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Originally built for the San Francisco Giants (MLB), Candlestick Park has been the home of the 49ers since 1971. Talk of building a stadium in the San Francisco area first began in 1954, when the mayor George Christopher promised to build a stadium if a major league team would move to the area. Later in the year, a $5 million bond was issued to build a stadium. Along with the Brooklyn Dodgers (MLB), the New York Giants (MLB) decided to move to the west coast after the 1957 season. The Giants moved to San Francisco, while the Dodgers moved to Los Angeles. Two locations for a new stadium in San Francisco were discussed. One in downtown, and one at Candlestick Point. The site at Candlestick Point, located near the San Francisco Bay, was chosen because of the price of land.
Construction on the stadium began in August of 1958. Immediately after construction began, problems arose. Neighbors complained about numerous things, grand juries investigated irregular funding in the stadium, seats were delayed being installed because of a Teamster strike, and the stadium was called a fire trap. However, the stadium was completed. The stadium was named Candlestick Park, after its location. The Giants played the first game ever at Candlestick Park was on April 20, 1961. When it opened, Candlestick Park had around 45,000 seats. While the Giants were playing Candlestick Park, the 49ers were playing at Kezar Stadium. The 49ers had played at Kezar
Stadium since 1946. After only several years
of existence, Candlestick Park began to
deteriorate. At one point the mayor of San
Francisco proposed that a new $50 million
stadium be built in the downtown area, but
his idea was dropped. However, the city
spent $16.1 million in 1971 to improve and
make the stadium multipurpose, where the San
Francisco 49ers (NFL) would also play.
Candlestick Park was enclosed, increasing
the seating capacity to 59,000, retractable
seats were added in right field to allow the
conversion to a football field, and the
grass field was replaced by Astroturf. The
49ers played their first game at Candlestick
Park on October 10, 1971. Very few changes
have taken place since 1971 at Candlestick
Park.
In 1979, the Astroturf was replaced by
grass. In 1995, Candlestick Park was renamed
3 Com Park after 3 Com Corp. bought the
naming rights. After the 1999 MLB season,
the San Francisco Giants moved into Pacific
Bell Park. Since then the 49ers have had the
stadium to themselves. After the 2001 NFL
season, 3 Com Park was renamed Candlestick
Park. The 49ers continue to sell out every
game. However the team hopes to move into a
new stadium in the future.
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