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Cleveland Municipal Stadium
Cleveland Stadium, Lakefront Stadium
Location	1085 West 3rd St. Cleveland, Ohio 44114
Broke ground	June 24, 1930
Opened	July 3, 1932
Renovated	1967 (new seats), 1974 (new scoreboard)
Closed	December 17, 1995
Demolished	November 4, 1996
Owner	City of Cleveland
Surface	Grass
Construction cost	$2,500,000 USD
Architect	F.R. Walker of Walker & Weeks
Former names	Lakefront Stadium (1932) Cleveland Municipal Stadium (1932-74)
Tenants
Cleveland Indians (AL) (1932-33, 1936-93)* Cleveland Browns (NFL/AAFC) (1946-1995) Cleveland Rams (NFL) (1937), (1939-1941), (1945) Great Lakes Bowl (NCAA) (1947) The Indians split games between Cleveland Stadium and League Park from 1936-46.
Capacity
Baseball: 78,000 (1932) 74,400 (1993)
Dimensions
Left Field - 322 ft (98.1 m) Left-Center - 385 ft (117.3 m) Center Field - 400 ft (121.9 m) Right-Center - 385 ft (117.3 m) Right Field - 322 ft (98.1 m) Backstop - 60 ft (18.2 m)

Cleveland Stadium (also known as Lakefront Stadium and Cleveland Municipal Stadium) was a baseball and American football stadium located in Cleveland, Ohio. In its final years, the stadium sat 74,000 for baseball or 78,000 for football.

Built under the watch of city managers William R. Hopkins and Daniel E. Morgan, it was designed by the architecture firm of Walker and Weeks and Osborn Engineering, and featured an early use of structural aluminum. The Donald Gray Gardens were installed on the stadium's north side in 1936 as part of the Great Lakes Exposition.

After a referendum which approved building the stadium (by a nearly 2-1 margin), the stadium was opened on July 1, 1931. It hosted a boxing match for the World Heavyweight Championship between Max Schmeling and Young Stribling two days later. Schmeling retained his title by a t.K.o-victory in the 15th round (attendance: 37.000).

The stadium was supposedly built in a failed bid to attract the 1932 Summer Olympics, which went to Los Angeles. However, all available evidence suggests that this is false. In fact, the 1932 Games had already been awarded to Los Angeles long before ground was broken on the stadium.^[1] Rather, it was built for football games and for the Cleveland Indians. The Indians played all their games at the stadium from the middle of the 1932 season through 1933. However, even decent-sized crowds of 40,000 were swallowed up by the environment, and in 1934, the Indians moved most of their games back to their old home, League Park.

However, in 1936, the Indians began playing Sunday and holiday games at Municipal during the summer months. Beginning in 1938, they also played selected important games there. Starting in 1939, they played night games there as well (since League Park didn't have lights). By 1940, the Indians played most of their home slate at Municipal, abandoning League Park entirely after the 1946 season. They played there until the end of the 1993 season, when they moved to Jacobs Field.^[2]

The stadium was primarily a football stadium, and was so cavernous for baseball that an inner fence was constructed in 1947 to cut down the size of the field. Even after it was put in, the distances to the bleachers remained visible for many years; it was 470 feet from home plate to the bleachers in straighaway center field. No player ever hit a home run into the center field bleachers. Ted Williams hit the only inside-the-park home run of his career at Cleveland Stadium before the inner fence was installed. According to his own autobiography, Veeck - As in Wreck, Indians' owner Bill Veeck would move the fence in or out, varying by as much as 15 feet, depending on how it would favor the Indians, a practice that ended when the American League specifically legislated against moving fences during the course of a given season.

Like many facilities built before warning tracks became standard, Municipal had a steep berm in front of the wall. After the inner fence was installed, the berm was still visible during football season.

The facility, located just across the street from Lake Erie, was known for the biting cold winds that would blow into the stadium in winter and, for that matter, during much of the spring and fall. Hot summer nights would compensate by attracting swarms of midges and mayflies. In its later years it was known as the "Mistake on the Lake", and came in for its fair share of lampoonings in an age when the entire city of Cleveland was ridiculed.

The facility, however, had its glorious and humorous moments. In 1948, the Indians won the American League pennant and World Series behind pitcher Bob Feller and shortstop/player-manager Lou Boudreau. In 1949, after the Indians lost the pennant to the New York Yankees, they buried their 1948 flag in the outfield. In 1954 the Indians again won the American League pennant, winning a then-record 111 games, under manager Al Lopez and behind an outstanding pitching staff led by Bob Lemon. They were swept, however, by the New York Giants in the World Series. On four separate occasions, it hosted the 1935, 1954, 1963 and 1981 All-Star Games. On May 15, 1981, it was the site of Len Barker's perfect game. On its last day as home of the Indians on October 3, 1993, the team's fans, led by comedian Bob Hope (who grew up an Indians fan and was once a part-owner), who sang a version of his signature song, "Thanks for the Memory", with special lyrics for the occasion (as he would do on many of his television shows), bade farewell to the old stadium.

