The Packers’ home playing field for 31 years was the old “City Stadium,” which was located behind Green Bay’s East High School. At the opening game in 1925, the seating capacity was 5,389 — which was eventually expanded to a peak capacity of 24,500. The field was annually voted the finest playing surface in the league.
But after World War II, “City Stadium” began to be outdated and obsolete, especially compared to the other stadiums in the larger cities. The Packers had trouble scheduling some of the top teams to play there for their home games. One can imagine that even the players back in that era would balk at dressing in a high school locker room before the games.
The very survival of the Packers as a viable National Football League franchise began to be questioned, and so a drive was begun to construct a new stadium on the west side of town. That facility would also be named “City Stadium” when the first game was played there in 1957. It would later be renamed “Lambeau Filed” in 1965 after the death of Packers’ founder and coach Curly Lambeau.
The old “City Stadium” field still exists, and is used by Green Bay East High School for their football needs. A historical marker has been added in recent years to commemorate the Packers’ history at the site.
