Rickwood Field opened in 1910, making it the oldest professional baseball park in the United States. It sits a mile west of downtown and looks almost exactly as it did in its playing days — wooden grandstands, manual scoreboard, and an outfield wall that still carries the ghosts of its painted advertisements. The park was the home of both the white Birmingham Barons and the Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro Leagues.
The Friends of Rickwood organization maintains the park and hosts an annual vintage baseball game each summer using period equipment and rules. Willie Mays grew up in Birmingham and played for the Black Barons here before being signed by the Giants, which gives the place an unmistakable connection to baseball history. The park is open for self-guided visits on most days; check the schedule before you go.