Wrigley Field /ˈrɪɡli/ is a baseball venue located in Chicago, Illinois, United States that has served as the home ballpark of the Chicago Cubs since 1916. It was built in 1914 as Weeghman Park for the Chicago Federal League baseball team, the Chicago Whales. It was called Cubs Park between 1920 and 1926 before being renamed for then Cubs team owner and chewing gum magnate, William Wrigley, Jr.. Between 1921 and 1970, it was also the home of the Chicago Bears of the National Football League. Most recently it hosted the second annual National Hockey League Winter Classic on January 1, 2009.
Located in the community area of Lakeview, Wrigley Field sits on an irregular block bounded by Clark (west) and Addison (south) Streets and Waveland (north) and Sheffield (east) Avenues. The area surrounding the ballpark contains residential streets, in addition to bars, restaurants and other establishments and is called Wrigleyville. The ballpark's mailing address is 1060 W. Addison Street.
Wrigley Field is nicknamed The Friendly Confines, a phrase popularized by "Mr. Cub", Hall of Famer Ernie Banks. The current capacity is 41,009, making Wrigley Field the 10th-smallest actively used ballpark. It is the oldest National League ballpark and the second oldest active major league ballpark (after Fenway Park on April 20, 1912), and the only remaining Federal League park. Wrigley is known for its ivy covered brick outfield wall, the unusual wind patterns off Lake Michigan, the iconic red marquee over the main entrance, the hand turned scoreboard, and for being the last major league park to have lights installed for play after dark, with lighting installed in 1988.
Read more about Wrigley Field: History, Features, Popular Culture, Accessibility and Transportation, Commemorative Stamps, Sources
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