The West End Ball Park: Houston baseball before Buff Stadium

Before there were Houston Astros at the Astrodome, before the Colt 45s or Houston Buffaloes at Buff Stadium, and before the St. Louis Cardinals quietly bought up a majority interest in the Houston franchise, Houston played ball at the West End Ball Park.  It was built in 1905 and located at Andrews and Heiner Streets just south of downtown.  Just on the border between the business district and the Fourth Ward, the site is now under the Pierce Elevated.

Even before the West End Ball Park was built, baseball was played at the fairgrounds by the Houston Red Stockings, the Houston Babies, and Moore's Marvels.  The fairgrounds were located a few blocks away at McGowan and Milam.

The new West End ballpark was built entirely of wood and held 35,000 fans.  The stands were covered with canopies held up by columns of wood, as seen in the photo.  Tris Speaker got his start here, signing a contract with the Buffaloes for a record salary of $100 a month in 1907.  By 1909 Houston was on a winning streak, capturing championships in five of the next six seasons.

During the 1920s the stadium evolved right along with the sport of baseball.  A group called the "Knot Hole Gang" was formed for "white boys between 7 and 16 years old".  Each boy got his own ID card for a quarter and it admitted him to any game that wasn't held on a Sunday or a holiday. 

The ball park was also used for other sports events, such as Rice Institute's football games starting in 1912.  In those days the players had to provide their own uniforms, shoes, socks and gear. in 1928 the West End Ball Park was superseded by Buff Stadium, built on Cullen Boulevard just north of the Gulf Freeway where Finger's Furniture sat for decades.  The West End field was used by high school and community teams for several more years before it was torn down.