Thirlby Field
Thirlby Field is a 9,000-seat football stadium located in Traverse City, Michigan. It was built in 1934 on a site where football has been played since 1896 by the Traverse City Trojans . It is the home of the Traverse City Central Trojans, West Titans and St. Francis Gladiators. The field has also been home to the Traverse City Patriot Game since 2012.
History
Thirlby Field originally ran north and south along Pine Street when play began in 1896. Mr. Thirlby, a local farmer gave the land to the Traverse City Schools for athletic contests. In the early years it was known as Thirlby's farm fields, or 12th Street Athletic Field. The current configuration was originally built in 1934 and was one of the first lighted athletic fields in Northern Michigan. It was then officially given the name "Thirlby Field" in honor of former mayor and Dr. Thirlby a relative of the farmer Thirlby. The stadium seated 5,000 until 1995 and is the only football stadium in Traverse City. Seating was enlarged to approx 9,000 at that time. Improvements to the stadium including the addition of locker rooms, public bathrooms, and an elevator to the press-box were made in 2009.
The stadium is adjacent to the Glenn Loomis Elementary School.