The world’s first indoor, air-conditioned sports stadium, the Houston Astrodome was nicknamed the “Eighth Wonder of the World” when it opened in 1965. The construction of the Astrodome was instrumental in bringing Major League Baseball to Houston, and the Dome would also host the NFL’s Houston Oilers and the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. A selection of over 100 items, including promotional photographs, newsletters and brochures, and documents on the creation of the Astrodome, illustrates the history of the stadium and the key individuals who brought this vision to life.
The bulk of the items in the digital collection are derived from the George Kirksey Papers. Kirksey was a well-known sportswriter who became a baseball promoter. In the late 1940s, he began his work to bring major league baseball to Houston. Eventually he would join with several other men, including Houston oilman and civic leader R. E. “Bob” Smith and Houston mayor Roy Hofheinz, to form the Houston Sports Association. This group would become the owners of the Colt .45s, later known as the Houston Astros, and would advocate for the construction of the Astrodome.
The selection of items for this project includes Houston Sports Association and Astrodome promotional materials and ephemera, photographs of the Dome and of Colt .45 and Astros players and staff, Astros and Colt .45s press releases, and other documents relating to the creation and operations of the Astrodome in the 1960s.