Doubleday Field
Abner Doubleday, an 1842 West Point graduate, is said to have devised the game of baseball while on leave from the U.S. Military Academy in 1839, drawing out the diamond and the rules of the game. He called the game "Base Ball," but it was patterned after a game called rounders which was played by boys and girls in England. While the origin of baseball has been disputed, Doubleday, nonetheless, is still given credit and the baseball field at the U.S. Military Academy was dedicated in his honor in May 1939, the centennial year of baseball. Despite the controversy, Doubleday distinguished himself throughout his military career, earning the rank of major general. He served in the Mexican and Civil wars. As a captain, he fired the first gun for the Union side in the Civil War at Fort Sumter. On Nov. 29, 1862, he was made a major general of the volunteers. He retired from the U.S. Army in 1873 and died Jan. 26, 1893 in New Jersey at the age of 74.