Shea Stadium’s home plate. A place where legends were born, victories celebrated, and hearts broken. This unassuming marker in a parking lot is a portal to a bygone era. Shea Stadium, a concrete coliseum that stood just steps from here, hosted the New York Mets from 1964 to 2008. It wasn’t just a baseball stadium; it was a stage for history, a crucible of dreams. Shea witnessed the Miracle Mets of 1969 defy 100-1 odds to win the World Series. Fans stormed this very field, a joyous bedlam that echoed the city’s spirit. Tommie Agee launched a ball into the upper deck in left field, a feat marked with a sign bearing his number and the date: April 10, 1969. Years later, Dave Kingman, a future Met, hit a home run that shattered the windshield of the Giants’ team bus parked beyond the left-field bullpen. Shea also hosted postseason baseball in 1973, 1986, 1988, 1999, 2000, and 2006, showcasing dramatic walk-off home runs by the likes of Lenny Dykstra and Todd Pratt. But Shea wasn’t just about baseball. The Beatles played here in 1965, a record-breaking concert that ushered in the era of stadium rock. The roar of 55,600 fans was so deafening that the band couldn’t hear themselves play. In 1975, Shea became the only venue in professional sports history to host two baseball and two football teams in the same year: the Mets, Yankees, Jets, and Giants. The stadium’s rotating stands facilitated this unique arrangement. Shea Stadium was a place where the ordinary became extraordinary. It was a place where memories were made, and those memories resonate still. This plaque, marking the site of home plate, is a testament to the enduring power of place, a reminder that even in a parking lot, history echoes.
Gould Family Mausoleum
Ever heard of a “Robber Baron?” Here at Woodlawn Cemetery stands the Gould Family Mausoleum. It is a testament to