Candlestick Park’s Impending Demolition Adds to List of Former Baseball Parks, Stadiums Lost (Photos)

What a way to go out.

With the San Fransisco 49ers headed out of town for warmer pastures, Candlestick Park hosted its last regular-season game on Monday night, with the Niners clinching a playoff berth in a 34-24 win over the Falcons. San Fransisco greats Jerry Rice and Steve Young were on hand to say goodbye to the stadium that football and baseball fans called home for more than 50 years.

When it was built, Candlestick Park, or “The Stick,” opened as the home of Major League Baseball’s Giants (relocated from New York) and, until Monday, was the home field for the 49ers. The park was known for its blustery winds and dense fog, and had seen its fair share of baseball greats like Barry Bonds and Willie Mays take the field until the Giants moved to AT&T Park (formerly Pacific Bell Park) in 2000.

When the 49ers announced plans to build a new stadium in Santa Clara, Calif., Candlestick Park’s fate was sealed — The Stick would be demolished shortly after the 2013 season. Groundbreaking on the Niners’ new Levi’s Stadium took place in April 2012, and construction is expected to be completed in time for the 2014 NFL season. Thus, The Stick will go the way of so many other former ballparks and stadiums — demolished in sight but never in memory.

It would be impossible to forget Willie Mays‘ 3,000th hit or Dwight Clark‘s game-winning touchdown pass from Joe Montana in the 1982 NFC Championship game, among many other historic moments.