1910 Chattanooga loved a challenge! Could baseball enthusiasts and the city leaders excite residents in Hamilton and the surrounding region and ‘turn out’ a crowd of more than 10,000 for the opening season game at Andrews Field against Memphis? Breaking the attendance record in the Southern League would cement the Chattanooga’s name in baseball circles, guaranteeing future schedules.
Supporting Andrews Field united the community and leadership teams emerged. The general committee consisted of J.
J. Horan, Sanborn Chamberlain, Henry Hood, Mel Wright, Alex Scott, Jr. and Henry Rose. The Retail Merchants assembled their own team; J. M. Shaw, Frank Mahoney and Albert Rogers pledged to call on every retail business, encouraging owners and managers to close at 3:00 pm on April 18, 1910 so Chattanooga could swarm the baseball field. The Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce endorsed the plan and chose W. E. Brock, Frank Reynold and Emil Wassman to speak to church, civic and community groups. They called upon Mayor T. C. Thompson to “make a speech” and joined with the other committees to orchestrate all sorts of “big doings” at the ball park. Brock then announced that a band had been secured and a “big parade from downtown” would preceded the game. Six hundred Elks would join and parade and attend the game, sitting in a special section. Their challenge to other “secret groups” to join the parade was met with enthusiasm.
The organizers began an outreach to neighboring communities; Trenton, Rossville, Ringgold and Lafayette, Georgia were among the first towns visited. Then the sweep broadened. From Cleveland to Dayton - - James County to Marion and Franklin Counties and beyond, organizers used the rail system to spread the word.
The Chattanooga Daily Times challenge read “If Chattanooga can have 10,000 people at that game the city can boast of the largest crowd that ever attended a Southern league game. Can we do it? Easy. GET BUSY.”
On week later, April 19,1910, the Chattanooga News headline read “Largest Crowd Ever at Game in This City on Hand to Root for Victory.” The first sentence of the featured article read, “Hemmed in by a crowd which encircled the spacious stands and bleachers at Andrews Field, the Chattanooga Lookouts defeated Memphis yesterday afternoon by the score of 6 to 2.” A newspaper reader could almost hear the throngs of cheering fans. The game had begun with Mayor Thompson making a speech to the Chattanooga players before he threw across, or, as the reporter noted “attempted to throw across” the first pitch of the season.
The day was cloudy, threatening and “bitterly cold,” but the fans had filled the stands long before the 3pm start. While the paid attendance did not break the 10,000 fans record, the ‘unpaid’ observers “overflowed onto the field and the game had to be stopped as game rules were established.” Reporters estimated that the total attendance was between 10,000 and 11,000 “witnessing the new field’s first game.” Several news articles included photos of fans “stationed at knot holes, on telephone and telegraph poles, box cars and on the hills surrounding the park.” As much as Chattanooga desired to break the Southern League attendance records, some fans applauded the creative ways in which, especially younger fans without the admission price, managed to view the game.
Chattanooga managed to pull off an upset of its own in addition to winning the game. Spectators were surprised when paperboys from the Chattanooga News’ hit the stands during the fifth inning, distributing free copies of the “First Sporting Extra.” The special edition included a story about the parade, the text of Mayor Thompson’s speech and a detailed description of the first three innings of play. Then the Chattanooga News topped its earlier performance by printing and distributing a “Second Sports Extra” within minutes of the final play. This edition contained a “full and complete account of the Chattanooga-Memphis game” along with the scores, runs, etc. of all the other games played that day - - Southern, National, America and South Atlantic Leagues. Fans vowed to keep the newspaper as a ‘treasured memento’ of the Lookouts’ first game at Andrews Field. The Associated Press has assisted The Chattanooga News by running a special leased telephone line from its press box at Andrews Field to The News office, allowing the typesetters to work in almost real time conditions.
Opening day proved to be a success and, while the extreme cold weather might have impacted the pitcher’s control of the ball, the Lookouts’ infield was fast, the outfield strong and the pitching “was still a revelation” to fans and the Memphis players.”
Andrews Field and the Chattanooga Lookouts were poised for a great 1910 season.