William Shea Ownership

Lore & Background

The stadium was named in honor of William Shea, who was most responsible for bringing National League baseball back to New York after the Dodgers and Giants left for California in 1957. It was demolished in 2009 following the opening of the adjacent Citi Field.

Reader's Guide

The origins of Shea Stadium go back to the relocations of the Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Giants in 1957. The New York Titans of the American Football League played at the Polo Grounds from 1960 to 1963, sharing the facility with the expansion Mets in 1962. Both the Mets and the football team (by then renamed the Jets) were forced to play at the Polo Grounds for one more year in 1963.

Did You Know?

• The stadium hosted its only All-Star Game in 1964.
• The locations of Shea's home plate, pitcher's mound, and bases are marked in Citi Field's parking lot.

Origins and Political Maneuvering

The origins of the stadium are rooted in the 1957 relocation of the Dodgers and Giants. Robert Moses failed to keep Walter O'Malley because O'Malley wanted full ownership of a new stadium, while the city wanted to retain revenue rights. Los Angeles offered O'Malley what New York could not, leading to his departure. Horace Stoneham moved the Giants to San Francisco. In 1960, Mayor Robert F. Wagner Jr. promised a new stadium to secure an expansion franchise. The Mets owners chose Flushing Meadows in Queens to capture loyalty from fans of both departed teams without favoring Brooklyn or Manhattan.

Financial Constraints and Construction Delays

New York state law prohibited cities from borrowing for stadiums without guaranteed repayment, forcing Moses and Shea to propose a lease where the tenant team paid rent to service 30-year bonds. On October 6, 1961, the Mets signed a 30-year lease with rent starting at $450,000 in the first year. Construction faced delays due to the severe winter of 1962–1963, subcontractor bankruptcies, and labor issues. Consequently, both the Mets and the football team (by then renamed the Jets) were forced to play at the Polo Grounds for one more year after their inaugural 1962 season.

The Historic Opening and Early Atmosphere

Shea Stadium opened on April 17, 1964, after 29 months of construction costing $28.5 million. The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Mets 4–3 before a crowd of 50,312. No exhibition games were held, and telephone wiring was unfinished due to a dispute between Local 3 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and Local 1106 of the Communications Workers of America. The stadium opened five days before the 1964–65 World's Fair and featured blue-and-orange steel panels matching both the fair and the Mets, which were removed in 1980.

Demolition and Legacy of Memorabilia

In 2009, Shea Stadium was dismantled rather than imploded. A company with rights to sell memorabilia had two weeks to remove seats, signage, dugouts, and foul poles before demolition began on October 14, 2008. Seats sold for $869 per pair, referencing the team's World Series years of 1986 and 1969. By February 18, 2009, the last section was torn down. The former footprint is now part of Citi Field's parking lots, with markers indicating home plate and bases.