LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The Old Cardinal Stadium in Louisville is about to become nothing but a memory, with demolition scheduled for January 23.
Kentucky Venues shared a list of some of the stadium's most notable moments - and some of the events may surprise you!
DID YOU KNOW?
-When the stadium opened in 1956, it was originally named Fairgrounds Stadium.
-The first event that took place at the stadium was an NFL exhibition football game. The Baltimore Colts and Philadelphia Eagles faced off on September 9, 1956.
-The stadium was home to the Louisville Raiders football team from 1960 to 1962.
-The stadium was home to two minor league baseball teams: the Louisville Colonels from 1957-1962 and again in 1968-1972, and the Louisville Redbirds from 1982-1999.
-During the Kentucky State Fair in 1962, the stadium hosted a star-studded country music show, featuring Johnny Cash, June Carter, and George Jones.
-The 1974 fair featured performances by Ray Stevens and The Osmonds.
-The first annual Kentucky State Fair Bowl in 1978 pitted four high school football teams against each other in a double-header.
-The Oak Ridge Bowls began their first run of Kentucky State Fair shows in 1979. (Although they first performed as a gospel quartet in 1972).
-The Kentucky Trackers of the American Football Association played at the stadium from 1979 to 1980.
-Fairgrounds Stadium was renamed to Cardinal Stadium in 1982.
PHOTOS: Old Cardinal Stadium through the years
-The Rolling Stones played a concert at Cardinal Stadium on September 19, 1989 as part of their Steel Wheels Tour. Living Color opened for the rock band.
-Cardinal Stadium was the home of the University of Louisville football team from 1957 to 1997 and the UofL baseball team from 1998 to 2004.
-The stadium hosted state championship games from 1964 to 2002, including hosting all four state championship games played annually from 1979 to 2002.
-From 2001 to 2003, the Bands of America Louisville Regional Championships were held at Cardinal Stadium.
-In 2013, the Kentucky State Fair Board stated that the seating in the stadium was unstable for people to sit in and seating was placed on the field for fair concerts from 2013 to 2017.
-Demolition on the first set of bleachers began on November 17, 2014.
-Seats from the stadium will be available for purchase starting on January 25.
For more information on the demolition and more, visit KyVenues.com
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