[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 126 (Thursday, July 25, 2019)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E998]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          IN RECOGNITION OF WAHCONAH PARK'S 100TH ANNIVERSARY

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                          HON. RICHARD E. NEAL

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, July 25, 2019

  Mr. NEAL. Madam Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to 
recognize the 100th anniversary of Wahconah Park in Pittsfield, 
Massachusetts. Wahconah Park has been a loyal, magical home for 
America's favorite pastime since the 19th century, when the game of 
baseball was first played on its grounds in 1892. Most of the 
ballpark's facilities, however, including its wooden grandstand, were 
officially built in 1919--and they have filled with lovers of the game 
ever since.
  Over the course of more than a century, Wahconah Park has hosted 
numerous Minor League Baseball teams, other professional clubs and 
affiliates, as well as summer collegiate teams--like the Pittsfield 
Suns, who currently call Wahconah home. As the Pittsfield Suns' team 
owner Jeff Goldklang has said, baseball is about history, and it's 
about memories. Wahconah Park is certainly steeped in both. It is a 
testament to the game Americans have loved for decades and continues to 
be a destination for generations of families who come to the Berkshires 
to watch it come to life. And beyond baseball, Wahconah Park has also 
played host to various high school sporting events, and alternated into 
a concert venue at times as well.
  Once again, Madam Speaker, I would like to congratulate Wahconah Park 
on the occasion of its 100th anniversary. The ballpark is city-owned 
and has been integral to the fabric of Pittsfield's community. It 
represents the longevity, history, and character of not only the 
Berkshires, but all of western Massachusetts.

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