Thursday, New York reconnected with a fascinating memento of its rich baseball history. The John T. Brush Stairway, which gave easy access from the Hamilton Heights neighborhood to the ballpark that, over eight decades, three New York baseball teams and two pro football teams called home. The Polo Grounds was torn down and replaced by public housing in the 1960s, as the Mets and Jets moved to Queens.
But the Stairway remains, newly restored in a joint effort of the city and the five franchises that played there. Thursday, this unique relic of another era was rededicated and honored as a symbol of history and active part of the urban landscape -- its steel and concrete function and beauty restored.
Traveling from San Francisco to her ballclub's ancestral home was Giants vice president Staci Slaughter. (Below) Representing the Yankees, who went from the Giants tenants in the 1910s to their bitter cross-rival rivals in 1923, Yankees COO Lonn Trost.
New York native Lee Mazzilli, who played for both the Yankees and Mets -- and recalled attending a Mets game at the Polo Grounds, was another featured speaker.
Representing baseball's future, the local youth league teams sponsored by the Giants.
The ribbon-cutting ceremony also included State Assemblyman Denny Farrell, who grew up in the neighborhood as a Giants fan, and Parks Commissioner Mitchell Silver.
Another honored guest was Moe Resner, a former coach in the Giants and Expos organizations, who brought his movie camera to the somber and nostalgic final game the Giants played at the Polo Grounds on September 29th, 1957. His film END OF AN ERA was added to the archives of the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, and is now available on DVD.
Scaling down Highbridge Park and taking a right turn almost at the halfway point, you'l find the dedication made by the baseball Giants over a century ago.
Looking up from the base of the stairway, which is hugged by trees that have grown considerably since it was originally built.
Now the top of the Stairway is in sight, as you approach Edgecombe Avenue. Can you envision the fans who climbed these stairs after a game decades ago? Were they cheering Willie Mays, Bobby Thomson or Bill Terry? Did they question a call by Bill Rigney, Leo Durocher or John McGraw? Casey Stengel as a player and, years later, a manager might enter the conversation. Ed Kranepool, Al Jackson, "Marvelous Marv." I love the opportunity to try and soak in the echo of history. This is a place that will again provide that opportunity.
Arriving at the top, a view downward. There's now a small paved plaza at its base.
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