Baseball has been a part of Peoria history dating back to 1883 when the Peoria Reds
played for the Northwestern League, and even further back to 1878 when an independent
team by that name first took the field. A permanent baseball stadium
had been built called Lake View Park, which would house professional Peoria Baseball
for 40 years until 1923. The New York Yankees had just been kicked out of
the Polo Grounds for outdrawing the Giants and had to build a new ballpark, to
be known as Yankee Stadium. At that same time, a new ballpark would also rise
in Peoria, and would become the home for pro ball for the next 40 years... the
ballpark above known as Woodruff Field. |