Fiesta Park

Fiesta Park was a grandstand and sports and entertainment venue in South Park, Los Angeles, California. From 1894 to 1916, it served as venue for various exhibitions and festivals, as well as a field for USC Trojans football games.

Fiesta Park
Address12th and Grand
LocationLos Angeles, California
Coordinates34.040056°N 118.264279°W / 34.040056; -118.264279
SurfaceNatural grass
Opened1894
Closed1916
Tenants
USC Trojans football (NCAA) (1897–98, 1904–06, 1916)
St. Vincent's College football (NCAA)

History

Fiesta Park was located in a block bordered by Grand Avenue, 12th Street, Hope Street, and Pico Boulevard. This lot had originally belonged to Victor Ponet, a banker and undertaker who also founded Evergreen Cemetery.[1] From 1894 to 1916, it served as a venue for La Fiesta de Los Angeles, a springtime parade and festival celebrating Los Angeles' multicultural heritage.[1] In 1901, then-President William McKinley was an honored guest at the Fiesta during a trip to the West Coast.[1]

Around the turn of the century, the grounds were used for a variety of sports and entertainment events, ranging from football and baseball games to pony races to a production of "Faust".[2] A number of minor league baseball teams played at Fiesta Park, including the Los Angeles Trilbeys and Los Angeles Echoes.[3] The grounds served as the home field for the Los Angeles Rangers soccer club, a side composed primarily of expatriate Englishmen. In 1910, Fiesta Park was covered with a canvas big top and pressed into service as the venue for the Los Angeles Auto Show.[4] This event coincided with a move by many of the California schools from football to rugby, so following the 1910 Auto Show, Fiesta Park was used primarily for tented exhibitions, though bleachers were restored in time for the 1916 football season. Following World War I, the festival was discontinued and the grandstands were transported to Bovard Field.[5]

Football

The USC Trojans (then called the Fighting Methodists) played several football games in the 1890s and all of their 1916 home football schedule at Fiesta Park.[5] Fiesta Park also served as a home field for St. Vincent's College (now Loyola Marymount University)'s football team.[5] Occidental College also played some home games in the stadium, as did numerous high school teams, particularly Los Angeles High School (then located Downtown on Fort Moore Hill) and Polytechnic High School. In the first decade of the 20th century, USC played LA High annually, with the game usually being played at Fiesta Park.

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References
  1. Cecilia Rasmussen (April 27, 2003). "Downtown's Fiesta Began as a Multicultural Celebration". Los Angeles Times.
  2. "La Fiesta Park Entertainment". Los Angeles Times. May 16, 1897.
  3. "Sporting". Los Angeles Times. November 29, 1897.
  4. "Fiesta Park for Auto Show: Seventy Thousand Feet is Immense Floor Space". Los Angeles Times. January 27, 1910.
  5. "USC Football History" (PDF). grfx.cstv.com.
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