Three Rivers Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania from 1970 to 2000. It was home to the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Pittsburgh Steelers, the city's Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise and National Football League (NFL) franchise respectively.
Built as a replacement to Forbes Field, which opened in 1909, the US$55 million ($329.2 million today) multi-purpose facility was designed to maximize efficiency. Ground was broken in April 1968 and an oft behind-schedule construction plan lasted for 29 months. The stadium opened on July 16, 1970 when the Pirates played their first game. In the 1971 World Series, Three Rivers Stadium hosted the first World Series game played at night. The following year the stadium was the site of the Immaculate Reception. The final game in the stadium was won by the Steelers on December 16, 2000. Three Rivers Stadium also hosted the Pittsburgh Maulers of the United States Football League and the University of Pittsburgh Panthers football team for a single season each.
After its closing, Three Rivers Stadium was imploded in 2001, and the Pirates and Steelers each moved into newly built stadiums.
Famous quotes containing the words rivers and/or stadium:
“He who hears the rippling of rivers in these degenerate days will not utterly despair.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“It’s no accident that of all the monuments left of the Greco- Roman culture the biggest is the ballpark, the Colosseum, the Yankee Stadium of ancient times.”
—Walter Wellesley (Red)