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FC Cincinnati’s start in the West End

For 58 years, beginning in 1912, Cincinnati's West End was home to Crosley Field where the Cincinnati Reds played.

The city's music festival was held there, too, with some of the biggest jazz acts of all time gracing the Crosley Field stage.

Fannie Shaw, 74, poses near her home in the West End neighborhood of Cincinnati on Tuesday, May 11, 2021. Shaw moved to the West End when she 8, left as an adult and moved back a decade ago.

Fannie Shaw, 74, moved to the West End when she 8, left as an adult and moved back a decade ago. She remembers finally being old enough to go to the music festival in the last year it was held in 1970, before Crosley Field closed.

The West End was a vibrant, bustling Black neighborhood, she said.

"There was a grocery store, barber shops, restaurants, skating rinks. Even old people can skate well now because of them," Shaw said. "We seldom left the community. We didn't need to."

Fannie Shaw, 74, poses near her home in the West End neighborhood of Cincinnati on Tuesday, May 11, 2021. Shaw moved to the West End when she 8, left as an adult and moved back a decade ago.

Now, 109 years after the Reds chose the West End as their home, FC Cincinnati has built TQL Stadium, investing millions of dollars into a neighborhood that has been neglected for years. The first home match is set for May 16.


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