Baker Athletic Complex
Baker Field the former name of the Baker Athletics Complex is Columbia University's 26-acre athletics complex. It is located at Broadway and 218th St, in the Inwood neighborhood, at the northernmost tip of the island of Manhattan. Prior to the opening of Baker Field, athletics events were held on South Lawn. Many athletics facilities are located at Baker Field, including Lawrence A. Wien Stadium, an outdoor track, tennis courts, and rowing facilities.
Contents
History
The tract of land on which the Baker Athletics Complex stands was purchased for the University on December 30, 1921 by financier George F. Baker. Then a $700,000 gift, the 26-acre area was dedicated in April, 1922 and was coronated with spring football practice that same year. In the fall, Columbia's football team continued to practice at Baker Field, but played its games at South Field on the Morningside Heights campus. The first stadium at Baker Field opened in the fall of 1923 with 15,000 seats in temporary stands. Five years later, the University built the 32,000 wooden-seat stadium that served Columbia fans for 55 years, until the spring of 1983.
The first game at Baker Field took place on September 29, 1923, with Columbia defeating Ursinus, 13-0. The opening game in the official stadium was played on September 29, 1928 as Columbia defeated Vermont, 20-0.
On May 17, 1939, Baker Field played host to the first live television broadcast of an athletics event. A Columbia-Princeton baseball game at Robertson Field (called Andy Coakley Field back then) was carried by the National Broadcasting Company to the 400 or so sets then capable of receiving its broadcast signal. Satisfied with the result, NBC decided to try doing a major league game. Five months later it did, from Brooklyn's Ebbets Field.
During the 1980s, Columbia sold off 5 acres on the northeast corner of the property to Presbyterian Hospital, which constructed the Allen Pavillion, a 300-bed community hospital that opened in 1988.[1][2]
Lawrence A. Wien Stadium was opened on September 22, 1984 as the Lions fell to Harvard, 35-21. Columbia won its first game in the Stadium on October 8, 1988 when it defeated Princeton, 16-13.
Lawrence A. Wien Stadium is now home to the Lions' football, lacrosse and track & field teams. The track features an eight-lane Rekortan track.
Facilities
The Baker Athletics Complex is composed of the following facilities
- Lawrence A. Wien Stadium
- Columbia Soccer Stadium
- Robertson Field (Baseball)
- Columbia Field Hockey Venue
- Columbia Softball Complex
- Dick Savitt Tennis Center
- Gould-Remmer and 1929 Boathouses
- Chrystie Field House
Events
Baker Blast
Hosted jointly by the student councils for the first home football game of the year since (?), Baker Blast is a popular event.
Homecoming
The first Ivy League home game of the year, Homecoming always draws a large crowd as well as a strong alumni presence to Baker Field.
External events
Baker Field: Birthplace of Sports Television
