History of Hippach Field

Lucas Tuttle
Contributing Writer

Just across the street from the Gifford’s and McDonald’s here in Farmington lies one of the crown jewels of the town, the Howard H. Hippach Memorial Athletic Field. The historic ballpark was named after a young man named Howard Hippach who was a multi-sport athlete at the Abbot School for Boys. This school is now known by many as Merrill Hall on the UMF campus.

One night in 1914, Hippach was driving his car when, suddenly, he drove off the road and flipped, crushing him instantly. Throughout his 18 years of life, Hippach was a beloved family member. When his parents heard about his automobile accident, they decided that building a sports complex in his memory was the best way to honor his legacy.

Throughout Hippach Field’s 100+ years of operation, it has seen many leagues and players. For instance, the field was home to a semi-pro baseball team named the Farmington Flyers in the 1940s and 1950s. Harry Agganis and Ted Lepcio are among some of the players that have played on this historic field and have also made it to the MLB.

Throughout the recent years, however, Hippach Field has seen its green grass grow brown as well as its lights shine dimmer.

“The field is in rough shape. We just need the money[,]” UMF Baseball Pitching and Assistant Coach James Smith said.

An electrical malfunction last year caused the lights that have been shimmering down on this historic field for almost 25 years to go dark. But, there is hope. The UMF Baseball team has taken it into their own hands on restoring the field they call home. Late last year and early this year, the team built new benches for the dugouts. The town’s Parks and Recreation Department has also been helping by fixing up the base lines and repainting the fence around the field. In addition to the help of UMF Baseball as well as Parks and Recreation, Coach Smith has also taken it into his own hands to start renovating the ballpark.

“Instead of chain-link fencing there will be netting,” Coach Smith added.

This will be one of the newest additions to the field in recent memory. Coach Smith is hoping that, by the time opening day hits the beloved ballpark, it’ll look just a little bit better than last year. But, until further notice, one of Farmington’s most historic landmarks will stay dark until the town is able to fix the lights.