Three Rivers Stadium

Three Rivers Stadium
The Blast Furnace; The House that Clemente Built
	Three Rivers Stadium in 1999
Location	792 W General Robinson St ; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15212
Coordinates	40°26′48″N 80°0′46″W / 40.44667°N 80.01278°W
Owner	Pittsburgh
Operator	Pittsburgh Stadium Authority
Capacity	Football: 59,000; Baseball: 47,971
Field size	Left Field — 335 ft / 102 m; Left-Center — 375 ft / 114 m; Center Field — 400 ft / 122 m; Right-Center — 375 ft / 114 m; Right Field — 335 ft / 102 m; Wall height — 10 ft / 3 m
Surface	Tartan Turf (1970–1982); AstroTurf (1983–2000)
Construction
Broke ground	April 25, 1968
Opened	July 16, 1970
Closed	December 16, 2000
Demolished	February 11, 2001
Construction cost	US$55 million; ($457 million in 2023 dollars)
Architect	Deeter Ritchy Sipple; Michael Baker Jr.
Structural engineer	Osborn Engineering
Services engineer	Elwood S. Tower Consulting Engineers
General contractor	Huber, Hunt & Nichols/Mascaro
Tenants
	Pittsburgh Pirates (MLB) (1970–2000); Pittsburgh Steelers (NFL) (1970–2000); Duquesne Dukes (1971); Pittsburgh Maulers (USFL) (1984); Pittsburgh Panthers (NCAA) (2000)
Pennsylvania Historical Marker
Designated	November 26, 2007

Three Rivers Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, from 1970 to 2000. It was home to the Pittsburgh Pirates of Major League Baseball (MLB) and the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL).

Built to replace Forbes Field, which opened in 1909, the US$55 million ($457 million today) multi-purpose facility was designed to maximize efficiency. Ground was broken in April 1968 and construction, often behind schedule, took 29 months.^[6] The stadium opened on July 16, 1970, with a Pirates game. In the 1971 World Series, Three Rivers Stadium hosted the first World Series game played at night. The following year, the stadium was the site of the Immaculate Reception. The final game in the stadium was won by the Steelers on December 16, 2000. Three Rivers Stadium also hosted the Pittsburgh Maulers of the United States Football League and the University of Pittsburgh Panthers football team for a single season each.^[7]^[8]

After its closing, Three Rivers Stadium was imploded in 2001, and the Pittsburgh Pirates and Pittsburgh Steelers moved into newly built dedicated stadiums: PNC Park and Heinz Field (now Acrisure Stadium), respectively.

^ 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.
^ "Experience – Public / Government". Elwood S. Tower Consulting Engineers. Archived from the original on February 13, 2015. Retrieved February 12, 2015.
^ "Three Rivers Stadium". Ballparks.com. Retrieved June 3, 2014.
^ "082517" (PDF).
^ "PHMC Historical Markers Search". Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Archived from the original (Searchable database) on March 21, 2016. Retrieved January 25, 2014.
^ "31 Slices of Three Rivers History". Pittsburgh Steelers. Archived from the original on February 25, 2005. Retrieved August 7, 2008.
^ "Pittsburgh Maulers". United States Football League History. Retrieved August 7, 2008.
^ "A Fond Farewell". Sports Illustrated. December 15, 2000. Retrieved August 7, 2008.

[inflation-US-1] 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.

[2] "Experience – Public / Government". Elwood S. Tower Consulting Engineers. Archived from the original on February 13, 2015. Retrieved February 12, 2015.

[3] "Three Rivers Stadium". Ballparks.com. Retrieved June 3, 2014.

[4] "082517" (PDF).

[PAHMDB-5] "PHMC Historical Markers Search". Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Archived from the original (Searchable database) on March 21, 2016. Retrieved January 25, 2014.

[Slices-6] "31 Slices of Three Rivers History". Pittsburgh Steelers. Archived from the original on February 25, 2005. Retrieved August 7, 2008.

[7] "Pittsburgh Maulers". United States Football League History. Retrieved August 7, 2008.

[8] "A Fond Farewell". Sports Illustrated. December 15, 2000. Retrieved August 7, 2008.

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Construction
The Blast Furnace The House that Clemente Built

Three Rivers Stadium in 1999

Location	792 W General Robinson St Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15212
Coordinates	40°26′48″N 80°0′46″W / 40.44667°N 80.01278°W / 40.44667; -80.01278
Owner	Pittsburgh
Operator	Pittsburgh Stadium Authority
Capacity	Football: 59,000 Baseball: 47,971
Field size	Left Field — 335 ft / 102 m Left-Center — 375 ft / 114 m Center Field — 400 ft / 122 m Right-Center — 375 ft / 114 m Right Field — 335 ft / 102 m Wall height — 10 ft / 3 m
Surface	Tartan Turf (1970–1982) AstroTurf (1983–2000)
Broke ground	April 25, 1968; 56 years ago (1968-04-25)
Opened	July 16, 1970; 53 years ago (1970-07-16)
Closed	December 16, 2000; 23 years ago (2000-12-16)
Demolished	February 11, 2001; 23 years ago (2001-02-11)
Construction cost	US$55 million ($457 million in 2023 dollars^[1])
Architect	Deeter Ritchy Sipple Michael Baker Jr.
Structural engineer	Osborn Engineering
Services engineer	Elwood S. Tower Consulting Engineers^[2]
General contractor	Huber, Hunt & Nichols/Mascaro^[3]
Tenants
Pittsburgh Pirates (MLB) (1970–2000) Pittsburgh Steelers (NFL) (1970–2000) Duquesne Dukes (1971)^[4] Pittsburgh Maulers (USFL) (1984) Pittsburgh Panthers (NCAA) (2000)

Pennsylvania Historical Marker
Designated	November 26, 2007^[5]