Ficklen Stadium

For students, alumni, faculty, and friends, the single most significant addition to East Carolina’s campus appeared in 1963 with completion of Ficklen Stadium (later Dowdy-Ficklen). Since the construction of the original campus in 1908-1909, no venue has brought more together, more meaningfully and more consistently than Ficklen Stadium. From graduation ceremonies and convocations to football games, July 4th firework displays, concerts, and community happenings, the stadium has served as the grand gathering place for major events. Successive expansions have more than tripled its initial seating capacity, making it all the more commodious as the common stomping ground of the Pirate Nation. From the start, however, Ficklen Stadium brought the campus and its following together into a critical mass, catalyzing a heightened and powerful sense of school spirit, identity, and pride rarely if ever matched elsewhere on campus.

A decade of growth in the 1950s revealed the earlier College Stadium – erected on the east end of campus in 1953 – incapable of accommodating the ever expanding turnout by the student body, faculty, staff, alumni, parents, and community members. This was especially obvious in the fall of 1960 when Sen. John F. Kennedy’s presidential campaign staged a successful rally at Campus Stadium, reportedly attracting nearly 10,000. That day, the many political leaders who attended saw first-hand both the enormous potential, and yet the real limits of East Carolina’s most publicly-oriented venue. Moreover, growth of the college already required construction of additional academic and classroom spaces. The eastern portion of campus, where College Stadium stood, was deemed an ideal location for future academic expansion. Backers of the college soon identified extensive agricultural acreage south of College Hill. Acquisition of that property and adjoining land set the stage for the beginnings of an athletic campus, with a grand new stadium as its keystone.

In the fall of 1961, President Leo W. Jenkins contacted W. M. “Booger” Scales, Jr. (1924-2001), a Greenville insurance salesman with an impressive record of raising money for good causes. Jenkins asked Scales to spearhead the drive to raise private funds of approximately $100,000 for a new outdoor stadium. Scales promptly formed a stadium committee, also known as “The Untouchables” (alluding to a popular ABC TV show of the same name, 1959-1963), including Reynolds May, president of Garris-Evans Lumber Co.; R. Wallace “Wally” Howard, vice president of Wachovia Bank; Howard Hodges, Jr., president of Hodges Hardware; J. Con Lanier, Sr., attorney; James T. Little, president of a local sales company; Dr. E. B. Aycock, physician; and David J. Whichard, editor of the Daily Reflector.

The stadium was to be named after the late James S. Ficklen (1900-1955), owner of Greenville’s E. B. Ficklen Tobacco Company and a significant benefactor of the college. James Little, a close friend of Ficklen’s, approached Ficklen’s friends outside Greenville. Con Lanier, who had ties to the tobacco industry at large, approached tobacconists. Dr. Aycock was to tap the medical profession. The remaining six traveled as a group to selected local businesses seeking pledges of $2,000 per business. The response was, reportedly, “enthusiastic beyond expectations,” with some offering in excess of $3,000. In short order, over $200,000 had been pledged, including $25,000 committed by the college from students, organizations, faculty, and alumni. When a state bond issue – $50,000 of which was to be used for related costs – failed, Scales’ committee resumed work, soliciting additional commitments bringing the total pledged to $275,000.

The new 16,000-seat concrete stadium, designed from the start for future expansion, soon replaced the 6,000 capacity steel-bleacher stadium land-locked by stable residential developments. In addition to expanded seating, the new stadium enhanced ECC’s bid for entry in the Southern Conference. Construction began in the spring of 1962. By the following year, the stadium was completed. In the spring of 1963, East Carolina held its first commencement ceremonies in the new facility, with noted broadcast journalist and native North Carolinian Edward R. Murrow (1908-1965) delivering the commencement address.

