(Note: This
is the first in a three-part series on St. Louis, Mo. Look for the
next two installments, to feature entertainment, shopping, dining
and neighborhoods of St. Louis.)
St. Louis attracts you for another
visit
By
Penny Zimmerman-Wills
[OCT.
4, 2000]
When
you think of St. Louis, certain images immediately come to mind: the
Arch, Cardinal baseball and Budweiser.
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Facts
about St. Louis, Mo.
*Founded
in 1764
*Nickname:
"Mound City," because of earth structures built by early
Indian civilizations
*The
stainless steel Gateway Arch opened in 1965 as a monument to the
important role the city played in America’s westward expansion.
*The
abundance of red brick, iron and other ornate features seen on many
historic homes and buildings is due in part to a steamboat fire in
1849, which destroyed one-third of the city. An ordinance passed
later required future buildings to be constructed of non-flammable
materials.
*Population:
993,000
A
listing of events, attractions and hotels can be obtained from the
Convention and Visitors Commission’s website: www.explorestlouis.com
|
![](../images/100400pics/arch1.jpg)
[Copyright 1999 Bi-State Development
Agency]
While
growing up in central Illinois, I traveled to St. Louis occasionally
and even more so as an adult to visit my college roommate, who has
lived there since graduation. But I must admit I’ve only been to
the top of the Arch one time. I’m not really a big Cardinal fan — although taking in a game at Busch
stadium is a pretty pleasant way to spend a Sunday afternoon. It’s
not that these popular attractions aren’t worthy of topping just
about any list of city highlights, it’s just that there are so
many other interesting and fun things to do.
For
starters, if you’re like me and take advantage of the city’s
close proximity to Lincoln every chance you get to do some power
shopping, see a concert or spend a day at the botanical garden, you
just never have time to play tourist. And there’s really no
excuse, since one of the best things about this metropolitan city
with a small-town atmosphere, in my opinion, is that it’s so easy
to drive in and find your way around.
But
even if you’ve been to this city’s top tourist spots before, or
like me, it’s been a while, there are certain things worthy of a
second look to see why this river city is such a popular
destination.
The Arch
You
can’t miss it. Whether you enter the city by land or air, it’s
the first thing you see. The Midwest’s most famous monument is
indeed a welcoming sight and impressive no matter how many times you’ve
seen it. Designed by architect Eero Saarinen in 1965, the piece of
steel is recognized as a gateway to the Midwest and symbolizes the
westward movement inspired by President Jefferson’s Louisiana
Purchase.
The
630-foot arch is the nation’s tallest man-made monument and can be
reached by a tramway which carries visitors to the top for an
expansive view of the city and Mississippi River. The arch is the
centerpiece of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, which also
includes the Arch Odyssey Theater, which shows two feature films on
its four-story-high Imax screen. I think it’s time for my next
visit.
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[to top of second
column in this article]
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The Missouri Botanical Garden
One
of my favorite places to visit in St. Louis, the garden is located
at 4344 Shaw Blvd. Because there are so many distinct garden areas
to explore, which change throughout the growing season, it’s a
good idea to visit the garden several times during the spring,
summer and fall seasons, because there is always something new to
see.
The
79-acre garden features the largest traditional Japanese garden in
North America, which is a favorite among visitors not only for of
its beauty and serene, perfectly manicured landscaping, but also to
watch and feed the fish in the huge koi ponds, which are interesting
if not unsettling — the way the koi graze the surface of the water
for food with their large, gaping mouths.
The
garden also features the Kemper Center for Home Gardening, a
Climatron rain forest, a Chinese garden, herb garden and a formal
rose garden enclosed by white fences covered in climbing roses. The
home gardening center is comprised of more than eight acres, and its
23 demonstration gardens are an inspiration to any home gardener.
Among the display gardens are a city garden, secret garden, backyard
garden, terrace garden, children’s garden, bird garden, vegetable
garden, Missouri native shade garden, fruit garden, fragrance garden
and butterfly pavilion.
