Photographs courtesy of the G.E. Archives - Schenectady Science Center and Planetarium
Douglas Park was one of 3 stadiums that regularly served the Quad Cities region, with professional baseball also joining Moline IL's Browning Field (3.3 miles from Douglas Park) and Davenport IA's John O'Donnell Stadium (2.6 miles from Douglas Park). While each team joined and entered several leagues throughout their lifecycle, at least 2 and often all 3 stadiums were in the same league together, making for a tremendous rivalry between the 3 professional Minor League towns of the Quad Cities region. Douglas Park made its debut early on, first serving in the Triple-I League in 1920 and unlike the other two professional ballparks in the area... this stadium's professional history would end before World War II. These inaugural Rock Island Islanders would take the field in 1920 against their rival brother Moline Plowboys and featured the strongest man in the Triple-I League at that time... Norm Glockson. In an era when double-digit home run totals were still unheard of, the former Cincinnati Reds 1B blasted 11 HR to lead the 1920 Triple-I League along with 28 2B, 11 3B and a .291 batting average. The rest of the team however, (especially the pitching), was simply awful. The debuting  Islanders' completed their first season in pro ball, at their brand new Douglas Park in last place with a 57-81 record... 24 1/2 games out of 1st. While it was a dubious start... the Rock Island Islanders were officially off and running (though apparently not very fast...)