Urbanna in Middlesex County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)
Urbanna Baseball
Urbanna, Virginia
— The Museum in the Streets® —
Photographed By Devry Becker Jones (CC0), November 25, 2021
1. Urbanna Baseball Marker
Inscription.
Urbanna Baseball. Urbanna, Virginia. Before being developed, this area in town was home field to the Urbanna semi-pro baseball team. Alvin G. Loving purchased the land in the 1930s and built a baseball field complete with stands and removable canvases for outfield walls. Urbanna played teams such as Norfolk, Newport News, West Point, Gloucester, Mathews, Cobbs Creek, Warsaw and Deltaville. Barnstorming major league players came to town to play. Bud Metheny of the New York Yankees who played in two World Series once played on the town field. Urbanna's baseball team had loyal and dedicated fans. A Tangier Island man, Sol Shores, ran fishing parties on Saturdays but, when the Urbanna team played he advertised to his paying customers that he "would be back for the first pitch." One of the last games played at the park was on October 5, 1947 when the Urbanna team hired Cleveland Indians pitcher Allen Gettel and the Deltaville team hired Boston Braves pitcher Jim Trexler and catcher Monk Burk to play. The game ended due to darkness in 1-1 tie and was acclaimed by the local Southside Sentinel newspaper, which stated, "The World Series was thrilling but it took second place behind the game between Deltaville and Urbanna."
Before being developed, this area in town was home field to the Urbanna semi-pro baseball team. Alvin G. Loving purchased the land in the 1930s and built a baseball field complete with stands and removable canvases for outfield walls. Urbanna played teams such as Norfolk, Newport News, West Point, Gloucester, Mathews, Cobbs Creek, Warsaw and Deltaville. Barnstorming major league players came to town to play. Bud Metheny of the New York Yankees who played in two World Series once played on the town field. Urbanna's baseball team had loyal and dedicated fans. A Tangier Island man, Sol Shores, ran fishing parties on Saturdays but, when the Urbanna team played he advertised to his paying customers that he "would be back for the first pitch." One of the last games played at the park was on October 5, 1947 when the Urbanna team hired Cleveland Indians pitcher Allen Gettel and the Deltaville team hired Boston Braves pitcher Jim Trexler and catcher Monk Burk to play. The game ended due to darkness in 1-1 tie and was acclaimed by the local Southside Sentinel newspaper, which stated, "The World Series was thrilling but it took second place behind the game between Deltaville and Urbanna."
Erected by The Museum in the Streets®. (Marker Number 8.)
Location. 37° 38.246′ N, 76° 34.749′ W. Marker is in Urbanna, Virginia, in Middlesex County. Marker is at the intersection of Grace Avenue (County Road T-1010) and Park Street, on the right when traveling south on Grace Avenue. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 150 Grace Ave, Urbanna VA 23175, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Photographed By Devry Becker Jones (CC0), November 25, 2021
2. Urbanna Baseball Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on November 25, 2021. It was originally submitted on November 25, 2021, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. This page has been viewed 128 times since then and 18 times this year. Last updated on November 25, 2021, by Bradley Owen of Morgantown, West Virginia. Photos:1, 2. submitted on November 25, 2021, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.
