The third one in a series on Philadelphia's historic ballparks! But wait, this is clearly New Jersey? I assure you, this is a Philly ballpark.
The Gloucester Point Grounds was located behind Thompson’s Hotel and was bordered by 5th, Jersey Ave, 7th, Charles, and Pine Streets in Gloucester City, NJ, just a quick ferry trip across the river from Philadelphia.
The third iteration of Philadelphia Athletics, this one of the American Association, played their games at the Jefferson Street Fields in North Philly for almost all of the 8 years that they existed from 1882 to 1890.
The team wasn’t doing that well financially and hit on a good way to make money… play baseball on Sunday when workers were off! The five day work week wouldn’t come to the USA until 1908 and wouldn’t be the law until 1940, so many workers only had Sundays off. But in Philadelphia (and much of the rest of the East), blue laws prevented baseball games or any sports from being played on Sundays.
Blue laws banned “any worldly employment or business whatsoever on the Lord's day, commonly called Sunday, works of necessity and charity only excepted.” That included “any unlawful game, hunting, shooting, sport or diversion whatsoever.” ~ Pennsylvania Blue Law
So the day many workers had free to go to a game… there weren’t any games allowed. Most baseball leagues backed this up, as it wasn’t seen as respectable to play on Sunday.
But on May 19, 1888, the Gloucester City Council of Gloucester City, NJ voted to allow Sunday baseball. The Athletics decided, why not play Sunday home games in New Jersey?
So the As played their first Sunday home game here on Sunday, June 10, 1888. Kind of. The secretary of the league ruled that the game was illegally rescheduled and throw it out. Still, they persisted, because they liked money, and the league relented. The Philadelphia Athletics would call New Jersey home, at least on Sundays, during the 1888 season.
Not everyone was happy about this.
“Sunday baseball and Sunday beer go hand in hand, the one being necessary to invigorate the other and both being of the character of a defilement of a day which all laws, divine and human, demand shall be kept holy.” ~ Harrisburg Independent, June 27, 1888.
“Every Sunday evening, the ferry boats landing at Christian and South streets emit hundreds of drunken quarrelling, swearing discordant men and women, who create disturbances and street fights and generally wind up by obtaining a rest in the station house cells.” ~ Philadelphia Inquirer,
There was even a move to impeach the Mayor of Gloucester City.
But plenty of folks must have been plenty happy with the games, because the Philadelphia Athletics kept them going through 1889 and 1890, right up to the time the club folded that year.
The fight between baseball and blue laws would continue in Philadelphia until Connie Mack, owner/manager of the final version of the Philadelphia Athletics, finally got them overturned-ish in 1933, when the law was changed to allow municipalities to vote to allow games to be played between 2 PM and 6 PM on Sundays. Philadelphia voted to allow games, and the Sunday baseball in Philadelphia has been a thing ever since.
Cache in a magnetic nano in an obvious spot, tweezers may be helpful. No parking this side of the street for a few hours a week on Fridays, but should be good otherwise.
Check out our others in the series (each of them actuall in Philadelphia):
Philly Ballparks #1 - 44th and Parkside Park & the Philadelphia Stars
Philly Ballparks #2 - Jefferson Street Fields