The NFL's Cleveland Browns began playing at the facility in 1946, and played there until 1995. The Stadium was the site of the AAFC Championship game in 1946, 1948 and 1949, and of the NFL Championship Game in 1945 (Washington Redskins v. Cleveland Rams), 1950 (L.A. Rams vs Browns), 1952 (Detroit vs. Browns), 1954 (Detroit vs. Browns), 1964 (Baltimore Colts vs. Browns) and 1968 (Baltimore Colts vs. Browns). It was also the site of the Denver Broncos and John Elway's famous (or infamous, if you were a Browns fan) The Drive in the January 11, 1987 AFC Championship Game.

The center field bleachers at the east end of the Stadium were home to many of the club's most avid fans and became known during the 1980s as the Dawg Pound after the barks that fans made to disrupt opposing teams' offensive plays. The fans were copying Browns players Hanford Dixon and Frank Minnifield, who frequently appeared to bark to each other and to the opposition. Some of the fans even wore dog masks and threw dog biscuits at opposing players.

The only college football Great Lakes Bowl was held there in 1947. The Stadium hosted the Notre Dame/Navy game in 1942, 1943, 1945, 1947, 1950, 1952, 1976 and 1978. The last college football contest played there was October 19, 1991 when the Northwestern Wildcats played a "home" game against the Ohio State Buckeyes. While Northwestern received the home team's share of the gate receipts the crowd was mostly Ohio State fans.

In addition to sporting events, the stadium hosted a number of rock concerts, including a 1966 concert by The Beatles. A series known as the World Series of Rock was held in the 1970s, featuring big-name acts, including The Rolling Stones. Their July 1, 1978 concert was reportedly the first in the history of the world to gross over $1,000,000. The inaugural Rock and Roll Hall of Fame concert was held in the stadium in 1995. One of the stadium's last events was a Billy Graham crusade.

The Stadium was an economic drain on the City of Cleveland, which owned it and originally operated it. In the mid 1970s the Browns owner Art Modell agreed to lease the facility for $1.00 per year. Modell's company, Stadium Corporation, assumed the expenses of operations from the City and invested in improvements, including then new electronic scoreboards and luxury suites. The suites and scoreboard advertising were quite lucrative for Modell and generated substantial revenue for him. Modell refused to share the suite revenue with the Indians baseball team, even though quite a bit of the revenues were generated during baseball games. Eventually the Indians prevailed upon the local governments and voters and convinced them to build them their own facility where they would control the suite revenue. Modell, believing that his revenues were not endangered, refused to participate in the Gateway Project that built Jacobs Field for the Indians and Gund Arena for the Cavs. Modell's assumptions proved incorrect and the suite revenues declined when the Indians moved from the stadium to Jacobs Field in 1994. The following year, Modell decided to move the football team to Baltimore, Maryland after the 1995 season.

Modell's move of the Browns breached the team's lease and so the City of Cleveland sued. After the suit was settled the Stadium was demolished the next year and the pieces were literally taken across the street and dumped in the lake, so as to create an artificial reef for fisherman and divers.

New Cleveland Browns Stadium now stands on the site.

1. ^ Pahigaian, Josh; Kevin O'Connell (2004). The Ultimate Baseball Road Trip. Guilford, Connecticut: Lyons Press. ISBN 1592281591. 
2. ^ Lowry, Phillip (2005). Green Cathedrals. New York City: Walker & Company. ISBN 0802715621. 

• Cleveland Municipal Stadium at Ballparks.com
• Encyclopedia of Cleveland History entry

