Fifth Step: Rockford Peaches and the AAGPBL ~Exploring~

Before our big move to Oregon we managed to make it up to Rockford,IL to see Beyer Field, the Peaches home field. There isn’t much left of what was originally there, but the brick entryway where patrons would enter and ticket windows are still there. The field is in the midst of being restored with new amenities being added every year and a new team calls Beyer Field home, the Rockford Starfires. We didn’t get to see a game there but we did get to a little sneak into the Midway Village Museum. Unfortunately, they were closed to the public the one day we could go out there! 😦 However, someone there did let us into the gift shop and we got Peach bobble head, a t-shirt and we got see some pictures of the Peaches that were hanging in the halls. I was so bummed to miss the actual museum. Argh! So, no game and no museum. The trip felt a little like a bust but we did go to fabulous children’s museum while we were in town and the kids had fun and got to see a little bit of history. 🙂

Fifth Step: Rockford Peaches and the AAGPBL ~Wise Words~

Fifth Step: Rockford Peaches and the AAGPBL ~Introduction~

Summer is here and so is baseball. I grew up in the Midwest and lived there my whole life…until a month ago. When spring and summer come, so does the excitement of baseball! While girls and womens softball is hot hot hot now, there was a time when womens hard ball baseball was the place to be and that was in the mid 1940s to the mid 1950s. One of the most well known All-American Girls Professional Baseball League teams was the Rockford Peaches, based out of Rockford, IL. You might know them from a little movie called, A League of Their Own. 🙂 Today, Rockford is home to the Rockford Starfires, a new hard ball team looking to revive women’s baseball on the Peaches old stomping grounds. However, that doesn’t mean the Peaches are gone, or forgotten! They live on through the WWII Girls Baseball Living History League! They play at different historical reenactments, museums, and events in Wisconsin, Illinois, and Indiana and we had the pleasure of seeing them play at Cantigny Parks and Garden before our move west. They are fabulous and you should really get out and see them play if you can(or even join their league if you have a passion for baseball and fun–I was seriously considering it myself if we weren’t moving)! Check out their schedule at the link to their site above! The ladies were happy to talk to the kids and spread their love of history and baseball. They even asked Big Sister and Little sister to come try their hand at hitting the ball and running the bases DURING their game! How fantastic is that?! They even let Little Sister keep their practice ball. I have to say the kids really felt like they hit the jackpot and so did I! Such a great experience and memories! These are some of my favorite photos to date! Please enjoy!