American Legion Memorial Stadium
| Memorial Stadium | |
 |
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| Location | Elizabeth, Charlotte, North Carolina |
|---|---|
| Owner | City of Charlotte |
| Operator | Mecklenburg Park & Rec |
| Capacity | 21,000 24,000 (?–2009) 16,000 (2009) 17,000 (2010–present) |
| Surface | Natural Grass |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | January 1934 |
| Opened | September 1, 1936 |
| Construction cost | ?? |
| Architect | ?? |
| Tenants | |
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Central High School (NCHSAA) (1936–1959) CC-UNC Owls football (1946) Charlotte Hornets (WFL) (1974–1975) Carolina Lightnin' (ASL) (1981–1984) Myers Park High School Mustangs (NCHSAA) (2012) Charlotte Hounds (MLL) (2012–present) JCSU Golden Bulls (some games) Local soccer, football, rugby, and lacrosse championships |
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American Legion Memorial Stadium is a 17,000-seat stadium located on 7th Street in the Elizabeth community of Charlotte, North Carolina. It is located on a complex with the Grady Cole Center. Both are located next to Central Piedmont Community College. Independence Park Stadium, a tiny public baseball stadium, is also close by. Memorial Stadium is mainly used for high school sporting events and also serves as a public venue. Prior to the construction of nearby Bank of America Stadium in 1996, Memorial Stadium was Charlotte's largest outdoor stadium, and is still the largest municipal venue in the city.
Ground was broken on the stadium in 1934 and the gates were officially opened two years later in 1936. Named in honor of local soldiers who fell in World War I, the stadium was a project of the Works Progress Administration.
Throughout the years the stadium hosted events of every kind, ranging from Presidential addresses to classic professional wrestling encounters featuring local hero Ric Flair. The stadium formerly hosted Charlotte (Central) High School (which is now Garinger). For many years afterward, as the city grew and opened more high schools, the stadium was used practically every week during the football season to accommodate both schools which had no campus stadium and large crowds which some campus stadiums could not contain for the more popular match-ups.
In 1985, the stadium hosted a preseason USFL game between the Baltimore Stars and Tampa Bay Bandits in February.
From 1937 to 2000, the stadium annually hosted the Shrine Bowl which was a match-up of the top high school football players in North Carolina and South Carolina. Sometime during the 1960s and 1970s, Memorial Stadium gained upper level seating on both sides of the field, raising its capacity to over 20,000.
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