Special Collection Treasures

Baseball and the Barons have been in Birmingham since around 1885. In the early years, the games were played at a small field in West End Park. On August 18, 1910 the game moved to a new home, Rickwood Field. The field was named for Rick Woodward, an enthusiastic baseball fan, chairman of the Woodward Iron Company, and new owner of the Birmingham Coal Barons. The stadium was built to seat about 5,000 people but at the first opening game, there were reports of 10,000 eager baseball fans in attendance.