On September 21, 1963, the new stadium was formally dedicated. Dr. Jenkins and his wife hosted a buffet dinner for the more than 100 guests invited to the dedicatory ceremony. Assisting the Jenkins were Mrs. W. M. Scales, Mrs. Howard Hodges, Mrs. E. B. Aycock, and Mrs. Dave Whichard. Nine Chi Omega sisters also helped host the dinner. Governor Terry Sanford and his wife, U. S. Senator Sam J. Ervin, Jr., members of the Ficklen family, members of the fund raising committee, members of the board of trustees, and other supporters were among the honored guests.

At the dedicatory game that evening, East Carolina defeated Wake Forest, 20-10, before an overflow crowd of 17,000. Fullback Tom Michel led the Pirate’s single-wing offense with three touchdowns. Attending in the guest box were Governor Terry Sanford and his wife, Sen. Sam J. Ervin, Jr., State Sen. Ralph Scott, State Rep. W. A. “Red” Forbes, and approximately 50 North Carolina legislators. The formal ceremonies climaxed the fundraising efforts led by W. M. Scales and his committee of businessmen and community leaders. At halftime, Scales presented Governor Sanford with a paid-in-full receipt for the new stadium. The governor in turn presented the $280,000.00 stadium to State Sen. Robert B. Morgan, vice chairman of the board of trustees. Later that fall, the Homecoming program, “Pirates’ Parade of Progress,” celebrated the college’s rapid growth in enrollment and physical plant. A special tribute was also offered to the new football stadium. No sooner than it had opened than Ficklen Stadium became a venue of pride, spirit, and unity for the expansive campus. More than any other campus structure, it came to symbolize the school’s dynamic, resilient strength and its phenomenal potential for service and victory.

In 1994, the stadium was renamed Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium, in recognition of Ronald and Mary Ellen Dowdy’s generous gift of one million dollars to the university. In 1995, the playing field was named Bagwell Field in honor of a major financial gift from Al and Debbie Bagwell. The north upper-deck was completed in 1998, allowing room for a total of forty thousand fans. The Pete and Lynn Murphy Center, connecting Minges Coliseum to the west end zone of the stadium, was dedicated in 2002. The Murphy Center houses a strength and conditioning facility as well as a collection of Pirate sports memorabilia. In 2010, a new scoreboard and seven thousand seats were added along the east end zone, connecting the north and south stands. This addition increased seating capacity to fifty thousand. Further improvements to the south press box and plans for new club level seating are currently planned for 2018.

Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium, the third largest university stadium in North Carolina, stands as the culmination of Leo Jenkins’s dream of building a premier athletic venue for eastern North Carolina. Dowdy-Ficklen consistently hosts some of the largest crowds outside of Power 5 conference games. The stadium’s record attendance of 51,082 was set September 13, 2014 in a 70-41 rout of UNC Chapel Hill. As of the beginning of the 2017 season, the Pirates have compiled a record of 183-93-1 in Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium.

