Chicago's first double-decked stadium. An August 5, 1894 game with Cincinnati was suspended due to a fire in the wooden stands. The Cleveland Spiders played their home games here in 1898 after their ballpark burned down. (SCL)

FROM THE BASEBALL CHRONOLOGY » May 3, 1896: With an overflow crowd of 17,231 at Chicago's West Side Grounds, the umpire rules that any ball hit into the crowd is a ground-rule triple. The Colts take advantage and crack nine triples, including three by Bill Dahlen, to crush St. Louis, 16–7. » May 7, 1902: The Cubs' Jack Taylor beats Christy Mathewson 4-0 at Chicago's West Side Grounds. Taylor gives up just two hits, while Matty allows five. Following a Giants' protest tomorrow that Taylor was pitching from in front of the rubber, this game will later be ruled invalid and all the records will be thrown out, including Taylor's win and Matty's loss. » May 31, 1903: At Chicago's West Side Grounds, the Cubs collect 17 hits-all singles-to beat the Cardinals, 17-4. St. Louis helps winning pitcher Jake Weimer with six errors. » October 1, 1903: In the first City Series between the Chicago White Sox and the Chicago Nationals, Jack Taylor shuts out the Sox, 11–0, on three hits at the West Side Grounds. The Colts win the next two games, but Taylor will lose his next three starts and the series will end tied at seven apiece on October 15. Sox owner Charles Comiskey is willing to play it out but the Colts Jim Hart is not (according to historian Benton Stark). Hart is convinced that Taylor lost his games deliberately for money and will trade the star in two months. » May 23, 1904: Chicago's Jake Weimer and Christy Mathewson duel for 11 innings before the game is a called a 1-1 tie. Ump Bob Emslie calls the game at the West Side Grounds so the Giants can catch a train for New York. Matty allows six hits, one less than Weimer. » June 13, 1905: At the West Side Grounds, Christy Mathewson and the Zephyrs' (Cubs) Mordecai "Three Finger" Brown almost matched Matty for eight innings, allowing just two hits, but four straight hits in the 9th score the winning run for Giants, 1–0. Matty tosses his 2nd no-hitter and his 31–8 record and 1.27 ERA, with nine shutouts, will mark his 3rd straight 30-win year. » September 1, 1906: With the regular umpires sick from food poisoning, Cub P Carl Lundgren and Cardinal C Pete Noonan are picked to umpire. The Cubs, behind Mordecai Brown's 5-hitter, win 8-1 for their 14th win in a row at the West Side Grounds. » October 9, 1906: Snow flies at the West Side Grounds as the first one-city World Series opens with the Cubs heavy favorites over the AL's "Hitless Wonders." Neither ballpark can accommodate the crowds, so the Chicago Tribune recreates the games on mechanical boards displayed at theaters. White Sox starter Nick Altrock and Cubs starter Three Finger Brown give up four hits each, but Cubs errors produce two unearned runs for a 2-1 White Sox victory. » September 14, 1907: At the West Side Grounds, Chicago beats the visiting Reds, 12-5. The Cubs collect 19 hits to the Reds 10 hits-all 29 are singles. » October 4, 1908: The Cubs and Pirates play their last game of the year before 30,247, the largest crowd ever at Chicago's West Side Grounds. The Cubs win, 5–2, behind Three Finger Brown to eliminate the Pirates. Chicago ends the year at 98-55 while the Pirates finish at 98-56. Then they await the results of the three Giants games with Boston. Back in Pittsburgh, 50,000 people watch the progress of the Cub's game on temporary scoreboards. Fans fill New York's Polo Grounds to watch the action in the same way. Men with megaphones announce each pitch. » June 11, 1909: At the West Side Grounds, the Braves win over Chicago, 4-2, for their only win against the Cubs this year. Boston will go 1-21 against the Cubs and 2-20 versus the Pirates. » May 30, 1910: In an A.M.–P.M. doubleheader with the St. Louis Cardinals at the West Side Grounds, Chicago takes the morning contest, 6–1, behind Mordecai Brown. It's Chicago's 11th straight win, but St. Louis stops them in the afternoon, 3–1. » June 11, 1911: At the West Side Grounds, the Cubs crush lowly Boston, 20–2. Chicago is led by the slugging of Heinie Zimmerman who drives home a club-record nine runs on two three-run homers, a 2-run triple, and a single. » September 30, 1911: At the West Side Grounds, Red Ames gives the Giants a needed 3–1 victory over the 2nd-place Cubs. » April 29, 1913: After a game in St. Louis, the Reds' trainer forgets to load the uniforms on the train. In Chicago, the Cincy squad borrows White Sox uniforms and then loses to the Cubs 7–2, at the West Side Grounds. » September 29, 1915: Wilbur Good, of the Cubs, hits the last home run at West Side Grounds as Chicago make good, winning 5–4, over the Reds.