South Side Park #3, White Sox Park, the 39th Street Grounds, Schorling Park, American Giants Park
Life Span: 1900-1940
Location: 39th and Princeton St
Architect: Unknown
Chicago Tribune, April 8, 1900
The stand is now in process of construction at the corner of Thirty-ninth street and Wentworth avenue. The seating capacity of grand stand and bleachers will be, it is said, 7,500—5,000 in the grand stand and 1,250 in each of the bleachers.
Chicago Tribune, April 12, 1900
Yesterday’s snowfall did not deter Owner Comiskey of the Chicago American league club from announcing the opening of the local professional season on next Sunday. Comiskey thinks Chicago weather is capricious and believes its present unfavorable turn is no evidence it may not be in a balmy mood three days later. Besides the American league magnate wants to show his brand new grandstand.
As a contractor Comiskey has achieved a distinct success. His grandstand and bleachers at Thirty-ninth street and Wentworth avenue are now completed and ready for occupancy. With good weather the opening game will be played on Sunday with the Chicago Unions, the crack colored team.
The American league will meet today at the Great Northern Hotel at noon. The schedule is ready for adoption and will be out on Friday. It provides for a series of eight games on the new grounds at Thirty-ninth street and Wentworth avenue, after which Comiskey will be away from home, meeting the seven opposing clubs before returning to Chicago.
Comiskey says when he is ready to open the American league season on his new grounds he will have the fastest outfield in the business, bar none. He hopes to secure Brodie and has good chances of getting a couple of other players who should make his team a first-can.
The Chicago players at Champaign are lavish in their praise of the Illinois team. Catcher Buckley, who is in charge of the squad at the State University town. wrote Comiskey:
- It is a pleasure to watch those boys play ball They bat like fiends and run the bases beautifully. Their arms are good. and their throwing is something worth going to see. They are as fast a bunch of college players as I ever saw.
Comiskey said:
- Henry Killilea told me when I sent the team down there that I was going up against a tough proposition, and that they were a hustling lot of ball players. I may draft some of them They look good, but, of course, they have been training for some time and have been batting in the cage since January, and have a decided advantage over my team. My players, of course, will not be ready to play hard ball. They will be stiff and sore until they get in condition, and the pitchers will not let out their speed.
Just wait until my team takes the field. They will be a fast bunch. I expect to have a good aggregation together. Detroit is yelling blue murder because it did not succeed in landing Padden.
South Side Park III
August 14, 1904
Chicago vs Boston
Cubs vs. White Sox, City Championship series, Chicago, Oct. 9, 1909, South Side Park
Englewood Times, April 15, 1910
The baseball clubs are organizing the coming week will see the campaign opened. Schorling’s Park will have Frank Leland’s “Leland Giants” in the fleld in a week, and the amateur teams will also be in the ring.
Englewood Times, May 27, 1910
Again comes the report that the grounds on which Johnny Schorling’s baseball park is located will be divided into city lots next season. We have heard this report for the last ten years and more, it is a sort of periodical comet scare.
Englewood Times, July 22, 1910
Work has been commenced on opening the new addition that was formerly Schorling’s ball park.
Inter Ocean, March 11, 1911
The process of converting the old White Sox grounds at Thirty-Ninth street and Wentworth avenue into a semi-pro plant was started yesterday, when the first clods of earth were turned by workmen employed by John Schorling, the lessee of the new way station in the Chicago Baseball league circuit. The old Auburn Park magnate. is going after the title of “the parlor home of baseball,” originally coined and copped by the Chicago Cubs, and when he gets through in a few weeks he promises to give the fans a perfect little gem of a grand stand.
The new stands are being planned to seat 4,500 people and will cost $15,000 to erect. Schorling. the new owner of the grounds, has lined up a club that will equal the grand stand in the American Giants.
Rube Foster will le the boss of the club and will have one of the strongest list of negro players ever secured on any one team.
For twenty or more years the grounds where the new park is being installed have been used for sporting events. At the time of the World’s Fair the old Wanderers Cricket club secured the plot of ground and carefully nursed a magnificent award of green on it until President Comiskey of the White Sox cast a judicial eye on the place and annexed it for the baseball public. Two years ago Commy was offered his new grounds four blocks nearer town and he snapped the offer up, putting his old park back on the market, where it was picked up by John Schorling.
Inter Ocean, May 14, 1911
GIANTS PARK TO BE OPENED.
Spaldings Chief Attraction of First Day at Old Comiskey Park.
Semi-pro magnates will complete the local chain of parks that will cater to the minor fans in 1911 today, when the new American Giants’ park will open its gates for a game between the home team, “Rube” Foster’s American Giants and the Spaldings. The new park is built on the former site of Comiskey’s White Sox grounds, at Thirty- Ninth street and Wentworth avenue, and the grand stand is said to be the prettiest small ball park in the entire country.
Games scheduled for today are as follows:
- At American Giants’ Park—American Giants and Spaldings.
At West End Park—West Ends and Red Sox.
At Gunther Park—Gunthers and Rogers Park
At Normal Park—Leland Giants and Joliets
At Rogers Park—F. C. Webers and Chicago Stars.
At Roseland Eclipse Park-Roseland Eclipse and Tom Murrays.
