AutoZone Park

Phone: (901) 721-6050 | Website: memphisredbirds.com

Located in the heart of Downtown Memphis, AutoZone Park is was named the 2009 Minor League Ballpark of the Year by Baseball America. Thanks to the innovative structure of the Foundation, it is also financed primarily with private dollars. By combining the feel of such parks as Wrigley Field, Fenway Park, and Camden Yards, AutoZone Park is a state-of-the-art facility with classic, neo-traditional style.

With all the comforts and innovations of a ballpark for the future it still reminds fans of America’s pastime and its rich history. Redbirds fans enjoy:

• An open concourse allowing them to never lose sight of the game
• The Delta Dental Picnic Pavilion hosting as many as 500 fans
• Lawn seating on the TruGreen Bluff (Please Note: No Chairs Allowed)
• Two upper Club levels with 48 Club suites
• Club seats with access to an air-conditioned atrium and specialty foods
• A state-of-the-art press box and HD videoboard
• Two open-air party decks seating up to 175 fans each
• Three party balconies
• The Boardwalk – A family-oriented games and amusement area including a playground
• Major league lighting

The Peabody Memphis

In the heart of “Blues City,” you’ll find The Peabody Memphis, a magnificent Forbes Four-Star, AAA Four-Diamond historic hotel. The Peabody is one of Memphis’ most popular attractions. The Peabody Ducks march to and from the Grand Lobby daily at 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. in a time-honored tradition dating back to 1933.

How did the tradition of the ducks in The Peabody fountain begin?

Back in the 1930s Frank Schutt, General Manager of The Peabody, and a friend, Chip Barwick, returned from a weekend hunting trip to Arkansas. The men had a little too much Jack Daniel’s Tennessee sippin’ whiskey, and thought it would be funny to place some of their live duck decoys (it was legal then for hunters to use live decoys) in the beautiful Peabody fountain.

Three small English call ducks were selected as “guinea pigs,” and the reaction was nothing short of enthusiastic. Soon, five North American Mallard ducks would replace the original ducks.

In 1940, Bellman Edward Pembroke, a former circus animal trainer, offered to help with delivering the ducks to the fountain each day and taught them the now-famous Peabody Duck March. Mr. Pembroke became the Peabody Duckmaster, serving in that capacity for 50 years until his retirement in 1991.

The original ducks have long since gone, but after nearly 80 years, the marble fountain in the hotel lobby is still graced with ducks.