Duffy Fairgrounds

Last updated • 1 min readFrom Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia

Alex T. Duffy Fairgrounds
Duffy Fairgrounds
Duffy Fairgrounds.jpg
Duffy Fairgrounds
Former namesWatertown Fairgrounds (Until 1978) [1]
Address970 Coffeen Street
Watertown, New York
United States
Coordinates 43°59′07″N75°55′40″W / 43.985353012178074°N 75.92772068813214°W / 43.985353012178074; -75.92772068813214
TypeFairgrounds
Capacity 5,000 (1948); 4,500 (1951); 3,500 (1995)
Field size325-402-325
Acreage 67 acres
Current use Baseball
Fairgrounds
Construction
Opened1851
Renovated1936
Rebuilt1948
Project managerAlex T. Duffy
Tenants
Watertown Athletics (1946-1951)
Watertown Pirates (1983-1988)
Watertown Indians (1989-1998)
Watertown Rapids (2017-present)
Website
www.jeffcofair.org

The Alex T. Duffy Fairgrounds [2] is a multi-purpose facility in Watertown, New York, spanning 67 acres. The stadium capacity is 3,500. [3] It contains the longest-running fair in the United States, The Jefferson County Fair, [4] [5] and was named after Alex T. Duffy.

Contents

Events

Baseball

A baseball park on the grounds serves as home to the Watertown Rapids of the Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League. The ballpark has a capacity of 2,500 people and opened in 1936. It served as minor league baseball home to the 1936 Watertown Grays of the Class C level Canadian-American League and Watertown Athletics of the Class C level Border League from 1946 to 1951. [6] [7] From 1983 until 1998 it was the home of the Watertown Pirates and Watertown Indians of the Class A level New York–Penn League. [8] In 1999, the New York Penn-League franchise moved to Staten Island and became the Staten Island Yankees through 2019. [9]

Football

The Watertown Red & Black play their home games at the fairgrounds. The stadium's namesake, Alex Duffy, was a longtime member of the Red & Black during its prime days as a professional team.

Ice hockey

The Watertown Municipal Arena is located on the fairgrounds. Since 2012, the arena has been used for a minor professional hockey team now called the Watertown Wolves of the Federal Prospects Hockey League. It was originally called the 1000 Islands Privateers when it moved from Alexandria Bay to Watertown, and it took the 2015–16 season off for arena renovations.

Other events

As its name implies, the area is home to the Jefferson County Fair in late July of each year. Built in the late 1800s, it originally included a horse racing track where the grandstands now sits. [10]

From 1951 until 1974 it was home to the Watertown Speedway. [11]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New York–Penn League</span> American sports league in minor league baseball

The New York–Penn League (NYPL) was a Minor League Baseball league that operated in the northeastern United States from 1939 to 2020. Classified as a Class A Short Season league, its season started in June, after major-league teams signed their amateur draft picks to professional contracts, and ended in early September.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Quad Cities River Bandits</span> American Minor League baseball team

The Quad Cities River Bandits are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Kansas City Royals. Their home games are played at Modern Woodmen Park in Davenport, Iowa, one of the Quad Cities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tri-City ValleyCats</span> Professional minor league baseball team in Troy, New York

The Tri-City ValleyCats are a professional baseball team based in Troy, New York. The ValleyCats compete in the Frontier League (FL) as a member of the East Division, and play their home games at Joseph L. Bruno Stadium.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Skylands Stadium</span> Baseball park in Augusta, New Jersey, US

Skylands Stadium is a professional minor-league baseball stadium located in the Augusta section of Frankford Township in Sussex County, New Jersey. It is located off of US 206, near its intersection with Route 15, on a plot of land adjacent to the Sussex County Fairgrounds where the Sussex County Farm and Horse Show and the New Jersey State Fair are held concurrently every August, and is home to the Sussex County Miners of the independent Frontier League.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Williamsport Crosscutters</span> Minor league baseball team

