Holman Stadium (Nashua)
Encyclopedia
Holman Stadium is a baseball stadium in Nashua, New Hampshire
. It was constructed in 1937, as a multi-purpose stadium, by the City of Nashua. The official seating capacity
is 4,375 people. Holman is currently the home of the Nashua Silver Knights
of the Futures Collegiate Baseball League
. The Silver Knights are operated by the Lowell Spinners
of the New York – Penn League (Single A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox
)
The stadium is named for Charles Frank Holman, who contributed $55,000 for the project. Holman Stadium, which also was funded by money made available by the federal government during the Great Depression
, was dedicated to the youth and people of Nashua in memory of Holman's parents. Holman Stadium was upgraded in 2002, from a plain seating bowl to a stadium with luxury boxes and a press box on top of the grandstand.
Owned by the city, it became home to the Nashua Pride
, a baseball team in the independent Atlantic League
, in 1998. In 2006, the Pride switched to the Can-Am League, and in 2008 the team was sold and renamed the American Defenders of New Hampshire
. The Defenders played a partial season in the stadium in 2009, then moved to Pittsfield, Massachusetts
in 2010 to become the Pittsfield Colonials.
Another non-affiliated team, the Nashua Hawks of the North Atlantic League
, played at Holman Stadium earlier in the 1990s; its tenure at Holman Stadium ended with mid-season eviction for nonpayment of rent. This fate also befell the Defenders, as Nashua evicted them for the same reason.
Prior to that, several major league
teams had farm teams
based in the stadium, including the California Angels
, Pittsburgh Pirates
, and Brooklyn Dodgers. Holman hosted what is considered the first integrated U.S. baseball team in the modern era, when Roy Campanella
and Don Newcombe
played for the then-Nashua Dodgers
in 1946. While home to the Nashua Pirates in 1985, Holman Stadium hosted the Eastern League All-Star Game.
The stadium has hosted concerts by many famous artists, including Elvis Costello
, Bob Dylan
, Tina Turner
, and Whitney Houston
, among others.
Nashua, New Hampshire
-Climate:-Demographics:As of the census of 2010, there were 86,494 people, 35,044 households, and 21,876 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,719.9 people per square mile . There were 37,168 housing units at an average density of 1,202.8 per square mile...
. It was constructed in 1937, as a multi-purpose stadium, by the City of Nashua. The official seating capacity
Seating capacity
Seating capacity refers to the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, both in terms of the physical space available, and in terms of limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that seats two to a stadium that seats...
is 4,375 people. Holman is currently the home of the Nashua Silver Knights
Nashua Silver Knights
The Nashua Silver Knights are a summer collegiate baseball team based in Nashua, New Hampshire, USA, that plays in the Futures Collegiate Baseball League of New England. The team's home games are played at Holman Stadium in Nashua...
of the Futures Collegiate Baseball League
Futures Collegiate Baseball League
The Futures Collegiate Baseball League is a 6 team collegiate summer baseball league. The Futures League was co-developed by the New York-Penn League's Lowell Spinners owner Drew Weber, Weber formally developed and owned the New Hampshire Fisher Cats Double A Affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays...
. The Silver Knights are operated by the Lowell Spinners
Lowell Spinners
The Lowell Spinners are a Short-Season A minor league baseball affiliate of the Boston Red Sox.-History:Founded in 1996 after Clyde Smoll moved the Elmira Pioneers to Lowell, Massachusetts, the Spinners play in the New York - Penn League, which has a Short-Season A classification with 76 games a...
of the New York – Penn League (Single A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
)
The stadium is named for Charles Frank Holman, who contributed $55,000 for the project. Holman Stadium, which also was funded by money made available by the federal government during the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, was dedicated to the youth and people of Nashua in memory of Holman's parents. Holman Stadium was upgraded in 2002, from a plain seating bowl to a stadium with luxury boxes and a press box on top of the grandstand.
Owned by the city, it became home to the Nashua Pride
Nashua Pride
The Nashua Pride were a professional baseball team based in Nashua, New Hampshire, in the United States, not affiliated with Major League Baseball. They played home games at Holman Stadium from 1998 through 2008, when they were sold and renamed the American Defenders of New Hampshire. In 2010 that...