At Torstenson’s Park—Pullmans and Normals.
At Lawndale Park—Original Crawfords and Yales.
At Roseland Eclipse Park—Roseland Eclipse and Joliets.
At Ogden’s Grove-Magneta and B. J. Coena.
Morning games scheduled as follows:
At Roseland Eclips Park—Roseland Eclipse an Joliets.
At Ogden’s Grove—Ogden’s Athletics and Marquettes.
Chicago Defender, May 6, 1933
Schorling’s baseball mark, 39th St. and Wentworth Ave., will not be the home of Cole’» American Giants this season. It was learned early this week, but will instead, be used as a dog track with races promoted nightly.
The park, owned by John Schorling and for years the home of Andrew Rube Foster’s American Giants, has been in the hands of receivers for years. according to a story told a Chicago Defender reporter this week. It was remodeled. and turned over to Cole last season for baseball, but the lease was not renewed when the 1933 season got under way. The Giants will play their games either at Normal park, or in another spot to he chosen by Owner Cole, who is now in Hot Springs, Ark.
Switches Schedule
The 1933 schedule of our National league called for the Giants opening: the local season with the Crawfords May ju, but a change has been made. The team, opening in Indianapolis last week, will be home this week -end, but will play the Duffy Florals in the latter’s park. The first home game is booked for May 31 with Indianapolis. but just what park will be used is a question. One thing is certain, the game will not be played at 39th St. That spot is already being remodeled and built into something else which unofficial reports say is to be a dog track.
Collyer’s Eye, June 3, 1933
The Bradford-Adams interests have installed the mechanical hare and mutual machines at American Giants ball park, situated 15 minutes from the loop.
Chicago Tribune, December 24, 1940
American Giants’ Park Is Damaged by Flames
Fire believed to have been started by prowlers last night did about $2,000 damage to a portion of the wooden grandstands of the American Giants’ ball park at Pershing road and Princeton avenue. Prior to 1910 the park was used by the White Sox. Deputy Chief Fire Marshal Anthony J. Mullaney estimated the damage.
Chicago Defender, January 4, 1941
Fire, of undetermined origin, destroyed all the seats in the grandstand of the American Giants park, at Thirty-ninth street and Shields avenue, early Monday night, Dec. 23. The fire started, accordIng to the watchman, on the third line, on the west side of the park.
The damage was estimated at $8,000 by Horace G. Hall, president of the ball club and lessee of the grounds. The stands will be rebuilt immediately, he declared.
The Giants have been at the present site for 30 years. When the Chicago White Sox of the American League moved to its present grounds at Thirty-fifth street and Shields avenue, the late Charles Comiskey. then owner, ordered the stands torn down. Comiskey’s excuse was that he did not want another club so close to the White Sox grounds.
John M. Schorling, who died last summer, was then a saloon keeper at Seventy-ninth street and Wentworth avenue. He secured the lease of the Thirty-ninth street grounds and built both stands and bleachers. Then he sought the services of the late Andrew Rube Foster, who was then the ace pitcher of the Leland Giants, for manager.
Foster secured his release from Bureguard F. Moseley, then a practicing attorney and heavy stockholder in the Leland Giants. Schorling and Foster operated at the Thirty-ninth street grounds until Foster was taken sick in 1926. Upon the death of Foster in 1930. Schorling continued to run the park and club for two years, selling it out to W. E. Trimble, Princeton, Ill.
Dog racing enthusiasts got hold of the lease in 1932 but because the sport was never legalized, the park remained empty.
Dave Marlarcher took the Giants a a road team playing semi-pro clubs but in 1935. Robert A. “King” Cole secured the lease on the grounds and put the American Giants back there where they have been since.
A few wears ago Cole’s other business interests prevented him from engaging actively in baseball. H. G. Hall then became president of the club. The Giants are a member of the Negro American League which opens its midwinter session here Sunday.
The Daily Calumet, April 9, 1941
American Giants To Use Comiskey Park This Year.
Chicago American Giants of the Negro American league will open the home schedule at Comiskey park, it was announced today by H. B. Hall, president of the team. Use of the White Sox park was tendered to the American Giants after a fire several months ago had completely demolished the stands in the latter’s park at 39th and Wentworth.
American Giants accepted the generous invitation of the White Sox organization when it was learned that rebuilding of their own stands could not be completed in time for the opening of the season. The colored club, one of the oldest baseball organizations in the country, will open at Comiskey park against Kansas City Monarchs, Negro American league champions the last two years, in a double-header Sunday afternoon. May 18.
Now in training at Jacksonville, Fla, under the direction of Jim Taylor, the American Giants shape up stronger than in many seasons. During the winter a number of trades were made, strengthening the team considerably. The crop of rookie talent also is the best in years.
Chicago Tribune, January 29, 1946
Order New Applications for Wentworth Gardens
The several thousand applicants for the Chicago housing authority’s new 422 unit Wentworth Gardens project, at 39th st. and Wentworth av., must file new applications because eligibility requirements, which are based on family income, have been changed, it was announced yesterday. A temporary application office will be opened Friday at 18 W. 30th st.
South Side Park No. 3
Sanborn Fire Insurance Map
1912
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