09/02/2026
Locke Field opened in 1946, and was home to the Gainesville Owls and was one of the last baseball fields in Texas with wooden dugouts and covered wooden stands. During that first season in 1947, the Owls were owned by three men: George Frizzell, Cecil Farr, and Harvey Shanks. Their budget was tight. Team members received uniforms, but the players furnished certain extras such as gloves and shoes. Fans paid $1.00 admission to help with the costs. But, the fans did not seem to mind, as attending an Owls game appeared to be a favorite pastime for many local citizens. People dressed up to go to the games - no jeans and tennis shoes! The Gainesville Owls won the 1951 Big State League championship.
Two years ago, Dave England wrote here about Locke Field, a former Class D ballpark in Gainesville, Texas in danger of being torn down. “There’s an apartment complex in Brooklyn where Ebbets Field once stood,” England wrote. “Here’s hoping a similar fate doesn’t befall Locke Field.”
On Tuesday, the Gainesville City Council voted 7-0 to approve a 52-year lease with Orison Holdings of Denton, Texas to build an apartment complex where Locke Field currently stands. Gainesville City Manager Barry Sullivan said in a phone interview with this website that construction will begin within six months. No demolition time for Locke Field has been scheduled. It’s uncertain if anything from the ballpark will be preserved. Sullivan said this was the third time since May 2010 the council has considered plans for Locke Field, which the city owns. “This wasn’t a one-night, ‘Let’s vote on this’ thing,” Sullivan said. “It’s been coming since 2010.”
As England wrote, Locke Field opened in 1946 and has been identified by the Society for American Baseball Research as one of the final Class D ballparks standing. England wrote of it as “one of the last baseball fields in Texas with wooden dugouts and covered wooden stands.”
Graham Womack, The Society for American Baseball Research member, Baseball Past and Present, April 9, 2015
*Clarification: Locke field was demolished in 2015 and was located at 400 S. Culberson st.
