Candlestick Park: Difference between revisions

{{short description|Former stadium in San Francisco, California}}

{{Infobox venue

| stadium_name = Candlestick Park

| nickname = ''"The Stick"''

| address = 602 Jamestown Avenue

| location = [[San Francisco, California]]

| closed = August 14, 2014

| demolished = February 4 – September 24, 2015

| operator = [[San Francisco Recreation & Parks Department]]

| surface = [[Poa|Bluegrass]] (1960–1969, 1979–2013)<br />[[AstroTurf]] (1970–1978)

| general_contractor = Charles Harney Co.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://football.ballparks.com/NFL/SanFrancisco49ers/index.htm |title=Candlestick Park |first1=Paul |last1=Munsey |first2=Cory |last2=Suppes |work=Ballparks.com |access-date=September 9, 2016}}</ref>

| former_names = Harney Stadium (1956–1959)<br />Candlestick Park (1960–1995, 2008–2013)<br />[[3Com]] Park at Candlestick Point (1995–2002)<br />San Francisco Stadium at Candlestick Point (2002–2004)<br />[[Monster Cable Products|Monster]] Park (2004–2008)

|publictransit={{rint|sanfrancisco|metro}} [[Gilman/Paul station|Gilman/Paul]] {{rint|sanfrancisco|T}}| seating_capacity = 43,765 (1960)<br />63,000 ([[Baseball]])<br />69,732<ref>{{cite web|url=http://prod.static.49ers.clubs.nfl.com/assets/docs/media-guide/2009/red-zone.pdf|title=2009 San Francisco 49ers Media Guide|access-date=July 24, 2010|archive-date=March 4, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304084645/http://prod.static.49ers.clubs.nfl.com/assets/docs/media-guide/2009/red-zone.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> ([[American Football|Football]])

| dimensions = '''Left field'''<br />330 ft (1960), 335 ft<br />'''Left-center field &<br />Right-center field'''<br />397 ft (1960), 365 ft<ref name=cpdimcut>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=zQJYAAAAIBAJ&pg=4146%2C3846369 |work=Spokane Daily Chronicle |location=Washington|agency=Associated Press |title=Candlestick Park dimensions cut |date=December 15, 1960 |page=45}}</ref><br />'''Center field'''<br />420 ft (1960), 400 ft<br />'''Right field'''<br />330 ft (1960), 328 ft<br />'''Backstop'''<br />73 ft (1960), 66 ft [[File:CandlestickParkDimensions.svg|200px]]

}}

 

 

The surface of the field for most of its existence was natural [[poa|bluegrass]], but for nine seasons, from 1970 to 1978, the stadium had [[artificial turf]]. A "sliding pit" configuration, with dirt cut-outs only around the bases, was installed in 1971, primarily to keep the dust down in the breezy conditions. Following the 1978 football season, the playing surface was restored to natural grass.

When the [[History of the New York Giants (NL)|New York Giants]] arrived in San Francisco in 1958, they played their home games at the old [[Seals Stadium]] at 16th and Bryant Streets. As part of the agreement regarding the Giants' relocation to the West Coast, the city of San Francisco promised to build a new stadium for the team. Most of the land at Candlestick Point was purchased from Charles Harney, a local contractor. Harney purchased the land in 1952 for a quarry and industrial development. He made a profit of over $2 million when he sold the land for the stadium. Harney received a no-bid contract to build the stadium. The entire deal was the subject of a grand jury investigation in 1958.

 

 

 

[[File:Candlestick Postcard - 01.JPG|thumb|left|250px|Candlestick as seen shortly after it was built in its original open grandstand configuration before being enclosed]]

 

 

 

 

 

The NFL awarded [[Super Bowl XXXIII]] to Candlestick Park on November 2, 1994.<ref>https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=OowyAAAAIBAJ&sjid=B-cFAAAAIBAJ&pg=2467,966185&dq=super-bowl+site&hl=en Lawrence Journal-World - Google News Archive Search</ref> After planned renovations in preparation for the game were not made, the NFL owners instead awarded Super Bowl XXXIII to the Miami area during their meeting on October 31, 1996. The league promised to award [[Super Bowl XXXVII]] following construction of a new football stadium, which was approved by voters in 1997, but the forced sale of the team by owner [[Eddie DeBartolo Jr.]] caused plans to fall through.<ref>{{cite news |last=Stimson |first=Alex |date=May 23, 2023 |title=San Francisco was twice set to host the Super Bowl. Here's why it never happened. |url=https://www.mercurynews.com/2023/05/23/looking-back-at-super-bowls-lost-by-san-francisco-as-nfl-return-to-bay-area/ |work=The Mercury News |url-access=limited |accessdate=June 2, 2023}}</ref>

