The last piece of Shea Stadium standing was taken down around noon Eastern, as all that’s left from the former home of the New York Mets is a pile of rubble.
Shea Stadium is no more, as the last bit of the ballpark standing — a multistory staircase — was taken down today.
It’s a bittersweet day, to be sure. On the one hand, Shea Stadium had not aged well in recent years: once hailed as the visionary sporting facility built in conjunction with the now-legendary 1964 World’s Fair, Shea Stadium had deteriorated and become, quite honestly, a poor place to watch a major-league game.
It was revered because of the great moments played out there, ranging from the original Mets to the Amazin’ Mets of 1969 to the 1986 team given new life by Bill Buckner’s inexplicable error in Game 6 of the World Series. And we’re guessing with a little TLC the ballpark experience at Shea Stadium could have been improved, but let’s face it: there’s a reason why the multipurpse cookie-cutter stadiums of the 1960s have, by and large, died.
But here’s a toast to another fallen ballpark. Above, the cover from the dedication program; below, a photo by Jim Robins in one of Shea’s final seasons.