Griffith Stadium, Washington

Griffith Stadium stood at the corner of Georgia Avenue and W Street in northwest Washington, D.C., from 1911 to 1965. It was named after Clark Griffith, the owner of the Washington Senators, who bought the team in 1920 and ran it as a family enterprise for four decades.

The park hosted the Senators' only two World Series appearances, in 1924 and 1925. The 1924 Series, which the Senators won in seven games behind Walter Johnson, remains the only World Series championship in Washington's baseball history. Johnson, the greatest pitcher of his generation, lost his first two starts in that Series before winning the decisive Game 7 in relief, pitching four scoreless innings as the Senators rallied for a 12th-inning victory.

Griffith Stadium had an unusual shape dictated by the surrounding streets and property lines. The left field wall angled sharply, creating a dogleg that made the distance to the foul pole only 405 feet but the distance to straightaway left center more than 380 feet. A large tree stood beyond the center field wall for years. Right field was short, only 328 feet down the line, with a high wall to compensate.

The park also hosted Negro League games throughout the segregation era. The Homestead Grays, who played in both Pittsburgh and Washington, used Griffith Stadium as their Washington home from the 1930s through the late 1940s. Josh Gibson, widely considered the greatest power hitter in Negro League history, hit many of his most legendary home runs at Griffith Stadium. One drive, its exact distance disputed but always described as enormous, reportedly cleared the left field bleachers entirely and landed in a neighboring yard.

The Senators were perpetual also-rans. "Washington. First in war, first in peace, and last in the American League" was a joke that outlasted multiple decades. The team left Washington after the 1960 season and became the Minnesota Twins. An expansion team, also called the Senators, arrived in 1961 and played at Griffith Stadium for one season before moving to the new D.C. Stadium (later RFK Stadium) in 1962.

Griffith Stadium was demolished in 1965. Howard University Hospital now occupies the site. A small plaque marks the approximate location of home plate.