v • d • e Cleveland Indians
Cleveland, Ohio
The Franchise	History • Seasons • Records • Players • Managers and Owners • Broadcasters
Ballparks	League Park • Cleveland Stadium • Jacobs Field
Culture	Chief Wahoo • John Adams • The Catch • Ten Cent Beer Night • Bat Burglary • Curse of Rocky Colavito • Major League
Important Figures	Nap Lajoie • Addie Joss • Ray Chapman • Tris Speaker • Stan Coveleski • Joe Sewell • Mel Harder • Earl Averill • Hal Trosky • Bob Feller • Lou Boudreau • Bob Lemon • Bill Veeck • Al Rosen • Larry Doby • Mike Garcia • Early Wynn • Herb Score • Rocky Colavito • Mudcat Grant • Sam McDowell • Luis Tiant • Andre Thornton • Albert Belle • Sandy Alomar Jr • Jim Thome • Kenny Lofton • Manny Ramirez • Omar Vizquel • C.C. Sabathia • Víctor Martínez
Retired Numbers	3 • 5 • 14 • 18 • 19 • 21 • 42 • 455
Key Personnel	Owner: Larry Dolan • General Manager: Mark Shapiro • Manager: Eric Wedge
World Series Champions (2)	1920, 1948
American League Championships (5)	1920, 1948, 1954, 1995, 1997
Central Division Championships (7)	1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2007
Seasons (108)	1901 • 1902 • 1903 • 1904 • 1905 • 1906 • 1907 • 1908 • 1909 • 1910 • 1911 • 1912 • 1913 • 1914 • 1915 • 1916 • 1917 • 1918 • 1919 • 1920 • 1921 • 1922 • 1923 • 1924 • 1925 • 1926 • 1927 • 1928 • 1929 • 1930 • 1931 • 1932 • 1933 • 1934 • 1935 • 1936 • 1937 • 1938 • 1939 • 1940 • 1941 • 1942 • 1943 • 1944 • 1945 • 1946 • 1947 • 1948 • 1949 • 1950 • 1951 • 1952 • 1953 • 1954 • 1955 • 1956 • 1957 • 1958 • 1959 • 1960 • 1961 • 1962 • 1963 • 1964 • 1965 • 1966 • 1967 • 1968 • 1969 • 1970 • 1971 • 1972 • 1973 • 1974 • 1975 • 1976 • 1977 • 1978 • 1979 • 1980 • 1981 • 1982 • 1983 • 1984 • 1985 • 1986 • 1987 • 1988 • 1989 • 1990 • 1991 • 1992 • 1993 • 1994 • 1995 • 1996 • 1997 • 1998 • 1999 • 2000 • 2001 • 2002 • 2003 • 2004 • 2005 • 2006 • 2007 • 2008
Minor League Affiliates	Buffalo Bisons (AAA) • Akron Aeros (AA) • Kinston Indians (A) • Lake County Captains (A) • Mahoning Valley Scrappers (A) • Gulf Coast Indians (Rookie) • DSL Indians (Rookie)
Other Assets	SportsTime Ohio

Cleveland Browns view • talk • edit
Franchise • History • Players • Coaches • Seasons • Division
Stadiums: Cleveland Stadium • Cleveland Browns Stadium Culture: Randy Lerner • Art Modell • Arthur B. McBride • 60th Moments • Dawg Pound • Cleveland Sports Curse • Relocation to Baltimore • Battle of Ohio • Browns-Steelers Rivalry Lore: The Drive • The Fumble • Kardiac Kids • Red Right 88
League Championships (8)
AAFC: 1946 • 1947 • 1948 • 1949 NFL: 1950 • 1954 • 1955 • 1964

Cleveland/Los Angeles/St. Louis Rams v • d • e

Franchise • History • Players • Seasons • Statistics Stadiums: Cleveland Municipal Stadium • League Park • Shaw Stadium • Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum • Anaheim Stadium • Busch Memorial Stadium • Edward Jones Dome Super Bowl Appearances: XIV • XXXIV • XXXVI Culture: Missouri Governor's Cup • NFL in Los Angeles Lore: The Greatest Show on Turf • The Tackle • Fearsome Foursome Head Coaches Bezdek • Lewis • Clark • Donelli • Walsh • Snyder • Shaughnessy • Stydahar • Pool • Gillman • Waterfield • Svare • Allen • Prothro • Knox • Malavasi • Robinson • Brooks • Vermeil • Martz • Vitt • Linehan League Championships (3) 1945 • 1951 • 1999 1936 • 1937 • 1938 • 1939 • 1940 • 1941 • 1942 • Suspended operations 1943 • 1944 • 1945 • 1946 • 1947 • 1948 • 1949 • 1950 • 1951 • 1952 • 1953 • 1954 • 1955 • 1956 • 1957 • 1958 • 1959 • 1960 • 1961 • 1962 • 1963 • 1964 • 1965 • 1966 • 1967 • 1968 • 1969 • 1970 • 1971 • 1972 • 1973 • 1974 • 1975 • 1976 • 1977 • 1978 • 1979 • 1980 • 1981 • 1982 • 1983 • 1984 • 1985 • 1986 • 1987 • 1988 • 1989 • 1990 • 1991 • 1992 • 1993 • 1994 • 1995 • 1996 • 1997 • 1998 • 1999 • 2000 • 2001 • 2002 • 2003 • 2004 • 2005 • 2006 • 2007 • 2008 • 2009

Preceded by League Park	Home of the Cleveland Indians 1932–1933	Succeeded by League Park
Preceded by League Park	Home of the Cleveland Indians 1936–1993 (shared with League Park until 1946)	Succeeded by Jacobs Field
Preceded by first stadium	Home of the Cleveland Browns 1946–1995	Succeeded by Cleveland Browns Stadium
Preceded by first stadium	Home of the Cleveland Rams 1937	Succeeded by Shaw Stadium
Preceded by Shaw Stadium	Home of the Cleveland Rams 1939–1941	Succeeded by League Park
Preceded by League Park	Home of the Cleveland Rams 1945	Succeeded by Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
Preceded by Polo Grounds	Host of the All-Star Game 1935	Succeeded by Braves Field
Preceded by Crosley Field	Host of the All-Star Game 1954	Succeeded by County Stadium
Preceded by Wrigley Field	Host of the All-Star Game 1963	Succeeded by Shea Stadium
Preceded by Dodger Stadium	Host of the All-Star Game 1981	Succeeded by Olympic Stadium

Coordinates: 41°30′21.19″N, 81°41′59.00″W