The dog days of August have always belonged to youth baseball.
Over the past three weeks, thousands of players, coaches and families packed the Laurel Sportsplex as the 2026 Diamond Youth Baseball and Softball World Series brought one of the South’s premier youth baseball and softball events to Mississippi, showcasing nearly 175 teams over three weeks of competition.
Now, the youth baseball spotlight begins shifting toward Williamsport, Pennsylvania, where regional champions are battling for spots in the 2026 Little League Baseball World Series, one of the sport’s most recognizable annual traditions. The tournament gets underway later this month, continuing a summer that celebrates the game at its purest level.
Here in Hattiesburg, another piece of youth baseball history was written two weeks ago, when the city announced it will host the 2027 DBB Junior Boys World Series at the new Cameron Field at Jaycee Park.
For many, the announcement was about the future. But it also served as a reminder of the place that helped build Hattiesburg’s baseball reputation long before Jaycee Park existed.
Before the synthetic turf and the modern tournament complex. And before Hattiesburg became a regular destination for national youth baseball events.
There was Cameron Field at Kamper Park. For generations, the modest ballpark tucked beside the Hattiesburg Zoo was where countless Pine Belt kids learned the game, chased championship dreams and helped establish one of Mississippi’s proudest youth baseball traditions.
The original Cameron Field opened sometimes after the Zoo opened in 1950. It was a neighborhood ballpark that became the heartbeat of Hattiesburg youth baseball. Located inside Kamper Park, the field hosted countless regular-season games, district tournaments, all-star practices and summer evenings that generations of local families still remember.
While newer facilities often chase bigger tournaments and larger crowds, Cameron Field’s legacy was built through thousands of ordinary games. Parents filled the bleachers and coaches volunteered their evenings. Young players dreamed of wearing Hattiesburg All-Star uniforms. For many Pine Belt baseball players, Cameron Field was where those dreams first began.
On July 13, 1979, the facility was officially named Cameron Field in honor of Jack Cameron, who spent 15 years serving Hattiesburg youth baseball as both a coach and league director. Cameron also served as president of the Hattiesburg Optimist Club, an organization that has supported local youth baseball for generations.
His dedication helped build one of Mississippi’s premier community baseball programs, making his name synonymous with youth baseball in Hattiesburg.
For decades, Cameron Field served as the home of Hattiesburg’s Dixie Boys Baseball program. The program became known throughout the Southeast for producing competitive all-star teams and numerous World Series appearances while remaining rooted in community baseball.
Unlike many organizations that shifted toward expensive travel baseball, Hattiesburg continued building around local players, neighborhood teams and volunteer coaches. The Hattiesburg Optimist Club program captured multiple DBB World Series championships, including another national title in 2022, while continuing to serve as a feeder program for Hattiesburg High School baseball.
For many players, Cameron Field represented the final stop before high school baseball. For others, it became the place where lifelong friendships, and lifelong memories were formed. When city leaders announced plans to relocate Cameron Field in 2022, Mayor Toby Barker acknowledged what the facility meant to Hattiesburg.
“We know the century of history that occurred on its grounds and the memories made by generations of families,” Barker said during the announcement of the Kamper Park redevelopment.
Those memories stretched far beyond wins and losses. Summer tournaments. Opening Day ceremonies. Championship celebrations. Countless practices under the Mississippi heat.
For many Hattiesburg families, Cameron Field became part of growing up. Recognizing that history, the city preserved memorials from the original park and even distributed commemorative jars filled with dirt from the original infield so former players, coaches and families could keep a small piece of Cameron Field forever.
A Difficult Goodbye
In 2022, the City of Hattiesburg unveiled plans for one of the biggest park redevelopment projects in its history. Cameron Field would relocate from Kamper Park to nearby Jaycee Park, where a new state-of-the-art baseball complex would be constructed.
The move would allow Hattiesburg to host larger tournaments while also creating a shared facility for Hattiesburg High School softball. The relocation also cleared the way for Serengeti Springs, the Hattiesburg Zoo’s water park expansion, which now occupies the former Cameron Field site.
Although many longtime baseball families were saddened to see the original field disappear, city officials emphasized that Cameron Field’s history would not be forgotten.
A New Generation at Jaycee Park
Rather than retiring the name, Hattiesburg carried Cameron Field’s legacy to its new home at Jaycee Park. The new complex opened in 2023 featuring synthetic-turf infields, improved drainage, expanded bullpens, covered seating, upgraded concessions and tournament-ready amenities designed to attract regional and national events.
Those improvements immediately elevated Hattiesburg’s profile as a youth baseball destination. This combined with the success of William Carey and Southern Miss Baseball gives the city it’s unique nickname of Baseburg. Jaycee Park hosted the 2025 DBB World Series, and this week the city announced it will also welcome the 2027 DBB Junior Boys World Series, bringing teams from across the Southeast back to Baseburg.
It’s the very future city leaders envisioned when they chose to relocate Cameron Field.
Today, visitors to Kamper Park will find children on water slides and splashing through Serengeti Springs instead of chasing foul balls. The dugouts and backstop are gone. The infield dirt has been replaced by water slides and a lazy river.
Yet Cameron Field didn’t disappear. Its spirit simply moved a few blocks away. Every game played at the new Cameron Field at Jaycee Park continues a tradition that began generations ago at Kamper Park. As Hattiesburg prepares to welcome another DBB World Series in 2027, it’s worth remembering that the city’s national baseball reputation wasn’t built overnight.
It was built one summer evening at a time on a modest ballfield beside the Hattiesburg Zoo.
Cameron Field at a Glance
Original Location: Kamper Park, to the west of Hattiesburg Zoo
Current Location: Serengeti Springs Water Park 1810 Hardy St, Hattiesburg, MSÂ 39401
Named For: Jack Cameron (1979); President of Hattiesburg Optimist Club
Primary Tenant: Hattiesburg Dixie Boys Baseball
Built: Mid 1950’s
Closed: Summer 2022
Successor Facility: Cameron Field at Jaycee Park; 709 Quinn Street, Hattiesburg, MS 39401
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