Meet Charles E. Logue, the Immigrant who Build Fenway Park in Boston in 1912

Charles E. Logue, courtesy of Logue Family

As the Boston Red Sox prepare for the seasonal opener against the Baltimore Orioles at 2:10 p.m. on Thursday, March 30, 2023 at world-famous Fenway Park, read about the man who built this iconic park 161 years ago.

His name was Charles E. Logue (1858-1919), an immigrant County Derry in Ireland who emigrated to Boston in 1881 at age 23. He formed the Charles Logue Building Company in 1890 and was quickly recognized for his carpentry and construction skills.

According to Boston historian Dennis Ryan, Logue became a major contractor in the city, building Boston College’s campus as well as churches for the Boston Archdiocese. He was part of a storied tradition of Irish builders and skilled craftsmen in the Boston area.

In 1905, Mayor Patrick Collins appointed Logue to the Schoolhouse Committee, citing the need for a practical builder, and Mayor John “Honey Fitz” Fitzgerald, President John F. Kennedy’s grandfather, relied on Logue to build a “busier, better Boston.”

Groundbreaking, courtesy of Boston Public Library

But Fenway Park would become Logue’s enduring landmark. Local officials, sports officials and the contractors broke ground for the park on September 25, 1911, and the stadium was finished the following spring, a considerable achievement given the harsh New England winters.

Logue's descendants have proudly carried on the family business with their firm, Logue Engineering, located in Hingham, Massachusetts. Read more details here.

Fenway Park is the final stop on the 20-site Irish Heritage Trail, which starts at the Rose Kennedy Garden along the waterfront, passes Boston City Hall, the Irish Famine Memorial, the Massachusetts State House and Copley Square.

Statues outside of Fenway Park, courtesy of Massport

Learn more about Fenway Park's numerous Irish connections over the past 160 years, from political rallies to Gaelic Games. Details here.

You can pick up a free copy of the Irish Heritage Trail map at the Boston Common Visitors Center (151 Tremont Street). For information on taking a guided tour of the Irish Heritage Trail, click here for details.

For year round information on Irish culture, heritage and history in greater Boston, visit the Boston Irish Tourism Association. For tourist information, visit MassVacation or BostonUSA. SHARE

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