The Williamsport Crosscutters are a collegiate summer baseball team of the MLB Draft League. They are located in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, and play their home games at Journey Bank Ballpark at Historic Bowman Field. From 1994 to 2020, they were a Minor League Baseball team of the Class A Short Season New York–Penn League until MLB's reorganization of the minors after the 2020 season. Prior to this, they were affiliates of the Chicago Cubs (1994–1998), Pittsburgh Pirates (1999–2006), and Philadelphia Phillies (2007–2020).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Journey Bank Ballpark at Historic Bowman Field</span> Baseball park in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, USA, home to the Williamsport Crosscutters

Journey Bank Ballpark at Historic Bowman Field is a minor league baseball stadium in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is home to the Williamsport Crosscutters, a collegiate summer baseball team of the MLB Draft League. The official seating capacity is 2,366. Opened in 1926, Bowman Field is the second-oldest ballpark in minor league baseball. Bowman Field is also the home field for the Wildcats of the Pennsylvania College of Technology for more than a decade. A new field project for the Penn College Wildcats was planned to be completed by 2022, but has since been delayed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trenton Thunder Ballpark</span> Baseball stadium in Trenton, New Jersey

Trenton Thunder Ballpark, formerly known as Mercer County Waterfront Park and Arm & Hammer Park, is a ballpark in Trenton, New Jersey. It is the home park for the Trenton Thunder, a collegiate summer baseball team of the MLB Draft League. They were previously a Double-A level Minor League Baseball team of the Eastern League (1994–2020). For 2021, it served as temporary home of Triple-A East's Buffalo Bisons, as their regular stadium, Sahlen Field, was being used by the Toronto Blue Jays due to travel restrictions brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. The official seating capacity is 6,440.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Staten Island Yankees</span> Minor league baseball team

The Staten Island Yankees were a minor league baseball team located in the New York City borough of Staten Island from 1999 to 2020. Nicknamed the "Baby Bombers", the Yankees were the Class A Short Season affiliate of the New York Yankees and played in the New York–Penn League at Richmond County Bank Ballpark along the waterfront in St. George. The Yankees won six New York–Penn League championships.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jamestown Jammers</span> Minor league baseball team

The Jamestown Jammers were a minor league baseball team based in Jamestown, New York from 1994 until 2014. The team was the Short-Season A classification affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates and played in the New York–Penn League. The team played all of their home games at Russell Diethrick Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Auburn Doubledays</span> Collegiate minor league baseball team in Auburn, New York

The Auburn Doubledays are a collegiate summer baseball team of the Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League (PGCBL) that is located in Auburn, New York. From 1958 to 2020, they were members of Minor League Baseball's New York–Penn League (NYPL). They have played their home games at Leo Pinckney Field at Falcon Park since 1995. They previously played at the original Falcon Park, which was built in 1927 on the same site. The team is owned and operated by Auburn Community Baseball.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SIUH Community Park</span> Baseball stadium in Staten Island, New York

The Staten Island University Hospital Community Park is a baseball stadium located on the northeastern tip of Staten Island in New York City. The ballpark is the home of the Staten Island FerryHawks, a member of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, and is the largest stadium in the league by capacity, at 7,171. Since 2022, it has also been the home of the Wagner College Seahawks baseball team. In addition, local high schools have the chance to play at least one game a season at the park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">State College Spikes</span> Minor league baseball team

The State College Spikes are a collegiate summer baseball team of the MLB Draft League. They are located in State College, Pennsylvania, and play their home games at Medlar Field on the campus of Pennsylvania State University.

The Hickory Rebels were a Class D minor league baseball team based in Hickory, North Carolina, that played from 1939–1940, 1940, 1945–1954, 1960. The Rebels were the predecessor of the current Hickory Crawdads in the South Atlantic League.

The Watertown Pirates were a Short-Season Class-A minor league baseball team located in Watertown, New York. The team played in the New York–Penn League from 1983 to 1998. They played their home games at the Duffy Fairgrounds Ball Park.

