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Ohio inventions and firsts · First · 1935

First major-league night game

On May 24, 1935 the Reds beat the Phillies 2-1 in the first major-league night game, at Crosley Field (Findlay St. and Western Ave., Queensgate); President Roosevelt pressed a button to light the park's 632 lamps.

At a glance

Year
1935
Company
Cincinnati Reds
Place
Cincinnati (Crosley Field), Hamilton County ZIP 45203 · Cincinnati · Hamilton County

The story

In the 1930s major-league games were played in the afternoon, when many fans were at work.

The Cincinnati Reds put in 632 lamps in eight metal towers at Crosley Field in 1935. On Friday, May 24, 1935, the Reds beat the Phillies 2 to 1 before 20,422 fans in the first major-league night game. President Franklin Roosevelt pressed a button at the White House to light the park. Lou Chiozza of the Phillies was the first player to bat under the lights; Paul Derringer was the winning pitcher; National League president Ford Frick attended.

Crosley Field stood in Cincinnati's Queensgate neighborhood on a block bounded by Findlay Street, Western Avenue, Dalton Avenue, York Street and McLean Avenue. The ballpark closed June 24, 1970, and was torn down on April 19, 1972, when Pete Rose Jr. pulled a lever that sent a wrecking ball into the wall.

Its memory lives at the Reds' current Great American Ball Park, where Crosley Terrace honors it with statues of Joe Nuxhall, Ernie Lombardi, Ted Kluszewski and Frank Robinson.

Timeline

  • 1935: 632 lamps in eight steel stanchions are installed at Crosley Field. (Cincinnati, OH) source
  • 1935-05-24: Reds beat the Phillies 2-1 in the first major-league night game; 20,422 attend. (Cincinnati, OH) source
  • 1970-06-24: Crosley Field closes. (Cincinnati, OH) source
  • 1972-04-19: Crosley Field is demolished. (Cincinnati, OH) source

What it changed

  • 20,422 fans attended the first night game.
  • President Roosevelt switched on the lights from the White House.

Why it matters

Led to night baseball.

Places in Ohio to see

Further reading

Sources

Confidence. Medium: the main facts were confirmed, but some details (often an address or ZIP code) were not.