Calfee Park
Pulaski, VA
Review by Mike
*Note* Calfee Park underwent a major renovation in 2015. These photos and this review are from 2004.
Calfee Park was built in 1935 and is the home of the Pulaski River Turtles of the Appalachian League. I stopped by Calfee Park in 2004 on my way through Pulaski a week or so before the season was scheduled to begin. As a result, there was a lot of work going on at the stadium. The friendly grounds staff let me wander at will.
This is a nice little park tucked between a pair of hills. Houses overlook the high right field wall and trees loom down the left field line. There is an ancient grandstand with a big roof under those trees and more modern seating behind home plate and 1st base.
The drive to Calfee is great, winding roads through the mountains until you spot the light towers sticking up out of the woods. I didn't see a game, but it's a charming little place that looks worth a visit if you're passing by on the interstate.
2022
187
2004
71
Calfee Park underwent a major upgrade in 2015 when the New York Yankees took over the Appalachian League’s Pulaski team. After seven different organizations called this ballyard home since 1936, the stadium would undergo improvements in 2009, 2014, 2018 and 2019 when a new ownership group bought the WPA ballpark from the Town of Pulaski. These improvements included the addition of luxury boxes, a new concourse along the third-base line, a three-tiered party deck in left field, a walk-in retail store, new concession stand, additional restrooms, and a rooftop party deck area outside of the main entrance.
The only remnant of the original stadium is the 1936 stone castle-like entrance gate that stands beyond the first base entrance.
Now home to the Appalachian League’s Pulaski River Turtles, Calfee Park features many interesting vantage points to catch the game. From the VIP Tower seats that flank the press box to the covered seating area along the third base line, the ballpark is still a quaint place to watch a game, tucked into a residential neighborhood in this pleasant little valley.
In order to fully show the transformation, we have left Mike's photos from 2004 above and display Gary's photos from 2022 below. Many of the photos show the same angle, highlighting the degree of the changes.
