Henninger Field, at the corner of Vine Street and Riddle Alley
in Chambersburg, had been built as Wolf Park in 1895. It had
been renamed in 1920 in honor of Clay Henninger, the
Chambersburg businessman who formed Chambersburg Maroons
baseball team. The New York Yankees purchased the Maroons in
1929, which is what led to the Yankees coming to town for an
exhibition game. It wasn't so much the Yankees arrival that was
causing all of the excitement in town, though. Babe Ruth was
coming to Chambersburg. Despite the Yankees being the reigning
World Series champions, the Babe was the only player who was
mentioned in the advertisements for the May 31, 1929, exhibition
game. The ad headlines read: "N.Y. Yankees with Babe Ruth vs.
Chambersburg Young Yanks." Even the great Lou Gehrig wasn't
mentioned in the ads. A second game between Chambersburg and
Martinsburg was on the schedule as well, though no one would
remember that one. They came to see baseball's living legend
play. The Yankees reserved twelve double rooms an