Last month, the Wayne County Commission approved an $850,000 grant for the renovation of Hamtramck Stadium, one of the only Negro League stadiums still standing. The grant funding will go toward improvements in the stands, including a new roof, accessible seating, and overall restoration of the seating.
Work on the stands will start later this summer, led by contractor DMC Consultants. It should be completed by the end of the year.
In total, the renovation of Hamtramck Stadium is a $2.6 million project. Funding has come through from various sources, including the Detroit Tigers Foundation, the Kresge Foundation, and an African American Civil Rights grant administered by the National Park Service, Department of Interior.
The stadium opened in 1930 as home to the Detroit Stars. It was home to the Negro League, little league, and high school teams for decades.
The field itself has been maintained since 2016 by the volunteers of the Hamtramck Stadium Grounds Crew, many of whom were volunteers with the Navin Field Grounds Crew at the old Tiger Stadium. When they started taking care of the field, grass was overgrown and the field hadn't been used for baseball in years, says Tom Derry, founder and head groundskeeper of the Hamtramck Stadium Grounds Crew. But neighborhood kids used the field for soccer or cricket (there was a pitch behind second base!). When the crew started taking care of the field, trees grew behind home plate - they've since been cut down.
For the first few years, the crew mainly cut the grass and picked up garbage around the field. Watering the field involves running a hose from a hydrant down the block and connecting it to a water reel. The crew worked with no electricity at the site - it's turning on sometime this week.
As they groomed the field, more people noticed and baseball was played once again. Vintage baseball games started happening, and in 2019, the field hosted a charity baseball game with Jack White's team. The field now hosts vintage baseball games regularly -- Bring Your Own Chair!
Derry says that the players who use the field now are excited to play there and they recognize the historical significance of the site. And sometimes when he's out on his riding lawnmower, he thinks of the greats that once played there -- Turkey Stearns, Satchel Page, Josh Gibson -- and how he thinks they'd approve of their work on the field.
But Derry gives most of the credit to his crew. "They're out there at 7 a.m. sometimes, cutting grass, grooming the field. They're so dedicated and work so hard. They're excited to preserve the history of the field."
The crew is working with the Friends of Hamtramck Stadium and the city of Hamtramck to help restore the site.
The stadium sits within Veterans Park in Hamtramck, close to Keyworth Stadium.
