Ralph Wilson Stadium

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=90 BGCOLOR="#006699" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="002285a1erlcgo.gif"> <div> <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#FFCC66" FACE="Arial" ><B>The World of Sports Venues</B></FONT><B>     |     </B><A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="The World of Sports Venues"><U><B>home</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="Coliseum.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Adelphia Coliseum"><U>Adelphia Coliseum</U></A>   |   <A HREF="ALLTEL.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Alltel Stadium"><U>Alltel Stadium</U></A>   |   <A HREF="Arrowhead.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Arrowhead Stadium"><U>Arrowhead Stadium</U></A>   |   <A HREF="Cleveland.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Cleveland Browns Stadium"><U>Cleveland Browns Stadium</U></A>   |   <A HREF="Gilette.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Gillette Stadium"><U>Gillette Stadium</U></A>   |   <A HREF="Heinz.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Heinz Field"><U>Heinz Field</U></A>   |   <A HREF="Invesco.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Invesco Field Mile High"><U>Invesco Field @ Mile High</U></A>   |   <A HREF="Network.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Network Associates Coliseum"><U>Network Associates Coliseum</U></A>   |   <A HREF="PBrown.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Paul Brown Stadium"><U>Paul Brown Stadium</U></A>   |   <A HREF="Pro.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Pro Player Stadium"><U>Pro Player Stadium</U></A>   |   <A HREF="Qual.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Qualcomm Stadium"><U>Qualcomm Stadium</U></A>   |   <B>Ralph Wilson Stadium</B>   |   <A HREF="Ravens.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Ravens Stadium"><U>Ravens Stadium</U></A>   |   <A HREF="RCA.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="RCA Dome"><U>RCA Dome</U></A>   |   <A HREF="Reliant.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Reliant Stadium"><U>Reliant Stadium</U></A></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=210 BGCOLOR="#FFCC66" TEXT="#080000" background="001d2c00dkelyh.gif"> <div> <A HREF="http://www.buffalobills.com/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.buffalobills.com/"><U><IMG SRC="Bills.gif" border=0 width="80" height="80" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="file:///C:/My Documents/My Webs/myweb3/Stadiums/SeatingCharts/RalphWilsonStadium.gif" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.fortunecity.com/athena/thatch"><U>Seating Chart</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="file:///C:/My Documents/My Webs/myweb3/Stadiums/Ralph_Wilson_Stadium.jpg" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.fortunecity.com/athena/thatch"><U>Photo 1</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="file:///C:/My Documents/My Webs/myweb3/Stadiums/Ralph_Wilson2.jpg" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.fortunecity.com/athena/thatch"><U>Photo 2</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="file:///C:/My Documents/My Webs/myweb3/Stadiums/InsideView/Ralph_Wilson_Stadium.jpg" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.fortunecity.com/athena/thatch"><U>Photo 3</U></A></div> </td> <td valign="top" height=390 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <I>Ralph Wilson Stadium</I></div> <div> Address- Abbot Rd. & Southwestern Blvd</div> <div>                  Orchard Park, NY 14127</div> <bR> <div> Team- Buffalo Bills</div> <bR> <div> Year Opened- 1973</div> <bR> <div> Capacity- 73,800</div> <bR> <div> Surface- Natrual</div> <bR> <div> On October 28, 1959, Ralph C. Wilson was awarded the Buffalo Bills franchise and the team began play in 1960 at War Memorial Stadium. Built in 1936, the "Rockpile" was a 36,500-seat facility located in Buffalo at Jefferson and Best streets. </div> <bR> <div> In 1965, the open air, natural grass facility, expanded by adding an upper deck to increase capacity to 46,206. </div> <div> Years of extreme weather and the popularity of the Bills led to the creation of a larger facility. A 113-are tract of land approximately 30 minutes from downtown Buffalo was selected and groundbreaking ceremonies were conducted in Orchard Park on April 4, 1972 for the new football complex. </div> <bR> <div> To form the lower level of the stadium, more than 370,000 feet of shale were removed -- putting the field 50 feet below ground level. Construction was completed in slightly over 14 months and on August 17, 1973, the Bills moved into Rich Stadium in suburban Orchard Park. </div> <bR> <div> Since the stadium's original construction, the facility has seen many changes. In 1984, the stadium's capacity was increased to 80,290 with the addition of 16 executive suites on the top floor of the administration building. Eight years later, 24 more suites were constructed in the west end zone and shared restrooms were added to the original suites. </div> <bR> <div> The Red Zone and Goal Line indoor clubs were added in 1994, offering fans a comfortable atmosphere as each of the two blocks of 500 seats are enclosed in glass. </div> <bR> <div> Also in 1994, 14 new suites were added, bringing the grand total to 88 luxury boxes. The 1994 expansion project also brought the team the largest JumboTron in the United States. The mammoth videoboard measures 31.5 feet high and 41.5 feet wide. </div> <bR> <div> In 1998, civic leaders decided to honor the owner and renamed the home of the Bills, "Ralph Wilson Stadium." Wilson has remained as one of the oldest owners, in terms of longevity, in the entire pro football world. </div> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>