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CREATING CALFEE

Creating Calfee A selection of stories from the bygone typewriters of The Southwest Times reveal the genesis of Calfee Park

Baseball Diamond at Athletic Park to Rival Those in Majors Pulaski Southwest Times: Thursday, June 20, 1935 Pulaski’s new baseball park and football field, now under construc tion at the foot of Draper Mountain, is to be constructed with ample space for all games. Mayor E.W. Calfee’s committee of Chief M.C. Pierce, Chris Barnes, Y.W. Ayres, E.H. Millirons, and Charles E. Dyer, Jr. visited the park site yesterday, and approved the following dimension specifications for the baseball field: from home plate to left field fence 340 feet, from home plate to centerfield wall 480 feet, and to right field fence 335 feet. Distance from the stands to home plate 25 feet. This arrangement will make the Pulaski park as large as some of the major league fields. Few batters in Southwest Virginia leagues hit over either left or right fences, and during Babe Ruth’s best days he never drove a ball near 480 feet. The grandstand, a sheltered structure, will run a distance of 88 feet parallel to the third base line, from home plate and third. Then, in the event of capacity crowds, temporary bleachers can be placed along the first base line and removed in the football season. Home plate will be located at the southwest corner of the field, the left field line pointing directly north, center field pointing northeast, and right pointing east. Grading and leveling work is progressing rapidly on the project that should give Pulaski the finest athletic field in Southwest Virginia. Un der the approved dimension plan the park will be laid out with direc tions of fields like those of major parks, the sun being in the eyes of the right fielder only, who will wear regulation baseball sunglasses. The park will also contain a regulation football field with plenty of space for end zones and to the stands which are to be erected along the 50 yard line on the west side. Temporary bleachers will be erect ed on the east side.

Vaughan Gives Park Drawing Pulaski Southwest Times: Friday, June 19, 1935

Architect’s drawing for the entrance to Pulaski’s new Draper moun tain athletic field, now under construction, was submitted to Mayor Ernest Calfee this week by J.L. Vaughan, of the Muire Monumental Works. The structure will be built of native stone, gathered out of the Drap er mountains by relief workers. Two entrance doors and two large windows will be built at the front. One window will be for the ticket office and the other for the concession room. Storage room for field equipment will also be arranged in the front structure. The Vaughan drawing has yet to be passed on by the town council. At a meeting of the heads of the baseball teams in Pulaski, held at the mayor’s office recently, it was decided that a series of games would be played between the Virginia Maid Knitters and a team picked from the other teams in the Tri-County league. The purpose of this series is to raise funds to build dressing rooms in the new park for the use of athletes. Lockers and showers are also planned and all equipment will be modern. Members of both teams are donating their services in the interest of the new ball park and it is hoped that the public will turn out in full to support this series. The games will not be loose as both teams wish to win and everyone may rest assured that the games will be close and hard fought, it was stated. It is planned to make this a series of three games to be played Tues day, Thursday, and Saturday afternoons. One of the days will be “gala” day when the merchants will be asked to close their doors during the time of play so that everyone will have the opportunity to be present. It is thought that the opening day would be the best day as interest is high and the contest promises to be hot. This is the Series Slated To Help Park Pulaski Southwest Times: Friday, September 6, 1935

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