---

Ficklen Stadium Dedication: East Carolina vs Wake Forest

---

Sources

• Carlson, Arthur, Elizabeth Brooke Tolar, and John Allen Tucker. East Carolina University Football. Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing, 2016.
• Clarence Stasavich Papers. UA 90-07. University Archives, Joyner Library, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC.
• East Carolina Football Collection. UA40-01. University Archives, Joyner Library, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC.
• Records of Leo W. Jenkins' Tenure. UA02-06. University Archives, Joyner Library, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC.
• Ritenour, William M. Pirate Odyssey: A 75 Year History of East Carolina Football, Vol. 1-2. Bloomington, IN: iUniverse, Inc., 2008.
• Taylor, Alvin. “Goal of 16,000-Seat Stadium for College.” The Daily Reflector, October 9, 1961.
• Taylor, Alvin. “New Stadium Dedicated with 17,000 Looking On.” The Daily Reflector, September 23, 1963.
• "East Carolina vs. Wake Forest." Game Day Program/Dedication of Ficklen Stadium. September 21, 1963. University Archives # 40.01.02.00.19630921. J. Y. Joyner Library. East Carolina University. Greenville, N.C. https://digital.lib.ecu.edu/27620.
• "ECC President Will Entertain At Buffet Dinner For 100 Guests." Rocky Mount Telegram. September 18, 1963. P. 3.
• "Edward R. Murrow commencement speech." 1963. University Archives # 65-01-0010. J. Y. Joyner Library. East Carolina University. Greenville, N.C. https://digital.lib.ecu.edu/3493.
• "Ficklen Memorial Stadium." Series 17 Land and Buildings. Box. 62, Folders 19-29. Records of Leo Warren Jenkins' Tenure as President and Chancellor, 1960-1978. University Archives # UA02-06. J. Y. Joyner Library. East Carolina University. Greenville, N.C.
• "Homecoming Weekend Set On ECC Campus." Rocky Mount Telegram. October 15, 1963. P. 12.
• "Program for the Fifty-Fourth Annual Commencement of East Carolina College." Digital Collections # 50-06-1963-01. J. Y. Joyner Library. East Carolina University. Greenville, N.C. https://digital.lib.ecu.edu/22459.
• "Sanford To See Dedication Of ECC Stadium." Asheville Citizen-Times. September 20, 1963. P. 20.
• "Sen. Scott To Be Guest At Ceremony." The Daily-Times (Burlington, N.C.). September 20, 1963. P. 6.
• Taylor, Alvin. "Untouchables Collect Funds For Stadium: Prowled Streets In Black Auto." The Bee (Danville, Virginia). April 19, 1962. P. 17.
• Terrell, Bob. "Wake Forest Will Have Tougher Battle With Karl Sweetan Out." Asheville Citizen-Times. September 11, 1963. P. 16.
• "Wake Forest's Gridders Upset." Baltimore Sun. September 22, 1963. P. 122.

---

Other names

Ficklen Stadium

Built

1962/63

Construction cost

$283,387

Architects

Dudley & Shoe, Greenville, NC.

Namesake

James Skinner Ficklen (May 3, 1900 – September 17, 1955), a Greenville, NC, native, was a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. From 1925 until his death, he was president and chairman of the Board for the E.B. Ficklen Tobacco Company of Greenville. As president of both the Tobacco Association of the US and the Leaf Tobacco Exporters Association, he became an important business leader in Greenville. Ficklen established the Ficklen Foundation in the early 1950s which, among other projects, sponsored scholarships for a number of students at ECU. This stadium was dedicated on September 21, 1963.

History

In 1994, the stadium was renamed Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium after million dollar donors to the Shared Vision Campaign, Ronald and Mary Ellen Dowdy. Ronald Dowdy, an ECU alumnus, was elected to the Board of Trustees in the fall of 1993 and served until 1996. He oversees Dowdy Properties of Orlando, Florida.
In 1995, Al and Debbie Bagwell of Lake Gaston, VA contributed a large gift to the Pirate Club and the field inside of Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium is now known as Bagwell Field.

Originally built to seat 10,000 people, Ficklen Stadium was designed for eventual expansion to 50,000 seats. It now seats 50,000 people. When first built, the concrete portion of the stadium measured approximately 280 feet in length with the highest of its fifty eight rows of seats being sixty feet above the ground. Ficklen Stadium's press box placed sportswriters and cameramen 75 feet above the field. The stadium was built entirely through public subscription funds. Ficklen Stadium replaced the 5000 seat College Stadium.

Since then it has undergone many improvements to become a most outstanding stadium. There are currently plans to have a new strength and conditioning center added to the west end of Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium.

Additions

1967/68 – W.M. Freeman Associates, High Point, NC, increased seating capacity to 20,000.
1970 – F.A. Miller Company, painted exterior
1974 – L.E. Wooten, installation of lighting
1977/78 – increased seating capacity to 35,000
1988 – $82,000 for a sound system
1991 – $1.6 million in repairs and renovations
1994 – stadium renamed Dowdy-Ficklen; roads improved around stadium
1996/98 – increased seating capacity to 50,000; improvements to Press Box made
1999 – unveiling of 12 foot, 3 ton Pirate sculpture; new scoreboard

---

Additional Related Material