 

 

 

For its last several years as home to just the 49ers, Candlestick Park was the only remaining NFL stadium to have begun as a baseball-only facility which later underwent an extensive redesign to accommodate football. That was evidenced by the stadium's curiously oblong and irregular shape, whereby views from a sizable section of lower-deck seating in the baseball configuration's right-field corner were so badly obstructed by the eastern grandstand of the football seating configuration that they were unusable for football games and would consequently sit empty. Since a football gridiron, including its end zones and benches along the sidelines, is much smaller than a baseball playing field and foul territory, this large grandstand, which provided thousands of prime seats along one whole sideline of the football field, was designed to be retractable. It would slide backwards for baseball games, under the upper deck, and provide a smaller section of baseball seating beyond the outfield wall in right. After the Giants played their 1999 season and moved away from Candlestick, this grandstand was left permanently in its football position, and the unusable seats were eventually removed.

 

 

 

The 49ers played their final game at Candlestick Park on Monday, December 23, 2013, against the [[2013 Atlanta Falcons season|Atlanta Falcons]], winning 34–24 after a [[NaVorro Bowman]] interception that would be called '''The Pick at the Stick''' by some sports columnists.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.csnbayarea.com/49ers/instant-replay-49ers-survive-punch-playoff-ticket-stick-finale |title=Instant Replay: 49ers survive, punch playoff ticket in 'Stick finale |first=Matt |last=Maiocco |website=CSN Bay Area |date=December 23, 2013 |access-date=September 9, 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923212400/http://www.csnbayarea.com/49ers/instant-replay-49ers-survive-punch-playoff-ticket-stick-finale |archive-date=September 23, 2015 }}</ref> This game was the facility's 36th and final game on ''Monday Night Football'',<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/201312230sfo.htm |title=Atlanta Falcons at San Francisco 49ers - December 23rd, 2013 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |access-date=September 9, 2016}}</ref> the most at any stadium used by the NFL.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.sbnation.com/nfl/2013/12/24/5240834/niners-vs-falcons-candlestick-park-mnf-history |title=49ers vs. Falcons provides final classic Monday Night Football moment at Candlestick Park |first=Matthew |last=Fairburn |website=SBNation.com |date=December 24, 2013 |access-date=September 9, 2016}}</ref>

As a [[baseball park|baseball field]], the stadium was infamous for the windy conditions, damp air and dew from fog, and chilly temperatures. The wind often made it difficult for outfielders trying to catch fly balls, as well as for fans, while the damp grass further complicated play for outfielders who had to play in cold, wet shoes. Architect John Bolles designed the park with a boomerang-shaped concrete baffle in the upper tier in order to protect the park from wind. Unfortunately, it never worked properly. For Candlestick's first 10 seasons, the wind blew in from left-center and out toward right-center. When the park was expanded to accommodate the 49ers in 1971, it was thought that fully enclosing the park would cut down on the wind significantly. Instead, the wind swirled from all directions, and was as strong and cold as before. Giants [[National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum|Hall of Fame]] [[center fielder]] [[Willie Mays]] claimed the wind cost him over 100 home runs. (It may be noted that in the 12 years he played at Candlestick Park, from 1960 through 1971, Mays hit 396 home runs, 203 at Candlestick and 193 on the road.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/split.fcgi?id=mayswi01&year=Career&t=b |title=Willie Mays |author=Baseball Reference}}</ref>) Nonetheless, he had less difficulty fielding balls in the windy conditions. Mays was used to playing in difficult and absurdly sized field conditions, beginning his career at the [[Polo Grounds]] in New York, which featured an enormous outfield where he made a famous World Series-saving [[The Catch (baseball)|catch]].

