![]() ![]() In the minor leagues, there are no replays, pitch count boards and thirty-one manager visits to the mound. The game was played in a snappy two-and-a-half hours. The neighboring RV park was filled on Memorial Day weekend and included a vintage blue-and-white school bus called “The Holy Roller.” A large typewritten sign near the front door read, “Every family has a story… welcome to ours.”Īt the ballpark, attendance on a warm, family-friendly afternoon before Memorial Day was 860. At one time there were fifteen lumber mills along the river through Clinton. Because of river traffic, Clinton used to be the nation’s lumber capital. The Canadian Pacific rails are along the parking lot near the ballpark entrance. The historic baseball stadium is on the outskirts of downtown. Originally a department store, the terra cotta-accented Van Allen has been repurposed as an apartment building. Van Allen & Sons building, a National Historic Landmark built in 1913-15 and designed by architect Louis Sullivan. The sleepy downtown area is anchored by the four-story John D. Everything seemed clearer than it did in Chicago.Ĭlinton does not have all the traffic of Galena, Illinois or New Buffalo, Michigan-in fact, it doesn’t have much traffic at all. I drove into Clinton on Memorial Day weekend and thought of Eric as I saw Clinton’s deep blue skies accented by peaceful white clouds. My late friend, Chicago restaurateur Eric Palm, always talked about the Clinton ballpark. I recommend Clinton and it never disappoints. The highway is popular with bikers and back-roaders. I try to wind it down and take the historic Lincoln Highway, which runs out of west suburban Plainfield (where it crosses Route 66), through Dixon and across the river into Clinton. There is nowhere else in America where, within a half-mile radius, you can camp out, watch a baseball game in a historic stadium and walk to a supper club on the Mississippi River.Ĭlinton (population 25,480) is a two-and-a-half-hour drive from Chicago. Shower and laundry facilities are at the marina. The park has twenty-seven pads, all including 30/50 amp electricity and water. I’ve stayed there with my Ford Transit camper van.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |