professional football team.

On April 6, 1992, Oriole Park would open downtown at the Camden Yards designed in a retro-ballpark architecture style. The park became an immediate success. Six years later, following the Cleveland Browns relocation, Ravens Stadium was built and opened adjacently. The venue has since been renamed the M & T Bank Stadium. In 2001, Memorial Stadium was demolished due to structural safety concerns.

Any trace of the Memorial Stadium has been replaced by more utilitarian uses. The land has since been repurposed to include Maryland’s largest YMCA, four senior apartment complexes, a multi-purpose sports recreational field, war memorial, and a large children’s playground.