Ladies' Day, also referred to as Ladies' Night if held during night games, was a baseball promotional event in Major League Baseball aimed at women baseball fans from early to mid 20th century. It was a common fixture at baseball stadiums until the rise of the Women's Liberation Movement in the 1970s, after which it was eventually discontinued as it was seen as being discriminatory to men. [1]
Though Ladies' Day had existed in baseball since the 19th century, the idea was to create an environment in the stands free of unsavory characters and conduct and to make baseball a family-oriented event. The New York Gothams reportedly held the first Ladies' Day in 1883.
Ladies' Day was reintroduced in 1913 by Helene Hathaway Britton, the owner of the St. Louis Cardinals and the first woman to own a baseball team. [2] The Cardinals Ladies' Day promotion allowed women free entry to the park if accompanied by a man. [3]
The promotion gained popularity after World War I. [4] This was due, in part, to Charles Weeghman, owner of the Chicago Cubs. Weegham had used the promotion during his time with the short-lived Federal League as owner of the Chicago Whales and to promote the park which would eventually become known as Wrigley Field. [5]
Ladies Day promotions began to decline after the case of Abosh v. New York Yankees, Inc. in 1972, where the New York State Human Rights Appeal Board ruled that Ladies' Day was discriminatory "in a modern technological society where women and men are to be on equal footing as a matter of public policy." [6] [7]