The South End Grounds
- David Hegler
- Jun 27
- 6 min read

The Boston Braves went through many name changes in their early years. But whether they were called the Red Stockings, the Red Caps the Beaneaters, the Doves, the Rustlers or, simply, the Braves, what remained constant was their location on the corner of Columbus and Walpole. Even so, they went through three iterations of their ballpark there before deciding to move elsewhere. Although none of the South End Grounds lasted very long, the image of those iconic spires topped off with witches caps made it an instant classic in the long story of ballparks.
South End Grounds I

After the Cincinnati Red Stockings folded in 1871, a few members moved to Boston, lured in with promises of a fresh start by former Red Stockings players George and Harry Wright. The Boston Red Stockings built a small wooden ballpark along Columbus and Walpole Streets, on the South End of town, that could hold as many as 8,000 spectators. Stretching 450 feet in center field, the rest of the diamond was squished between left and right fields that only went as far as 255 feet, making the ballpark feel more like a bathtub than a diamond.
With the Providence and Boston Railroad's roundhouse just north of the ballpark, the railroad was just a bit too close to the South End Grounds as smoke and cinders were constantly raining down on the third-base side.
5,000 attendees packed the ballpark on Opening Day, April 6, 1871, with many sitting on the 12-foot high fence and standing on the nearby rooftops to watch Albert Goodwill Spalding and the Boston Red Stockings take on the local "picked nine". Boston steamrolled the ragtag group to the tune of 41-10.
It was a sign of things to come. Beginning in 1872, the Red Stockings won four straight National Association pennants. Incredibly, in 1875, Spalding won 54 and lost only five, further establishing himself as the game's preeminent player.
The spring and summer of 1876 was a trying time for the city of Boston. That year, the Red Stockings moved into the newly formed National League, but not every player would join them. Albert Spalding, second baseman Ross Barnes, utility player Cal McVey and catcher Deacon Jim White signed with the Chicago White Stockings. Newspapers all over town immediately branded the four players the "Four Seceders".
The Four Seceders and their new White Stockings brethren visited Boston on May 30 of that same year. A crowd of 10,000 - 12,000 flocked South Side Grounds was left aghast and despondent as the White Stockings won convincingly 5-1. So the largest crowd in baseball history did the only thing it could do, it tore down the outfield fence. Boston was left even more bitter when Chicago won the pennant that same year.
Beginning in 1877, Boston's National Association team dominated the competition, winning eight pennants while sporting one of the best lineups in the game that included Arthur H. Soden, James B. Billings and William H. Conant. With the trifecta commonly known as the Triumvirs in the lineup, Boston's baseball team went through name changes almost as quickly as it won championships. In 1976, they changed their name from Red Stockings to Red Caps and after a four year title drought, changed their name again to the Beaneaters in 1883.
But whatever name they went by hardly mattered at all as the team continued to win in South End Grounds, which, by 1887 included a new grandstand. The new addition to the ballpark as well as the lavish contracts bestowed upon the players were ironic because team owner Arthur H. Soden was such a cheapskate in everything else relating to the club.
The players often had to go into the stands to retrieve balls from excitable spectators eager for a cheap souvenir and the press box was even removed to make room for more paying customers. Even the player's wives had to pay to enter South Side Grounds to watch their beloveds play. Later, Soden once admitted to manager Fred Tenney "We don't care where you finish as long as you don't lose money with the team". Remarkably, even with this creed circling his mind, Soden's ballclub still managed to win often.
One of the most awe-inspired sights at South End Grounds was Sullivan's Tower. Owner Michael Sullivan lived behind right field and saw an opportunity to make a profit off of his exclusive piece of real estate. Over the years, he built a wooden tower in lockstep with Boston's ever-heightened fence, constantly making sure that his structure was just tall enough so that patrons could catch a game from his property. At its peak, Sullivan's Tower was more than double the height of its surrounding neighbors.
By 1887, it had become apparent that South End Grounds was past its prime. After the final out, it was demolished a a new South End Grounds was erected just in time for the new season to begin.
South End Grounds II

The new South End Grounds cost a whopping $253,000 to build by noted Philadelphia architect John Jerome Deery, but it was worth every penny. What made this two-tiered grandstand so unique was the four towers on either end which were topped off with "witches caps", resembling a medieval castle. The Boston Herald described the 2,800 capacity grandstand as "a grand stand unequaled for beauty and convenience in the country.".
Along what the magnificent grandstand and just beyond the restaurants that sat at the foot of the towers were bleachers that could sit 2,000 along right and left fields. Most impressively were the restrooms. In an era where women's restrooms were few and far between in many of the nation's finest ballparks, South End Grounds provided completely modern bathrooms for both genders.
But despite the allure of the seemingly grandiose, the new South End Grounds was not very comfortable as its sight lines were shockingly poor. The record 15,000 fans's necks must have felt extra stiff as the Beaneaters lost to Philadelphia 4-1 on Opening Day, May 25, 1888. Although Boston's new ballpark was not the most comfortable and they ultimately finished fourth in the National Association, they still drew over 300,000 for the year.
However, that season's attendance was just a mirage. After the gleam of the unique towers wore off and fans began to realize how poorly the ballpark was constructed, they stayed away from the action in droves. South End Grounds II bottomed out in 1890 when it drew just 146, 421 while the Beaneaters went on to beat the Cleveland Spiders for that era's version of the World Series.
In the middle of a game on May 15, 1894 between Boston and Baltimore, the wooden ballpark caught fire and quickly burned throughout the city. In a flash, 12-acres were torched and more than 1,900 were rendered homeless, including the Boston Beaneaters.
South End Grounds III

As the Beaneaters finished the 1894 season at Congress Street Grounds, their front office was a succumbing to the realization that their beloved ballpark was horribly underinsured. While damages were in excess of $75,000, South Side Park was only insured for $45,000. The only bright side for their coffers was the fact that Sullivan's Tower was now a pile of ash, meaning that paying customers would have to go through the as-of-yet-to-be-built ballpark's turnstiles, rather than spending 15 cents atop their neighbor's wooden tower.
Amazingly, the third and final version of South End Grounds was finished in just two months, with the Beaneaters beating New York in front of 5,206 to open their new home. Due to their insurance snafu, South End Grounds III was scaled back, with the grandstand being just a single level as the twin spires resembling Churchill Downs shot towards the sky at each end. Despite the decreased capacity (5,000), the new ballpark was more comfortable with better sight lines for viewing.
After the Beaneaters were sold to George and John Povey, the brothers made their best efforts to improve the ballpark, adding a new scoreboard in 1907 and new outfield bleachers in 1908 to raise capacity to 11,000.
Montgomery Ward bought the club in 1911 and promptly removed the left field bleachers while adding another section to the grandstand and rotating the diamond towards right field.
The Blackstone Cigar factory was built around then and loomed over South End Grounds in its final days. By the mid-1910's, plans were in place to replace the all-wooden ballpark with a concrete structure. However, those plans fell through and new plans were established to build a ballpark elsewhere. The now-named Braves final game at South End Grounds was a forgettable 0-0 tie with Cincinnati on August 11, 1914.
At the time, the Braves had fought back from a 33-43 start and had gone 18-3 over their past 21 games. As they won the World Series at Fenway Park, the finishing touches were put on their new ballpark just a mile west of Fenway: Braves Field. South End Grounds was demolished soon after the end of the season and the site is now a parking lot for Northeastern University on the corner of Columbus Avenue and St. Cyprians Place (replacing Walpole Street).
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