 

 

[[File:Candlestick Park 1965.jpg|thumb|250px|A Giants game at Candlestick in 1965]]

The Giants eventually played on the reputation to bolster fan support with humorous promotions such as awarding the 'Croix de Candlestick' pin to fans who stayed for the duration of extra-inning night games. The pins featured the Giants' "SF" monogram capped with snow, along with the [[Latin]] slogan "''Veni, vidi, vixi''" ("I came, I saw, I survived"). Among many less-than-flattering fan nicknames for the park were "North Pole", "Cave of the Winds", "Windlestick", "The Quagmire", and "The Ashtray By The Bay". Older fans called it "The Dump" in honor of the former use of the land. Ironically, the Giants played their last night game at Candlestick (against the [[Los Angeles Dodgers]]) on September 29, 1999, under clear skies and a game time temperature of 74°<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/SFN/SFN199909290.shtml|title=Los Angeles Dodgers at San Francisco Giants Box Score, September 29, 1999}}</ref> as well as their last day game at Candlestick on September 30, 1999, under blue skies with no fog and a game time temperature of 82°, all of which was common for September games.

 

 

The winds were intense in the immediate area of the park. Studies showed they were no more frequent than other parts of San Francisco but are subject to higher gusts. This is because of a hill immediately adjacent to the park. This hill, in turn, is the first topographical obstacle met by the prevailing winds arriving from the Pacific Ocean {{convert|7|mi|km}} to the west. Arriving at Candlestick from the Pacific, these winds travel through what is known as the Alemany Gap before reaching the hill. The combination of ocean winds free-flowing to Candlestick, then swirling over the adjacent hill, created the cold and windy conditions that were the bane of the Giants' 40-year stay on Candlestick Point. It was indeed the wind and not the ambient air temperature that provided Candlestick's famed chill. The Giants' subsequent home, [[Oracle Park]], is just one degree warmer, but is far less windy, creating a "warmer" (relatively speaking) effect. While the wind is a summer condition (hot inland, cool oceanside), winter weather is right in line with the rest of sea level Northern California (mild with occasional rain).

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| August 29, 1966 || [[The Beatles]] || style="font-size:90%;" | {{hlist|[[The Remains (band)|The Remains]]|[[Bobby Hebb]]|[[The Cyrkle]]|[[The Ronettes]]}}

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| rowspan=2|[[The Rolling Stones American Tour 1981|American Tour 1981]] || rowspan=2|135,000 / 135,000 || rowspan=2|$2,092,500 || rowspan=2 style="font-size:90%;text-align:left;"|

|-

 

===Papal Mass===

 

===In popular culture===

 

==Seating capacity==

The City and County of San Francisco had trouble finding a new naming sponsor due in part to the downturn in the economy, but also because the stadium's tenure as 3Com Park was tenuous at best. Many local fans were annoyed with the change and continued referring to the park by its original name, regardless of the official name. The Giants reportedly continued to call the stadium "Candlestick Park" in media guides, because the naming rights were initiated by the 49ers. Some even mocked the 3Com sponsorship. [[Chris Berman]], for instance, usually called it "Commercial-Stick Park". Local fans sometimes called it "Dot-com Park" (see [[Dot-com bubble]]). Freeway signs in the vicinity were changed to read "Monster Park" as part of an overall signage upgrade to national standards on California highways, but in 2008 those signs were changed back to "Candlestick Park".

 

 

 

On September 18, 2009, ''[[Sports Illustrated]]''{{'}}s [[Peter King (sportswriter)|Peter King]] used the mock-combination name "Candle3Monsterstick" in reference to the many name changes the stadium has gone through.<ref>{{cite news |date=September 18, 2009 |title=Fascinating matchup in San Diego, more to watch this weekend |work=SportsIllustrated |url=https://www.si.com/more-sports/2009/09/18/week2 |access-date=July 31, 2023}}</ref>

 

==Replacement and demolition==

 

A grassroots movement for the Giants to play another baseball game at Candlestick had existed since 2009. Many fans had hoped to see another game in 2010, the 50th anniversary of the Giants' first season at Candlestick Park, but the idea was dropped due to the cost. Although many fans wished for another Giants game at the ''Stick'', the Giants never returned to their former stadium for a final game.

With the departure of the 49ers, Candlestick Park was left without any permanent tenants. Demolition was expected to occur soon after the 49ers played their final game of the 2013 season, but over time the date of demolition was moved back to late 2014, with several special events planned for the intervening period.<ref>{{cite news|last=Shafer|first=Margie|date=December 18, 2013|title=Special Events Planned At Candlestick Park Before Demolition|url=http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2013/12/18/special-events-planned-at-candlestick-park-before-demolition/|website=San Francisco CBS local |access-date=January 5, 2014}}</ref> In April 2014, [[Paul McCartney]] announced that he would perform a concert as the last scheduled event in the 54-year-old stadium on August 14, 2014.<ref name = "Macca">{{cite news |url=http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Paul-McCartney-to-play-at-Candlestick-5426723.php |title=Paul McCartney to play Candlestick's final show |last1=Matier |first1=Phillip |last2=Ross |first2=Andrew |date=April 24, 2014 |newspaper=San Francisco Chronicle |access-date=April 28, 2014}}</ref> [[The Beatles]] had performed their last scheduled concert at Candlestick Park 48 years earlier.

