Frank Sinatra had a song of that name one day. It could have been about our City.
In the Water St. area there used to be a ballpark one day. Lawrence High and CCHS both played their home games there. Players of that era were the Callagys, Walter Coulson, John Fenton (now Judge John Fenton), Dick Kowalski, Jackie Dean, and the Remings and Joe Cockroft for LHS. For the Centrals it was Myles Moran, Charlie Fiorino, Bobby Murdoch, Bucky Poole, Jimmy Lewis, Gussie Reusch, Skeets Scanlon, Billy Sawyer, George McCafferty.
This old park could tell some great tales if it could talk; it was enclosed by a chain link fence and the home plate area was just off Water St. It had two ticket booths at two entrances. The outfield ran parallel to the Merrimack River.
Wooden bleaches ran outside of both first and third base. A scorers/press booth was encased in chicken wire behind home plate.
A clubhouse was way off behind the stands at first base and contained cold showers and a wood burning pot belly stove.
Babe Ruth once played there and so did Jim Thorpe, Al Shacct the clown prince of baseball also performed there with a comedy act showing off a rubber like face.
The House of David, a Jewish traveling team played at the old park, they featured every player wearing long beards similar to this year’s World Champs.
The New England league local entry was the Lawrence Millionaires and the featured a stylish lefty called Lefty Kadis and a tremendous catcher Jim Duffy who later became a big time major league catcher named Jim Hegan. The visiting Nashua Dodger team featured Don Newcombe, Roy Campanella, Dan Bankhead a few times a season.
They played under the light at the park in those days for owner George Atkinson and Manager George Kissell. Those lights were later transferred and used at the Hayden Schofield on Lawrence St. for fast pitch softball. These lights were just recently replaced by new steel poles and lights at that field. The Lawrence Little League later made its debut with four teams and also drew many fans. So Lawrence East, So Lawence West, Tower Hill and Prospect Hill sent youngsters with major league like uniforms to play at O’Sully’s.
On those first teams were Joe Conley, Archie Halloran, Larry Klimas, Joe Carter, Bobby Lippe, Hany McKenna and Joe Comerford.
Yes there was once a ballpark there one day it was where the Boys Club stands these days.
As Sinatra’s song said there used to be a ballpark there. Well that title rings true to many Lawrencians, especially the athletes from Tower Hill. The Park was the Mullaney and the Guilmette School has taken over most of that park. The Lawrence Fire Alarm System still operates from that site. Gone is the city swimming pool that was located in deep right field for many years.
There was a Little League field also in the right field area that was the home field of the kids of the area including the hill and the Hancock Project also it was the home field of the Tower Hill Junior league. There was also a playground team in a league every summer.
Pat Schiavone who would later become a police chief for the City of Lawrence would be a catcher for the Jr league team. Hank Koza played the infield for that team before starring in 2 sports at CCHS and later teaching at Chelmsford High.
Roger Damphousse a future multi-sport star at Central was to become an all-time great at that school and also is still remembered as an all-time Merrimack College round ball player and is still one of the best the great Boys Club players ever to player for the immortal Steve Kelly.
Pete and Aimie Reming along with Bobby Lefebre and the great Joe Cockroft all learned their sports at the Mullaney and later all starred for LHS in many great seasons. Pete who now lives in Florida must delight in reading about his granddaughters now multi-sport stars at Andover High. Pete’s son is a cop in that town and the great Aimie still lives in the suburban town. He and Cockroft still get together and remain great pals.
Ray Huot and Bobby Blanchette now a retired cop and Billy Pedrick also a retired city cop patrolled 3rd base before being a LHS baseball captain.
The names Shawcross, Ducheteau, Bobby Stott, and Bob Dziodis are all part of the lore of the Mullaney Park. The Hulme brothers whose father was a cop lived across from the park.
Sinatra’s song said it best when he had the hit “There used to be a ballpark there.”