The Wagner Seahawks baseball team is a varsity intercollegiate athletic team of Wagner College in Staten Island, New York, United States. The team has been a member of the Northeast Conference, which is part of the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division I, since 1987. Wagner College's first baseball team was first fielded in 1945. The Seahawks are coached by Craig Noto. The Seahawks have won one Northeast Conference baseball tournament and one Northeast Conference regular season championship, in 2000 and 2009 respectively. Wagner has appeared in the NCAA Division I Baseball Championship once, in 2000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Virginia Black Bears</span> Minor league baseball team

The West Virginia Black Bears are a collegiate summer baseball team of the MLB Draft League. They are located in Granville, West Virginia, and play their home games at Monongalia County Ballpark, which is across the Monongahela River from Morgantown and West Virginia University. From 2015 to 2020, they were a Minor League Baseball team of the New York–Penn League. They were the Class A Short Season affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates from their inception until MLB's reorganization of the minors after the 2020 season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Monongalia County Ballpark</span> Baseball park in Granville, West Virginia

Wagener Field at Monongalia County Ballpark is a baseball stadium in Granville, West Virginia. The stadium, opened April 10, 2015, is the home of the baseball team of West Virginia University (WVU), a member of the Big 12 Conference, and the West Virginia Black Bears, a collegiate summer baseball team of the MLB Draft League.

The Watertown Athletics were a minor league baseball team based in Watertown, New York.. The Athletics played from 1946 to 1951 and were preceded by the 1936 Watertown Greys and an 1888 Watertown team. Watertown teams played as members of the 1888 Eastern International League, 1936 Canadian–American League and Border League from 1946 to 1951. The Watertown Grays and Athletics hosted home games at Duffy Fairgrounds. Watertown was a minor league affiliate of the Boston Bees in 1936.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Staten Island FerryHawks</span> American professional baseball team

The Staten Island FerryHawks are an American minor-league professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Staten Island. They are a member of the North Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, a "partner league" of Major League Baseball They play their home games at SIUH Community Park, the former home of the Staten Island Yankees, which is in the St. George neighborhood and overlooks the Manhattan skyline across New York Harbor.

The South Boston Wrappers were a minor league baseball team based in South Boston, Virginia. South Boston based teams played as members of the Class D level Bi-State League from 1937 to 1940, hosting home games at Fairgrounds Park. After playing as the "Twins" in their first season, they adopted the "Wrappers" nickname in 1938, while playing in partnership with Halifax, Virginia for that season. South Boston hosted minor league home games at Fairgrounds Park in South Boston,

References

  1. "Your Hometown: The Alex Duffy Fairgrounds". spectrumlocalnews.com. Retrieved December 2, 2021.
  2. Smith, Stephen (October 2, 2021). "Pulling for United Way at the Alex T. Duffy Fairgrounds | Newzjunky" . Retrieved December 2, 2021.
  3. "Duffy Fairgrounds - Watertown, New York". www.ballparkreviews.com.
  4. WPBS-TV (September 22, 2017), Discovering Watertown , retrieved February 23, 2022
  5. Lynn, Naomi (February 14, 2017). "The Longest Running Fair in the US Can Be Found in New York". Lite 98.7. Retrieved February 23, 2022.
  6. "Alex Duffy Stadium in Watertown, NY minor league baseball history and teams on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com.
  7. "In The Ballparks - Duffy Fairgrounds". www.intheballparks.com.
  8. "1983–1988 Watertown Pirates". www.funwhileitlasted.net. Retrieved July 14, 2014.
  9. "Staten Island move in 1999". www.frontiernet.net. Archived from the original on December 5, 2021. Retrieved June 10, 2008.
  10. "Your Hometown: The Alex Duffy Fairgrounds". spectrumlocalnews.com. Retrieved December 22, 2022.
  11. "The Legends of Watertown Speedway". Speedway Press. Retrieved December 26, 2022.