Before its demolition in 1971, Pittsburgh's iconic Forbes Field hosted two Major League Baseball All-Star games.

In 1944, nearly 30,000 fans trekked to Pittsburgh's Oakland neighborhood to see hometown hero and St. Louis Cardinals star Stan Musial in the first All-Star game at Forbes Field. Pirates' outfielder Vince DiMaggio -- older brother of New York Yankees' Hall of Famer Joe DiMaggio -- led the National League to a 7-1 win in the 12th All-Star game.

With the country in the midst of World War II, baseball played a big part in providing aid for the war efforts. Major League Baseball donated more than $100,000 of the proceeds from the game at Forbes Field, including ticket sales, concession profits and a $25,000 gift from the Gillette Razor Co. to the war effort.

Just 15 years later, as part of Pittsburgh's bicentennial celebration in 1959, the Midsummer Classic returned to Forbes Field on July 7. A packed house of more than 35,000 fans enjoyed a star-studded lineup that pitted sluggers Mickey Mantle and Ted Williams for the American League against Milwaukee Braves' star Hank Aaron.

Early in the game, Los Angeles Dodgers ace Don Drysdale dominated the mound for the National League stars, tossing three perfect innings. But with the score 4-4 in the bottom of the eighth inning, San Francisco Giants outfielder Willie Mays hit an RBI triple to seal a 5-4 victory for the National League stars.

That year, Major League Baseball scheduled an All-Star "doubleheader" with a second game scheduled in August at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, which the American League won, 5-3.

The experiment of two All-Star games lasted through the 1962 season.

Visitors to the new "Forbes Field: A Century of Memories" exhibit at the History Center can see original tickets from the 1944 and 1959 All-Star games, alongside a variety of unique artifacts from the stadium's illustrious history.

-- By Shannon George, History Center communications intern