A
stroll or guided tram tour through the garden is a wonderful way to
spend an afternoon. It’s also a peaceful place to eat a light
lunch at the cafe’s outdoor terrace, near the garden’s entrance
and next to the rose garden.
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Shaw Arboretum
The
arboretum is an extension of the botanical garden and includes 2,500
acres of natural Ozark landscape and managed plant collections.
Located 35 miles southwest of the city in Gray Summit, Mo., it was
founded in 1925 when coal smoke from the city threatened the living
plant collections housed at the botanical garden.
The
arboretum provides workshops and natural awareness walks for adults
and children and serves as an outdoor laboratory for developing
interpretive programs. Recently, the arboretum has become a focus of
fire ecology and habitat restoration.
Visitors
can walk through the Pinetum, a 55-acre expanse of meadow studded
with plantings of conifers from around the world; the Whitmire
wildflower garden, a five-acre concentration of native wildflowers;
or an ecological reserve with 13 miles of hiking trails through a
full array of Ozark border landscapes, including a floodplain
forest, oak-hickory woods, glades, bluffs, tall-grass prairie and
marsh wetlands.
(To
be continued)
[Penny
Zimmerman-Wills]
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Take
your pick of fall festivals
[SEPT.
27, 2000]
The
festivals of fall continue, with New Holland's anniversary
celebration this weekend and the Barry Apple Festival. There are
many more to come in this area, including scenic drives where
thousands of visitors are expected
|
Sept.
28-30
New Holland Quasquicentennial
New
Holland
Parade,
entertainment, carnival, antique machinery/autos, combined church
service on
Oct. 1.
217/732-8687
Barry Apple Festival
Apple
Basket Farms. (Exit 20, off I-72), Barry
Town
square
Celebrate
the apple, as thousands of people do each year at this event. Enjoy
the fall fruit, made into cider, dumpling, fritters, pie and a host
of other treats. An apple-theme quilt will be raffled, and
activities include a parade, entertainment and queen contest.
217/335-2108
Oct.
6-7
Tuscola Old-fashioned Harvest
Bluegrass Festival
Downtown
Tuscola
The
third annual event offers a real treat for music fans, with a
line-up of bands and jam sessions, plus arts and crafts, food,
pie-eating and cutest pumpkin "baby" contests.
www.tuscola.org
800/441/9111
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Oct.
6-8
Pumpkinfest
Decatur
Civic Center, Decatur
Events
for kids and adults, food, live entertainment, pumpkin-decorating
contest and craft show.
217/422-7300
Oct.
7-8
Lincoln Memorial Gardens Indian Summer
Festival
Lincoln
Memorial Gardens, Springfield
Enjoy
the autumn air and beautiful surroundings, while sampling food and
listening to live entertainment. Crafts and children’s activities
are also on the schedule.
Farmer Dave’s Buffalo Fest and
Powwow
Farmer
City
An
intertribal powwow where you can test your tomahawk throwing skills,
eat some fry bread and pick your own pumpkin. Also featured are
Native American dance, arts and crafts, an appearance by
"Cody" from the movie "Dances with Wolves,"
stories about the white buffalo, a corn maze test your skills, pony
rides and petting zoo.
![](../images/092700pics/harvest7.jpg)
Oct.
7-8/14-15
Spoon River Valley Scenic Drive
Fulton
County’s 33rd annual fall festival is along more than 130 scenic
miles, through the towns of London Mills, Avon, Middle Grove,
Farmington, Bernadotte, Table Grove.
More
than 100,000 people are expected to pack the traditional event, so
be prepared for lots of traffic. Flea markets, entertainment,
historical sites, good food and beautiful fall leaves are all part
of the fun. Watch apple butter made, eat butterfly pork chops at
Mount Pisgah or a plate of chicken and noodles at Smithfield’s Red
Brick School. Re-enactors encamped on the grounds at Dickson Mounds
Museum will recreate the life of colonial Illinois in habit, cooking
and eating, blanket trading, and demonstrations of black powder
shooting and knife throwing.
www.spoonriverdrive.org
www.misslink.net/scenicdrive
309/647-8980
[to top of second
column in this article]
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Oct.
