Messer Street Grounds, also known as Messer Park or Messer Field, is a former baseball park located in Providence, Rhode Island. It was home to the Providence Grays of the National League from 1878 to 1885 and of the minor league Providence Grays of the Eastern League in 1886. In 1878, the Providence Base Ball Association formed and began scouting around the city for a good location for "the best baseball plant in the country". Team directors visited the old Josiah Chapin farm on city's west side and decided that it fit all of the requirements for a baseball park. It was close to level, it was raised up a few feet from the surrounding roads, and it was easily accessible by street car. Construction on Messer Park began on April 1 and took exactly one month to complete; the final nail was hammered a mere five minutes before the opening game got underway on May 1. Ballpark Description The new ballpark opened to the public on May 1, 1878. The following account from the Providence Morning Star captures the excitement and provides a very detailed description of the park: "The large grandstand held twelve hundred people, among them hundreds of ladies. The long semi-circular tiers of seats were black with men and boys, and hundreds were standing, unable to get seats. The commodious space for carriages was completely filled, and one or two May Day riding parties also graced that part of the grounds...Two registering turnstiles gates admit the patrons to the grounds, and as each ticket holder passes through the gate he steps on a raised platform, and by a mechanical arrangement is registered, and only one person can pass through the gate at a time. Near the gate are two ticket offices, and a large entrance through which the crowd can pass at the end of the game. At the southeast corner there is a large gate to admit carriages to the park. The ground, which contains nearly six acres of land, is enclosed by a fence twelve feet high. The diamond is as level as constant rolling by heavy stone and iron rollers can make it. Inside of the base lines is turfed, except a space nine feet in width, reaching from the pitcher's position to the home plate. Twenty-two feet are sodded outside of the diamond. Paths leading to and from the bases have been