Derks Field

Last updated
Derks Field
Derks Field
Former namesCommunity Park (1928–1940)
Location1300 South & West Temple
Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S.
Owner City of Salt Lake City
OperatorCity of Salt Lake City
Capacity 10,000 (1958–1993)
  5,000 (1947–1957)
SurfaceNatural grass
Construction
Opened1928, 1947
Expanded1958
Closed1993
Demolished1993 [1]
Tenants
Salt Lake City Bees (PioL/PCL) (1947–1984)
Salt Lake City Trappers (PioL) (1985–1992)
Salt Lake Sting (APSL) (1990–1991)

Derks Field was a minor league baseball park in the Western United States, located in Salt Lake City, Utah. It was the home field of the Salt Lake Bees, Angels, and Gulls of the Pacific Coast League, Bees, Giants, and Trappers of the Pioneer Baseball League, and the Salt Lake Sting of the American Professional Soccer League.

Opened in 1928 as Community Park, [1] [2] [3] the ballpark's final seating capacity was 10,000. [4] In 1940, it was named for Salt Lake Tribune sports editor John C. Derks. [1]

Derks Field had replaced the previous professional ballpark, Bonneville Park (originally called Majestic Park), which was south of 9th Street between State Street and Main Street, on the site of an amusement park called the Salt Palace, which had been destroyed by fire in 1910. It operated from 1915 through 1927. As part of the construction of the new Community Park, the Bonneville stands were taken down and reassembled at the new site. [5]

Destroyed by arson on the night of September 24, 1946, [6] [7] [8] [9] it reopened in May 1947, [2] and was expanded in 1958 with the return of the PCL. [10]

Major League Baseball teams occasionally played exhibition games at Derks Field, including the 1960 Pittsburgh Pirates and the 1964 Milwaukee Braves. [11]

The field was aligned to the southeast, with a view of the Wasatch Range, and its elevation was 4,230 feet (1,290 m) above sea level. Its successor, Smith's Ballpark, opened on the same site 29 years ago in 1994.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Orem, Utah</span> City in Utah, United States

Orem is a city in Utah County, Utah, United States, in the northern part of the state. It is adjacent to Provo, Lindon, and Vineyard and is approximately 45 miles (72 km) south of Salt Lake City.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Salt Lake City</span> State capital and largest city of Utah, United States

Salt Lake City, often shortened to Salt Lake, and colloquially called SLC, is the capital and most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in Utah. With a population of 200,133 in 2020, the city is the core of the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, which had a population of 1,257,936 at the 2020 census. Salt Lake City is further situated within a larger metropolis known as the Salt Lake City–Ogden–Provo Combined Statistical Area, a corridor of contiguous urban and suburban development stretched along a 120-mile (190 km) segment of the Wasatch Front, comprising a population of 2,746,164, making it the 22nd largest in the nation. It is also the central core of the larger of only two major urban areas located within the Great Basin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Murray, Utah</span> City in Utah, United States

Murray is a city situated on the Wasatch Front in the core of Salt Lake Valley in the U.S. state of Utah. Named for territorial governor Eli Murray, it is the state's fourteenth largest city. According to the 2020 census, Murray had a population of 50,637. Murray shares borders with Taylorsville, Holladay, South Salt Lake and West Jordan, Utah. Once teeming with heavy industry, Murray's industrial sector now has little trace and has been replaced by major mercantile sectors. Known for its central location in Salt Lake County, Murray has been called the Hub of Salt Lake County. Unlike most of its neighboring communities, Murray operates its own police, fire, power, water, library, and parks and recreation departments and has its own school district. While maintaining many of its own services, Murray has one of the lowest city tax rates in the state.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Salt Lake Bees</span> Minor league baseball team

The Salt Lake Bees are a Minor League Baseball team affiliated with the Los Angeles Angels and competing in the Pacific Coast League (PCL). Based in Salt Lake City, Utah, the team plays its home games at Smith's Ballpark, which opened in 1994. With a seating capacity of 15,411, it boasts the largest capacity in the league. Previously known as the Salt Lake Buzz from 1994 to 2000 and the Salt Lake Stingers from 2001 to 2005, the team adopted the Bees moniker in 2006. Since their inception in 1994, they have been a part of the PCL, including the 2021 season when the league was called Triple-A West.

<i>The Salt Lake Tribune</i> Daily newspaper in Salt Lake City, Utah

The Salt Lake Tribune is a newspaper published in the city of Salt Lake City, Utah. The Tribune is owned by The Salt Lake Tribune, Inc., a non-profit corporation. The newspaper's motto is "Utah's Independent Voice Since 1871."

Bonneville International Corporation is a media and broadcasting company, wholly owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints through its for-profit arm, Deseret Management Corporation. It began as a radio and TV network in the Triad Center Broadcast House in Salt Lake City, Utah. Bonneville's name alludes to Benjamin Bonneville and the prehistoric Lake Bonneville that once covered much of modern-day Utah, which was named after him.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Smith's Ballpark</span> Minor League Baseball Stadium in Salt Lake City

Smith's Ballpark is a minor league baseball park in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the home field of the Salt Lake Bees of the Pacific Coast League and the collegiate Utah Utes of the Pac-12 Conference.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daybreak (community)</span> Planned community near Salt Lake City, Utah, United States

Daybreak is a master-planned community spanning over 4,000 acres of land. The development was initiated by Kennecott Land, a subsidiary of the Rio Tinto Group, in South Jordan, Utah and construction started in 2004. In 2016, the remaining land was sold to Värde Partners, a Minneapolis-based investment firm, leading to the establishment of a new development company called Daybreak Communities, responsible for continuing the project. Notably, on April 12, 2021, the undeveloped portion of the community, comprising 1,300 acres, was sold to Larry H. Miller Real Estate. It is anticipated that the construction and expansion of the community will progress over about twenty years. Once completed, the Daybreak community could encompass over 20,000 residential units and approximately 9.1 million square feet of commercial space.