14
Pekin WYCA Fall Festival
315
Buena Vista, Pekin, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Get
both your face and your pumpkin painted at this event, which
includes the Wildlife Prairie Park traveling zoo, a bungee run, a
bake sale, magician, puppet shows and plenty of food. Admission is
$1.
309/347-YWCA
Oct.
14-15
Broom Orchard 10th Annual Pumpkin
Festival
Carlinville
Pick-your-own
pumpkin patch, arts and crafts, pony rides and entertainment.
217/854-3514
Pumpkin Festival
Apple
Blossom Farm, Rt. 91, Peoria
Pick
your own pumpkins, take a hayrack ride, enjoy live music, play
pumpkin games and eat pumpkin treats.
309/ 243-1012
Oct.
21
Auburn Harvest Festival
Town
square
Native
American Living History, hot air balloon rides, chili cook-off, flea
market, craft fair, old time music, Halloween window-painting
contest, car cruise.
217/438-3405
![](../images/092700pics/harvest29.jpg)
Applefest
Central
Park Plaza, Jacksonville
Come
and see who wins the apple pie bake-off, and enjoy the crafts,
entertainment and food available.
217/245-9917
Oct.
21-22
112th annual Pike County Drive
Pet
Clydesdale horses, walk through three-acre corn mazes, take a
horse-drawn wagon ride, have your own broom made while you wait or
tour the 100-year-old Pike County Courthouse at this event. Hundreds
of crafts and antiques are for sale at booths throughout the drive
and demonstrations include doll making, basket weaving, chair
caning, stained glass and rope making. More than 25,000 visitors
attended the popular event last year.
217/335-2670
Nov.
4-5
New Salem Harvest Feast
Lincoln’s
New Salem Historic Site, Petersburg
Take
a step back in time and watch villagers prepare for Thanksgiving, by
making apple butter and shucking corn. Parade and demonstrations.
217/632-4000
[Penny
Zimmerman-Wills]
![](../images/ads/Edward_Jones/JimSparrows.gif)
|
|
Weekend
review of fall festivals
Special events for every taste
Pumpkins,
apples, pork, persimmons and more
[SEPT.
22, 2000]
The
days at the local swimming pool are a faded memory. The crisp, clean
air means sweater weather is just around the corner. Ushering in the
new season, trees will soon turn autumnal shades of red and gold,
and pumpkins have already started popping up on every front porch in
town.
|
But
one of the best things about fall in central Illinois — besides
the pumpkins — is the abundance of activities, festivals and
special events. Nearly every local community has a festival of some
kind, and some of the area’s largest, like the Spoon River and
Knox County scenic drives, draw 100,000 people each year in October.
The
season for fall festivals has already begun, but there are still a
ton of festivals on the calendar well worth taking a drive in the
country to explore, including the Clinton Apple and Pork Festival
this weekend. The town of Clinton rolls out the red carpet in
celebration of pork and apples for this favorite local event.
Although in recent years the event has become very crowded, it’s
still a fun way to spend the day in DeWitt County.
This
annual event, always held the last weekend of September, celebrates
harvest time on the grounds of the C.H. Moore Homestead (DeWitt
County Museum). The event, which draws more than 70,000 people to
the city, serves up a variety of food, but taking center stage is
pork in all its forms — cutlet sandwiches, pork chili, pickles and
pork sandwiches, pork sausage sandwiches, BBQ pork ribs, hog legs
and even pig ears. There's also a big emphasis on apples — taffy
apples, apple cake, apple and corn fritters, apple Danish rolls,
fried apples, caramel apple wedges, apple pie, apple cider and apple
butter.
There
is also a juried craft show, with artists making everything from
dulcimers to carousel horses; a flea market; scarecrow contest; art
show; and antique tractor exhibit.
More
information is available by calling 217/935-6066.
