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Veteran's was awful enough but even worse was that it replaced Connie Mack stadium (a/k/a Shibe Park) which was one of the best baseball parks ever built before it was allowed to deteriorate, the first victim in the multipurpose park crapola which took hold of the era. And, of course, Philadelphia had to be on the leading edge of that abject stupidity.

One of the worst days of my late teen life was travelling home from work in Tacony on the AmTrak commuter line through North Philly and seeing the plume of black smoke coming from the area of 21st and Lehigh.

The "locals" decided they didn't like that the stadium was being remade into a Community Center...they torched it.

Still have MANY fond memories of being in the $1.00 left field bleachers with my grandfather. Sitting for hours on those well-worn 4x6 planks was never a chore watching the worst team in baseball (early 60's Phils) and being with Grandpop.

Did your Grandpop tell you the illustrious history of that stadium? After the final breakup of the A's in the early 30's up until the time old Connie sold the team in 1950 (I think), they still kept the old ballpark in good shape, replacing worn seating, shade awnings and the like even with a last place team. The Philadelphia Phillies then became the main tenants and were fortunate enough to have the great Whiz Kids team just as old Connie retired.

I'm not sure exactly when, but it was sometime in the early to mid 1960's that they made a conscious decision to stop maintaining the park and let it go downhill. I'd forgotten they even tried to make it into a community center. Sad. Even Pittsburgh saved a part of old Forbes Field.