Bosse Field: A gem turns 100
Yesterday it was exactly 100 years ago that Bosse Field in Evansville Indiana opened it’s doors.
It replaced the wooden Louisana Street Ballpark in which the final game was played the day before the Evansville River Rats moved in to Bosse Field. The stadium opened with a unique double header. In the afternoon a ballgame was played, followed by a wrestling match in the infield. Bosse Field was a major upgrade over Louisiana Street Ballpark, since Bosse Field was made out of concrete. Eventhough concrete conquered the baseball world, it was a novelty in Evansville, so the inhabitants were very proud of their new ballpark. The ballpark was named after the Evansville mayor Benjamin Bosse, who backed the construction of the ballpark.
Bosse Field was home to about a dozen teams through the century:
| Evansville River Rats | 1915 | |
| Evansville Evas | 1916–1917, 1920-1923 | |
| Evansville Black Sox | 1919 | |
| Evansville Crimson Giants | 1921–1922 | NFL |
| Evansville Little Evas | 1924 | |
| Evansville Pocketeers | 1925 | |
| Evansville Hubs | 1926–1931 | |
| Evansville Bees | 1938–1942 | |
| Evansville Braves | 1946–1957 | |
| Evansville White Sox | 1966–1968 | |
| Evansville Triplets | 1970–1984 | |
| Evansville Otters | 1995–Present |
Despite some years without (professional) baseball, the game always returned to Evansville. Perhaps the weirdest affliation was the one between the Evansville White Sox and their Chicago namesake in 1966-1968, when the team played in the 
Southern League, a league that normally operates in Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi and the North of Florida.
The stadium was used in 1991 as backdrop for the movie “a League of their own”, starring Tom Hanks, Geena Davis and Madonna. The sign with the club’s name, Racine Belles, is still hanging in the grandstand and is a real eye catcher. Next to this sign, many other signs were placed for the movie. They are still in place.
The highest level of professional baseball that Bosse Field once 
hosted was the AAA American Association (not to be mixed up with the current American Association, which is an independent league). The Evansville Triplets played for fifteen years and were affiliated to the Minnesota Twins (1970), the Milwaukee Brewers (1971-1973) and the Detroit TIgers (1974-1984). The Triplets won three league titles in 1972, 1975 and 1979.
Bosse Field Opening Day program
Article about the opening of Bosse Field in the local newspaper. Note the daily news about WW I at the bottom.
Hall of Fame members Hank Greenberg, Chuck Klein, Edd Roush, Warren Spahn, and Sam Thompson played at Bosse Field during their careers.Bob Uecker (Ford Frick award winner) also played at Bosse Field in 1957 for the Evansville Braves.
Nowadays, the ballpark is owned by the Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation.
With the Evansville Otters of the independent Frontier League playing their home games in Bosse Field, the stadium is the third oldest stadium still in constant use, next to Fenway Park and Wrigley Field.
Photo by David B. Stinson