Wednesday afternoon, Rachel and I decided to take the short drive from our home in Virginia Beach over to Portsmouth, VA’s Olde Towne District. Olde Towne features a number of historic landmarks, including churches, lighthouse boats, and museums. And it also features some exciting business growth, with new businesses and opportunities popping on just about every street corner. I really loved the grid style, village feel of Olde Towne and was really impressed by the eclectic shops, restaurants, and overall feel of the area. The view of Norfolk from the water’s edge was really awesome, too.

Truth be told, there was another purpose for our stay-cation visit to Portsmouth. Portsmouth, VA does have an interesting minor league baseball history, albeit one that hasn’t had any entries since the late 1960s. Teams like the Portsmouth Truckers, the Portsmouth Cubs, even the Portsmouth-Norfolk aka Tidewater Tides once called Portsmouth, VA home. In fact, minor league baseball was a part of the Portsmouth community from the late 1800s to the late 1960s, with the Tides moving permanently across the Elizabeth River to Norfolk.

So, you might ask (as I did), where did these minor league baseball teams play? Well, according to my research online, they played at a few stadiums over there nearly 8 decades of existence. One of the more prominent locations was Frank D. Lawrence Stadium, which according to some online sites, was located just outside the Olde Towne District on Queen Street. Not confirmed 100% but, here is what that location looks like today. It is the site of Portsmouth’s I.C. Norcom High School.

And courtesy of the Portsmouth Public Library’s archive room, here are some historic photos of the stadium…

From a baseball historical standpoint, Portsmouth had some incredible ball players visit their fields. Hall of Famers such as Josh Gibson, Buck Leonard, Hack Wilson, and Jimmie Foxx were said to have played games in Portsmouth or managed for Portsmouth clubs. Team names included the Truckers, the Merrimacs, the Browns, the Boers, the Pirates, and the Cubs. The Tides, now a AAA minor league organization for the Baltimore Orioles, were a staple franchise in the South Atlantic League (Sally) and later moved over to the Carolina League. Tons of great baseball history there in Portsmouth.

It was an awesome Portsmouth, VA baseball and history experience walking around the Olde Towne District. The churches, some of them built over 250 years ago, were still standing strong. The brick sidewalks, the museums, the seaport, the shipyard views, the Elizabeth River Riverboats – all added to the unique look and feel of Olde Towne. I loved learning more about Portsmouth’s baseball history and look forward to doing more research on the Truckers, Cubs, Boers, and Tides. Very cool day in Portsmouth, I would highly recommend it to anyone interested in historical landmarks.