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Blogroll
Category Archives: Amusements
WMAY Shower of Stars, 1959
This entry has been edited to correct the date of the plane crash that killed Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper. On Feb. 15, 1959, the curtain opened on the stage of the Illinois State Armory, and Harry … Continue reading
Posted in Amusements, Communications, Media
3 Comments
YMCA Athletic Park (1890s)
For a brief period in the 1890s, the Springfield Young Men’s Christian Association maintained what it called an athletic park. The park was on 10 acres leased by the YMCA at the southwest corner of Pasfield and Allen streets. A … Continue reading
Posted in Amusements, Parks, Sports and recreation
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Root beer stands
This entry has been edited to add photo above. Root beer stands first appear in Springfield city directories in 1931, with three outlets mentioned: A&W Root Beer, 408 E. Adams St; Icy Root Beer, Fifth Street and South Grand Avenue; … Continue reading
Posted in Amusements, Business, Restaurants
5 Comments
Basketball tournament in Illinois State Fairgrounds Coliseum, 1933
Repairs to the Illinois State Fairgrounds Coliseum, under way in summer 2019, will include heating and air-conditioning systems. But the building was unheated in the winter of 1933, when the Coliseum played host to a boys high school basketball tournament. … Continue reading
LincolnFest (1981-93)
LincolnFest, Springfield’s Fourth of July street festival, lasted from 1981 through 1993. Aside from fireworks, the free two-day festival offered games, parades, carnival rides, and activities for kids and seniors. Highlights of each year’s event were free performances by nationally … Continue reading
Posted in Amusements, Celebrations, Local government, Spectacles
1 Comment
Charles Wood/Carlo Modini, operatic tenor
A torrential rainstorm beat down on Springfield the evening of Sept. 16, 1886. But the weather didn’t stop local opera aficionados from packing the Chatterton Opera House at Sixth and Jefferson streets to hear tenor virtuoso Carlo Modini. “Nearly every … Continue reading
Fortune-teller scandal, 1897
A fortune-teller with a gift of gab went to prison in 1897, thanks partly to an investigation by Springfield’s first woman dentist. Arthur A. Waite went by the name of “Luke Leslie” when he set up shop at Second and … Continue reading
Posted in Amusements, Crime and vice, Law enforcement
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The Sazarac
The Sazarac, a bar, restaurant and center for political intrigue, was a fixture in the 200 block of South Sixth Street in Springfield for more than a century. The Sazarac was on the west side of Sixth Street for most … Continue reading
Posted in Amusements, Business, Hotels & taverns, Restaurants
1 Comment
Springfield wins minor-league baseball game, 33-23 (1926)
Baseball-mad Springfieldians got more than their money’s worth on July 20, 1926, both on the field and in the next day’s newspaper story. The Springfield Senators, the local entry in the Class B Three-I League, outslugged the Peoria Tractors that … Continue reading
Posted in Amusements, Social life, Sports and recreation
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Riverton Athletic Club
The mammoth home run Robin Roberts hit on Oct. 14, 1951, remains a highlight in the 80-year history of the Riverton Athletic Club. Roberts, a Springfield native who had just completed the second of his six 20-win seasons as a … Continue reading
Posted in Amusements, Parks, Social life, Sports and recreation
1 Comment