The Salt Lake City Bees was a primary moniker of the minor league baseball teams, based in Salt Lake City, Utah between 1911 and 1970 under various names. After minor league baseball first began in Salt Lake City in 1900, the Bees were long-time members of both the Pacific Coast League and Pioneer League. The Salt Lake Bees played their home games at Derks Field.

The Ogden A's were a minor league baseball team in the Pacific Coast League, based in Ogden, Utah. They were the Triple-A farm club of the Oakland Athletics, and replaced the San Jose Missions as the tenth team in the PCL.

KZNS is a commercial AM radio station in Salt Lake City, Utah. It airs a sports radio format and is owned by Jazz Communications LLC. Programming is simulcast on co-owned KZNS-FM 97.5, licensed to Coalville, Utah. On weekdays, KZNS-AM-FM have local hosts discussing Salt Lake City and national sports. Nights and weekends, programming is supplied by Fox Sports Radio. KZNS-AM-FM are the flagship radio stations for the Utah Jazz basketball team and the Salt Lake Bees Minor League Baseball team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Salt Lake City Trappers</span> Minor league baseball team

The Salt Lake City Trappers were a Minor League Baseball team of the Rookie level Pioneer League from 1985 to 1992. They were located in Salt Lake City, Utah, and played their home games at Derks Field. The Trappers were not affiliated with any Major League Baseball team. They won the Pioneer League championship four times: in three consecutive seasons from 1985 to 1987 and again in 1991.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ballpark station (UTA)</span> Light rail station in Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S.

Ballpark station is a light rail station in the People's Freeway neighborhood of Salt Lake City, Utah, in the United States, served by all three lines of Utah Transit Authority's TRAX light rail system. The Blue Line provides service from Downtown Salt Lake City to Draper. The Red Line provides service from the University of Utah to the Daybreak community of South Jordan. The Green Line provides service from the Salt Lake City International Airport to West Valley City.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nielsen Fieldhouse</span>

The Einar Nielsen Fieldhouse was a multi-purpose arena in the western United States, located in Salt Lake City, Utah. Opened 84 years ago in 1939 on the University of Utah campus, it was the home venue of Utes basketball for thirty years, and was formally dedicated on the night of Tuesday, January 9, 1940.

The Utah–Idaho League was a minor league baseball organization founded in 1926. Playing as a six–team, Class C level league for its duration, the Utah–Idaho League franchises were based exclusively in Idaho and Utah as the name indicates.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joe Devine (scout)</span>

Joseph Vincent Devine was a baseball scout for the Pittsburgh Pirates and New York Yankees, credited for signing Joe DiMaggio to the Yankees.

Joe Devine Airway Park was a minor league baseball stadium in the western United States, located in Boise, Idaho. Opened 84 years ago in 1939, the ballpark was the home of Boise's teams in the Class C Pioneer League, which briefly moved to Class A in 1963, the final year of the Braves and the ballpark.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gail Miller (businesswoman)</span> American businesswoman and wealthiest individual in Utah

Karen Gail Miller (née Saxton, born on October 14, 1943, is an American businesswoman. Following the death of her husband Larry H. Miller, she assumed the role of chairwoman for the Larry H. Miller Group of Companies, which is now known as the Larry H. Miller Company. With a net worth of $4 billion, she is the wealthiest individual in Utah. From 2009 until the sale of the team in 2020, she maintained a majority interest in the Utah Jazz, a National Basketball Association franchise located in Salt Lake City, Utah. As of 2023, she continues to retain a minority stake in the team and its associated businesses.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Benson, Lee (July 21, 1993). "Stadium's new name complete's Salt Lake's demolition of Derks". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). p. D1.
  2. 1 2 Goates, Les (May 23, 1947). "Bees pry lid off SL season". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). p. 1.
  3. Johnston, Jerry (April 21, 1993). "Park history included more than baseball". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). p. 1.
  4. Evensen, Jay (April 15, 1992). "Committee favors going with new stadium to replace Derks". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). p. D1.
  5. Goates, Les (September 25, 1946). "Derks Field Loss A Threat To Pro Ball". Deseret News. p. 3. Retrieved July 9, 2023 via Newspapers.com.
  6. "Baseball park burns in Salt Lake City". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. September 25, 1946. p. 8.
  7. Mulliner, H.L. (September 27, 1946). "How Salt Lake got Derks Field". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). p. 17.
  8. "S.L. man admits setting Derks fire". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). September 30, 1946. p. 1.
  9. Florez, John (April 12, 2014). "Derks – a 'Field of Dreams'". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). Retrieved March 29, 2017.
  10. Chipman, Dee (April 28, 1958). "Welcome Bees". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). p. C1.
  11. Salt Lake Tribune Negative Collection, Utah Department of Heritage and Arts, J. Willard Marriott Digital Library

40°44′28″N111°53′35″W / 40.741°N 111.893°W / 40.741; -111.893