These two newspaper articles, published on June 8, 1959, discuss the grandstand fire that occurred at Springfield College's Pratt Field. One article title is "Grandstand at SC Destroyed by Fire," and the other is "Springfield College Grandstand Fire Probe Ordered." Both of these articles appeared to have been published in the Springfield Daily News. The 1000 seat wooden grandstand caught fire without a known origin and spread throughout the whole structure within ten minutes. Pratt Field, including the Grand Stand, was a gift of Mr. Herbert L. Pratt. It consisted, originally, of a quarter-mile track, 220 yard straightaway twenty-four feet wide, eleven runaways and pits for jumping and vaulting, seven tennis courts, a football field, and a baseball diamond. An eight-foot high reinforced concrete fence surrounds the field. The entrances were designed by Edward Lippincourt Tilton, who also designed Judd Gymnasium and the Marsh Memorial Building. The location of Pratt field is still used today for track and field, however the name was changed to Blake Track.
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