Veterans Memorial Stadium (Quincy, Massachusetts)

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Veterans Memorial Stadium
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Location850 Hancock Street
Quincy, Massachusetts, U.S.
Capacity5,000
Openedaround 1937/38
83 years ago
Tenants
Quincy H.S. Football (1932−2017, 2019−present)[a]
N. Quincy H.S. Football (1932−2017)
Boston Minutemen (NASL) (1976)
Boston Rams (PDL) (2014)
Boston Cannons (MLL) (2019)
New England Free Jacks (MLR) (2021-present)

Veterans Memorial Stadium is a multipurpose outdoor stadium in Quincy, Massachusetts. Built from 1937-1938 under the Works Progress Administration,[1] it seats 5,000 spectators[2] for football, soccer and lacrosse. The stadium underwent a $1.2 million renovation in 2006, including accessibility improvements and new synthetic turf as well as making the stadium usable as a lacrosse, rugby and soccer field,[3] and another $1.5 million renovation in 2018, adding extra capacity and a large electronic video board.[4] It is the home field of Quincy High School athletics, namely football and soccer. The grounds have most notably held the annual intracity Thanksgiving Day Game between QHS and NQHS, dubbed by SI.com as one of the best in America,[5] since 1932.

The land the stadium sits on is part of Merrymount Park, which’s was gifted to the city by the Adams family. The current stadium replaced a prior athletic field that was known as Pfaffman’s Oval, a cinder dirt track with a large embankment on one side, which made for a natural amphitheater for spectators. After several attempts to fund the stadium failed, ground was broken in January, 1937. The stadium was opened on September 25, 1938 in a ceremony attended by Senator Henry Cabot Lodge.[6]

Throughout the 1960s, the Boston Patriots played several preseason intra-squad scrimmages for charity at the stadium. [1][2]

In 1976 it served as a home stadium for the Boston Minutemen of the North American Soccer League.[7]

For the 2019 season, the stadium served as the home of the Boston Cannons of Major League Lacrosse.[8] The first game in the stadium was played on June 1, 2019, against the New York Lizards. They were slated to play at the stadium again in 2020, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Cannons as well as the rest of the MLL played a shortened five game season, all of which took place behind closed doors at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Maryland. The Cannons won the 2020 MLL championship.

On December 16, 2020, Major League Lacrosse announced it was merging with the Premier Lacrosse League, with the Cannons the only former MLL team continuing play. [9] The team changed their name to Cannons Lacrosse Club and like other PLL teams have no set home, instead traveling between major markets each week.

On June 28, 2021, the New England Free Jacks of Major League Rugby announced they were moving into the stadium starting with the final game of the 2021 MLR season. [10]

References[]

  1. ^ Due to the renovations during the 2018-19 school year, Quincy High's home field was moved to North Quincy's Creedon Field for the season.
  1. ^ "Veterans Memorial Stadium - Quincy MA - Living New Deal".
  2. ^ "Boston Cannons Excited to Start Season at New Stadium".
  3. ^ Monique Walker, "Quincy's renovated stadium finally open for business", The Boston Globe, October 12, 2006  – via HighBeam Research (subscription required).
  4. ^ "Boston Cannons Excited to Start Season at New Stadium".
  5. ^ Mravic, Mark. "Thanksgiving at Its Best".
  6. ^ "26 Sep 1938, 13 - The Boston Globe at Newspapers.com". Boston Globe. Retrieved 2021-03-10.
  7. ^ "Minutemen to Play 9 at Vet's Stadium, Quincy", Nashua Telegraph, May 1, 1976.
  8. ^ Boston Cannons and City of Quincy announce partnership
  9. ^ Turner, Nick (16 December 2020). "Premier Lacrosse League Merging With Rival in Bid to Unify Sport". Bloomberg News. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
  10. ^ NEW ENGLAND FREE JACKS ANNOUNCE VETERANS MEMORIAL STADIUM IN QUINCY AS THE NEW HOME FOR MAJOR LEAGUE RUGBY IN NEW ENGLAND

Coordinates: 42°15′40″N 71°00′36″W / 42.26111°N 71.01000°W / 42.26111; -71.01000

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