, a baseball team in the independent Atlantic League
Atlantic League of Professional Baseball
The Atlantic League of Professional Baseball is a professional, independent baseball organization located primarily in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, especially the greater metropolitan areas of the Northeast megalopolis. It operates in cities not served by Major or Minor League...
, in 1998. In 2006, the Pride switched to the Can-Am League, and in 2008 the team was sold and renamed the American Defenders of New Hampshire
American Defenders of New Hampshire
The Pittsfield Colonials were a baseball team in the independent Canadian-American Association of Professional Baseball, based in Pittsfield, Massachusetts...
. The Defenders played a partial season in the stadium in 2009, then moved to Pittsfield, Massachusetts
Pittsfield, Massachusetts
Pittsfield is the largest city and the county seat of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the principal city of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Berkshire County. Its area code is 413. Its ZIP code is 01201...
in 2010 to become the Pittsfield Colonials.
Another non-affiliated team, the Nashua Hawks of the North Atlantic League
North Atlantic League
The North Atlantic League was the name of two minor baseball leagues. The first was a Class D affiliated system that operated from 1946 until 1950, and the second was an independent minor league that played from 1995 until 1996...
, played at Holman Stadium earlier in the 1990s; its tenure at Holman Stadium ended with mid-season eviction for nonpayment of rent. This fate also befell the Defenders, as Nashua evicted them for the same reason.
Prior to that, several major league
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
teams had farm teams
Minor league baseball
Minor league baseball is a hierarchy of professional baseball leagues in the Americas that compete at levels below Major League Baseball and provide opportunities for player development. All of the minor leagues are operated as independent businesses...
based in the stadium, including the California Angels
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are a professional baseball team based in Anaheim, California, United States. The Angels are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. The "Angels" name originates from the city in which the team started, Los Angeles...
, Pittsburgh Pirates
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in the Central Division of the National League, and are five-time World Series Champions...
, and Brooklyn Dodgers. Holman hosted what is considered the first integrated U.S. baseball team in the modern era, when Roy Campanella
Roy Campanella
Roy Campanella , nicknamed "Campy", was an American baseball player, primarily at the position of catcher, in the Negro leagues and Major League Baseball...
and Don Newcombe
Don Newcombe
Donald Newcombe , nicknamed "Newk", is an American former Major League Baseball right-handed starting pitcher who played for the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers , Cincinnati Reds and Cleveland Indians .Until 2011 when Detroit Tigers Pitcher Justin Verlander did it, Newcombe was the only baseball...
played for the then-Nashua Dodgers
Nashua Dodgers
The Nashua Dodgers was a farm club of the Brooklyn Dodgers, operating in the class-B New England League between 1946 and 1949. It is believed to be the first professional baseball team based in the United States in the twentieth century to play with a racially integrated roster...
in 1946. While home to the Nashua Pirates in 1985, Holman Stadium hosted the Eastern League All-Star Game.
The stadium has hosted concerts by many famous artists, including Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader...
, Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
, Tina Turner
Tina Turner
Tina Turner is an American singer and actress whose career has spanned more than 50 years. She has won numerous awards and her achievements in the rock music genre have led many to call her the "Queen of Rock 'n' Roll".Turner started out her music career with husband Ike Turner as a member of the...
, and Whitney Houston
Whitney Houston
Whitney Elizabeth Houston is an American singer, actress, producer and a former model. Houston is the most awarded female act of all time, according to Guinness World Records, and her list of awards include 1 Emmy Award, 6 Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, 22 American Music Awards, among...
, among others.
External links
Source
- Daly, Steve. 2002. Dem Little Bums. Concord, NH: Plaidswede Publishing Co. ISBN 0-9626832-4-8
- Nashua History Committee. 1977. The Nashua Experience: History in the Making, 1673-1978. Concord NH: Phoenix Publishing (see pp. 230–231).
- Roper, Scott C., and Stephanie Abbot Roper. 1998. "'We're Going to Give All We Have for this Grand Little Town': Baseball Integration and the 1946 Nashua Dodgers." Historical New Hampshire 53:1/2 (Spring/Summer 1998) 3-19.