Terry Park Sports Complex

Introduction

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Between 1925 and 1987, four Major League Baseball teams held spring training here at this historic facility, which is now called the Terry Park Sports Complex. It was established in 1921 by the Terry family, who donated around 25 acres to Lee County. The first Major League team to use Terry Park was the Philadelphia Athletics; the last was the Kansas City Royals. Several minor league teams used the facility as well. The site includes four baseball fields, including the main one, and several buildings. The Lee County Parks and Recreation Department office is also located here. Many hall of fame players played here including Babe Ruth, Roberto Clemente, Ty Cobb, and George Brett. Today the the park is used by local baseball leagues and college baseball teams, and hosts tournaments and special events.

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Terry Park hosted spring training for four Major League Baseball teams from 1925 to 1987. Babe Ruth, George Brett, and many other Hall of Fame players played here over the years.

Backstory and Context

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The timeline of the park's early history is somewhat unclear. Its origins appear to date back to 1906 when local residents Dr. Marshall Terry and his wife Tootie McGregor Terry offer land to be used as the county fairgrounds. However, the first county fair was not held until 1919. In 1906 the Terrys also established the Fort Myers Yacht and County Club and in 1908 built the clubhouse, which was the first structure on the future park's grounds. Unfortunately, the club was unsuccessful and closed in 1914. However, that same year, a minor league baseball team called the Louisville Colonels used site for spring training for three weeks (a baseball field and a small, 600-seat grandstand was built for them).

In 1921, the Terry's donated around 25 acres to the Lee county Government and the site officially becomes Terry Park. At the time, the park was a couple of miles east of downtown was mostly undeveloped cow pasture. Major League Baseball arrived in 1925 when, as noted above, the Philadelphia Athletics held spring training here. They returned each Spring until 1936. The teams that followed in the coming decades were the Cleveland Indians, the Pittsburgh Pirates, and the Kansas City Royals. In 1995, Terry Park was added to the National Register of Historic Places.

Sources

"History." Lee County Department of Parks and Recreation. Accessed March 9, 2021. https://www.leegov.com/parks/athletics/terrypark.

Olausen, Stephen & Piland, Sherry. "Terry Park Ballfield." National Park Service - National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form. June 20, 1995. https://npgallery.nps.gov/GetAsset/74570a52-4efe-40bd-8e9a-30fc69f8d5fe.

"Terry Park Centennial Anniversary Commemorative Program 1906-2006." Lee County Department of Parks and Recreation. October 2005. https://www.leegov.com/parks/Documents/Terry-Park-100-Year-Anniversary.pdf.

Image Sources(Click to expand)

Wikimedia Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Terry_Park_Ballfield