It wasn’t always this nice.As Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills are set to move into their new futuristic $1.7 billion stadium in 2026, it’s a good time to remind everyone just how far the franchise has come. That means going all the way back to 1937, when War Memorial Stadium—better known as The Rockpile—opened its doors in Buffalo, New York for the first time.The old stadium went through many iterations over the years, hosting not only the Bills but also college football and baseball teams, minor league teams, a soccer club, and even NASCAR events.It was demolished in 1989 and replaced by the Johnnie B. Wiley Amateur Athletic Sports Pavilion, which still stands today.However, the legendary tales of The Rockpile still remain today.Before the Bills moved to the suburbs they had one of the best home field advantages in all of sports, calling War Memorial Stadium their home from 1960-1972.They won an AFL title there in 1964, and also saw O.J. Simpson begin his Hall of Fame career in that stadium.However, what it was really known for was how raucous and at times dangerous it was, not only for the opposing team, but for the Bills themselves.The infamous Dodge Street Tunnel served as the players’ entrance to the field, where fans were able to get dangerously close. They often threw beer cans down onto the field, hitting players.Hall of Famer Len Dawson summed up The Rockpile experience perfectly in e quarterback Len Dawson called the Rockpile “nasty” in the book, The Little League that Could/A History of the American Football League by Ken Rappoport.“You would wonder, what would they throw at you?” Dawson said.INSTAGRAM/@GRIDIRONAMERICAWar Memorial Stadium stood strong from 1937-1989[/caption]INSTAGRAM/@BUFFALOCLOSETThe Bills called The Rockpile home for 13 seasons[/caption]INSTAGRAM/@LOSTBALLPARKSThe stadium held many sports inside including football, baseball and even NASCAR[/caption]“They threw stuff at their own players, so you know they were going to throw stuff at you.”He referenced the stadium as “nasty.”Billy Shaw, who played his entire Hall of Fame career in Buffalo from 1961-1969, said he loved The Rockpile.“It was different in that the fans were right close to the field and it was the same fans that sat behind the bench year after year,” Shaw said in the Rappoport book.“They knew us, our wives, our children. We knew them, and if they weren’t at a game, we would ask, ‘Where is Sally, Sue or Jim?’ It was that kind of atmosphere — a real family atmosphere.”However, after the AFL–NFL merger, the stadium was deemed unfit for league play, as it seated fewer than the required 50,000 and couldn’t be expanded.NFL's Greatest......Ranking the top 10......Quarterbacks of all-time – Can anyone better Tom Brady?Wide receivers of all-time – Does Randy Moss or Jerry Rice come out on top?Running backs of all-time – Stacking Jim Brown, Barry Sanders, Walter Payton, Emmitt Smith and moreTight ends of all-time – How does Travis Kelce compare?Even Bills owner Ralph Wilson wanted to move. He called the stadium ‘totally inadequate,’ telling a 1968 news story, ‘All owners who bring their clubs into Buffalo are appalled by the stadium.'”After the 1972 season, the Bills moved to Highmark Stadium, where they’ve played ever since—2025 will mark their swan song in the place they called home for the last 53 years.A new palace awaits the storied franchise, but let’s not forget where it all began.From rags to riches, or in this case, from The Rockpile to the Taj Mahal.