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Forbes Field

1909 establishments in Pennsylvania1970 disestablishments in PennsylvaniaAmerican Football League (1936) venuesBaseball venues in PennsylvaniaCard-Pitt
Defunct Major League Baseball venuesDefunct National Football League venuesDefunct baseball venues in the United StatesDefunct college baseball venues in the United StatesDefunct college football venuesDemolished buildings and structures in PennsylvaniaDemolished sports venues in PennsylvaniaDuquesne Dukes footballEvent venues established in 1909Homestead GraysJewel Box parksNegro league baseball venuesPittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation Historic LandmarksPittsburgh Panthers baseball venuesPittsburgh Panthers football venuesPittsburgh Pirates stadiumsPittsburgh Steelers stadiumsSports venues demolished in 1971Sports venues in PittsburghSteagles
Forbes Field exterior
Forbes Field exterior

Forbes Field was a baseball park in the Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from 1909 to June 28, 1970. It was the third home of the Pittsburgh Pirates Major League Baseball (MLB) team, and the first home of the Pittsburgh Steelers, the city's National Football League (NFL) franchise. The stadium also served as the home football field for the University of Pittsburgh "Pitt" Panthers from 1909 to 1924. The stadium was named after its adjacent street, Forbes Ave., itself named for British general John Forbes, who fought in the French and Indian War and named the city in 1758. The US$1 million ($30.2 million today) project was initiated by Pittsburgh Pirates' owner Barney Dreyfuss, with the goal of replacing his franchise's then-current home, Exposition Park. The stadium was made of concrete and steel, the first such stadium in the National League and third in Major League Baseball, in order to increase its lifespan. The Pirates opened Forbes Field on June 30, 1909, against the Chicago Cubs, and played the final game against the Cubs on June 28, 1970. The field itself featured a large playing surface, with the batting cage placed in the deepest part of center field during games. Seating was altered multiple times throughout the stadium's life; at times fans were permitted to sit on the grass in the outfield during overflow crowds. The Pirates won three World Series while at Forbes Field and the other original tenant, the Pittsburgh Panthers football team had five undefeated seasons before moving in 1924. Indeed, it was the late-fifties resurgence of its long-dormant baseball franchise, rather than any intrinsic properties of the stadium itself, that led broadcaster Bob Prince to dub Forbes Field "The House of Thrills" in 1958.Some remnants of the ballpark still stand, surrounded by the campus of the University of Pittsburgh. Fans gather on the site annually on the anniversary of Bill Mazeroski's World Series winning home run, in what author Jim O'Brien writes is "one of the most unique expressions of a love of the game to be found in a major league city".

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Forbes Field (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Forbes Field
South Bouquet Street, Pittsburgh

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Latitude Longitude
N 40.441944444444 ° E -79.954166666667 °
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Wesley W. Posvar Hall

South Bouquet Street 230
15213 Pittsburgh
Pennsylvania, United States
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Forbes Field exterior
Forbes Field exterior
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Mervis Hall
Mervis Hall

Mervis Hall is an academic building at the University of Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States that houses the Katz Graduate School of Business and College of Business Administration Undergraduate Program. The building was built by the IKM/SGE partnership on the former site of Forbes Field and dedicated in 1983. The flagpole and a portion of the left and center field walls still exist just outside adjacent to the left plaza of the building. A bronze plaque indicates the portion over which Mazeroski's 1960 blast traveled. Mervis Hall is named after Lou and Myra G. Mervis, who established a trust fund for Pitt's Graduate School of Business in 1972. Lou Mervis, a business administration major as an undergraduate, was a football star at Pitt under Coach Pop Warner. Mervis Hall was originally dedicated as the name of the building now called Thackeray Hall, which housed the Graduate School of Business from 1972 until it moved into the new Mervis Hall completed in 1983. Previous to this, business classes were held in the Cathedral of Learning and Bruce Hall.A number of photos, engravings, watercolors and mixed media works hang on the second and third floors. The 1971 aluminum sculpture "Twin Circles Geared Together" by Willi Gutmann located on the second floor was a gift from ALCOA. On the third floor, the Salvador Dalí lithograph, “Cosmic Athlete,” is among several works gracing the hallways.In the November, 2007, renovations on the building began and included a new $2.3 million, 3,000-square-foot (280 m2) financial lab completed in 2008 which simulates global financial markets. The lab provides students with real-time stock market data and features a financial trading simulator, stock tickers, tote display boards, 58 computer stations, live news feeds, and classroom space. The lab also includes technology-enhanced breakout and conference rooms. In other phases of the renovation, an additional $2.3 million will create new suites for administration and information technology services, as well as a new suite for the Master of Business Administration program that will house the placement, admissions, and career services departments the third floor of Mervis Hall.