When Wrigley Field Was Weeghman Park

A series of posts dedicated to learning more about our favorite ballpark, Wrigley Field.

“The real Cubs fans are on the West Side. Moving the team’s base to the North Side is a bad idea.” -Charles Murphy, former Cubs president, criticizing the 1916 move to Clark & Addison from the West Side Grounds.

Cubs owner, Charles Weeghman, had the idea to build a ballpark at Clark, Addison, Waveland & Sheffield in 1914.
The park was built quickly–in seven weeks!
It took 490 workers and four acres of bluegrass.
The cost? $250,000.
Seating capacity – 14,000.
The field was deemed ready for baseball just four days before Opening Day.
At the time, the Cubs were in the Federal League, and known as the Chi-Feds.
After nine home runs were hit in the opening three-games series, the outfield wall was moved back 25 feet in left and nearly 50 feet in left center.
The park was originally called Weeghman Park.