After attending my first Elmer Flick Day event at the Ellenwood Recreation Center, I started reminiscing about my days as a Bedford kid in the late 1980s to mid‑1990s. Playing ball for the Rec was a staple of childhood, and there were plenty of kids in town who loved the sport. Bedford had roughly five or six teams, Walton Hills had two, and Oakwood had one. There were enough kids around that the Rec also had a Bedford girls’ softball league that also included Walton Hills and Oakwood.
Bedford was full of ball fields; it seemed like every neighborhood had its own. My field, three doors up from our house, was Glendale. The burning summer days bleeding into lightning‑bug dusk, my dad pitching me the ball for batting practice, announcing, “Here comes the lefty to the plate, game on the line, down by one in the bottom of the ninth, man on third, two outs, full count, the wind‑up, the pitch…”
I still have my old Rawlings glove my grandpa bought me from Dunham’s to replace the one I left behind after a game. When I pull it down from the attic, put it on, and smell that dusty old leather, so many memories of the fun we had on our little diamond come flooding back.
Quite honestly, as I’m writing this, I’m thinking about the camaraderie of my peers and the lessons learned between the lines—but mostly about how my dad took the time to teach me the game and, with my mom as scorekeeper, coach our little league teams. In fact, if I close my eyes, I can still see my parents as they looked back then, just a tad more youthful than today.
I also think about how my grandpa (the original lefty), with his basket‑woven folding chair and lip full of Beech-Nut chew, would seldom miss a game. When you’re a kid, the world revolves around you, and you often fail to notice the sacrifices being made to ensure your happiness.
We played on that field into our teens and then, like many other things, interests changed and those big‑league dreams faded. These little neighborhood fields were more than just dusty patches cut out of the grass and wrapped in chain link; they were spaces that created lifelong memories that seem to grow in meaning the older I become.
Over the decades (since my game‑winning walk‑off home run at Glendale), I’ve noticed that some of the ball fields have disappeared. My home field is now a parking lot. I remember it happening but wasn’t in the mindset to really care at the time. The world is constantly changing, sometimes in plain sight sometimes not. But like many things in life: once they’re gone, they’re gone.
Fields of Yesterday and Today
- Greencroft’s Elmer Flick Field was once located closer to the street. The area where the field sits today was originally a soccer field.
- Central School had a baseball field off Wheelock Drive that was set back from the road, allowing the batter to face toward Wheelock Drive.
- Bedford High School once had a field where the north-side parking lot is now located. Today, the school has two fields: one in the back lot on the south side of the property and Francis Griffin Field, located behind Bearcat Stadium.
- Glendale Field was once located where the west Glendale bus drive is today.
- St. Pius had a field directly behind the school, where the Hubbell Circle homes now stand.
- Chanel High School had two fields on its back property.
- Taft Park had/has two baseball fields.
- Carylwood School had a field on the south end of the building.
- Interstate Field is located between Justin Street and Charles Street—not on Interstate Road, as the name might suggest.
- Hutchinson Field, (named after past city manager O.E. Hutchinson) at the corner of West Grace Street and Turney Road, was once surrounded by trees. The portion closest to the road was later converted into soccer fields.
- Tim Lally Field, affectionately known by many as “The Glens,” remains one of the community’s most beautiful parks.
- Ellenwood Field was—and still is—the jewel of Bedford’s ballparks. Night games under the lights and snacks from the concession stand made it a favorite for generations of players and fans.
- T.J. Young Park in Walton Hills has three baseball fields.
- Oakwood Park currently has two fields. However, in the 1990s there was only one field at the park. The second field was located off Broadway, where the entrance to Mount Zion Circle is today.
After-Game Treats
After a big win, the team would head to one of Bedford’s three ice cream spots to celebrate. Maybe you’d order a slushy, a Blizzard, a dipped cone, or every kid’s favorite—the Dairy Queen Mini Ice Cream Cake.
Occasionally, one of the more mischievous kids would sneak a ketchup packet or two under the tire of an unsuspecting parent’s car. But I was definitely not that kid… I promise.
Sadly, all three of the ice cream places where we celebrated our victories are now gone.
- Dairy Queen Brazier – 397 Broadway
- Dairy Queen (later Bedford Dairy Kings) – Corner of Columbus Road and Northfield Road
- Polar Blast (formerly Dairy Smile) – Corner of Paul Street and Northfield Road
Which makes me wonder…do Bedford-ites not like ice cream anymore? Surely we could all use more ice cream in our lives.