 

Demolition began in November 2014 as workers tore out seats.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Candlestick-teardown-begins-seats-being-5899250.php |title=Candlestick teardown begins — seats being ripped out |last1=Matier |first1=Phillip |last2=Ross |first2=Andrew |date=November 18, 2014 |newspaper=San Francisco Chronicle |access-date=March 18, 2015}}</ref> In January 2015, the developer withdrew a request to implode the stadium, possibly to be broadcast as part of the Super Bowl halftime entertainment. Instead, mechanized structural demolition commenced, which was favored over implosion due to local dust pollution concerns.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/matier-ross/article/Candlestick-Park-will-go-out-with-a-wrecking-6019420.php |title=Candlestick Park will go out with a wrecking ball, not a bang |last1=Matier |first1=Phillip |last2=Ross |first2=Andrew |date=January 16, 2015 |newspaper=San Francisco Chronicle |access-date=March 18, 2015 }}</ref> Demolition was expected to be complete by March 2015,<ref>{{cite news |title=Demolition of Candlestick Park Underway; New Development to Replace Old Stadium |url=http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/Demolition-of-Candlestick-Park-Underway-New-Development-Replacing-Stadium-290783791.html |last=Fernandez |first=Lisa |date=February 4, 2015 |website=NBC Bay Area |access-date=March 18, 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Candlestick-Park-disappearing-piece-by-piece-6062980.php |title=Last team at Candlestick Park is bent on demolition |last=Rubenstein |first=Steve |date=February 5, 2015 |newspaper=San Francisco Chronicle |access-date=March 18, 2015 }}</ref> but was not completed until September 24, 2015.

 

 

 

In November 2014, [[Lennar]] and [[Macerich]] announced plans to build a dense "urban outlet" center incorporating retail and housing with underground parking on the Candlestick Park site. The proponents suggested that the new development would be completed in 2017.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Major-urban-outlet-retail-center-planned-for-5897403.php |title=Major 'urban outlet' retail center planned for Candlestick Point |last=Dineen |first=J. K. | work=[[San Francisco Chronicle]] |date=November 17, 2014}}</ref> The project has not proceeded, and the plan was suspended by its proponents in April 2018.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/news/2018/04/06/exclusive-fivepoint-suspends-work-on-635-000.html |title=Exclusive: FivePoint suspends work on 635,000-square-foot shopping mall at the former Candlestick Park |first1=Roland |last1=Li |first2=Katie |last2=Burke |work=[[American City Business Journals]] |date=April 6, 2018}}</ref>

 

==Croix de Candlestick==

 

The Croix de Candlestick is an [[award pin]] that was given out to [[baseball]] [[Fan (person)|fans]] as they exited Candlestick Park at the conclusion of a night game that went extra [[inning]]s.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://goingdowntown.mlblogs.com/tag/croix-de-candlestick/|title=Croix de Candlestick|website=Welcome to Third and King|date=May 9, 2008 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/experts/|title=Yahoo Sports MLB|website=sports.yahoo.com}}</ref> In reference to the ballpark's legendarily cold winds, the pin carried the motto, "[[Veni, vidi, vici|Veni, Vidi, Vixi]]" ("I came, I saw, I survived").<ref>[[Chris Ballard (journalist)|Chris Ballard]], [https://www.si.com/vault/2013/12/30/106414228/candlestick-19602013 "Candlestick Park, 1960−2013"], ''[[Sports Illustrated]]'', December 30, 2013.</ref>

 

 

==References==

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{{Succession box

| years = {{baseball year|1961}}<br />{{baseball year|1984}}

| before = [[Yankee Stadium (1923)|Yankee Stadium]]<br />[[Comiskey Park]]

}}

{{Succession box

| title = Host of [[NFC Championship Game]]

| years = 1982<br />1985<br />1990–1991<br />1993<br />1995<br />1998<br />2012

}}

{{s-end}}