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And,
just when you think you’ve had your fill of pumpkins, gourds and
Indian corn during all the fall festivals in September and October,
another local event comes along the first weekend in November and
wins the prize for the most unique — the annual Persimmon Party in
Taylorville. The historic fruit is celebrated in a big way at the
Christian County Historical Museum.
What
has now become a popular annual event all started when Taylorville
resident Mary Anne Durbin decided to put to good use all that messy
fruit falling off the old persimmon trees on the grounds of the
historical society. Her friend had brought back some frozen
persimmon pulp, which was quite expensive, from a festival in
Indiana, and it gave her the idea. Durbin, a member and past
president of the Christian County Historical Society, said the event
has turned into a fun fund-raiser for the museum and a way to spread
the joy of the native American fruit. Members of the historical
society pick the fruit, process the pulp and freeze it. The frozen
pulp, which resembles pumpkin when spices are added, she said, is
then made in a variety of foods, including bread, pudding, cake,
cookies, fudge and even ice cream.
"It’s
a good fruit. But only pick them when they’re ripe," Durbin
said. "If they’re not ripe, you don’t want to touch them.
People pucker up when they try one that isn’t ripe. I think that’s
why a lot of people don’t like them — because they had a bad
experience with one that wasn’t ripe. You have to wait until they
fall off the tree."
Area
residents bake a variety of food items using the fruit, and it’s
all available for sampling during a tasting party. "People have
a lot of fun with these persimmons and tasting all the different
foods," Durbin said.
The
native fruit was used by pioneers and Native Americans, according to
Durbin, and not only do people enjoy eating the native American
fruit, but during the party they also learn how to use the fruit to
forecast the weather. "People come year after year, buy cups of
frozen pulp, taste samples and really have a good time," she
said. "We also have persimmon seeds. If you split the seeds
open, you see a little white sprout in the shape of a spoon, knife
or fork. If you see a spoon, which is the most common, it means
there is a lot of snow in the winter ahead. A fork shape means the
winter will hold light, powdery snow, and a knife shape means cold,
winter winds."
[to top of second
column in this article]
|
![](../images/ads/maple/MapleRdg-AUG.jpg)
The
event draws about 800 people each year, from Illinois, Missouri,
Indiana and Kansas. A recipe book, first published during the city’s
150th birthday celebration in 1989, features 147 persimmon recipes
and is also for sale during the event.
This
year’s event will be Nov. 4 and 5, from noon to 4 p.m. each day.
More information is available by calling 217/824-6922.
Other
local events include the following:
Sept.
22-24
Springfield
Septoberfest
Fifth
and Washington streets, Springfield
This
second-annual event offers crafts, antiques, entertainment,
scarecrow building and a children’s area. Food from local
restaurants and farmers market produce will be available.
217/544-1723.
Sept.
23
Petersburg
Harvest Fest
Downtown
Petersburg
A
parade, craft sale, talent show, soapbox derby, carnival rides,
antiques and crafts, food and entertainment. 217/632-7363.
Peoria
Octoberfest
Festival
Park, Peoria
This
annual festival is full of German food, music and culture. Polka
dancing, crafts and food and beer catered by Jumer’s Castle Lodge
are on the menu. There is an admission fee.
Sept.
23-24
Beardstown
Fall Fun Festival
City
square, Beardstown
A
combination homecoming and festival, with parades, flea markets,
arts and crafts booths and entertainment. 217/323-3273.
Steam
Show and Fall Festival Days
Prairie
Land Heritage Museum, Lincoln and Michigan streets, Jacksonville
Equipment,
flea market and crafters present three days of activities.
217/243-7262; 800/593-5678.
Fort
Crevecoeur Rendezvous
Creve
Coeur
Experience
life in 1680 to 1835 at this 86-acre historic park with a 30-acre
nature preserve. French voyageurs, trappers, buckskinners and
traders re-enact a fall rendezvous in the woods, between French
settlers and the area’s Native Americans. Silversmithing, beading,
fife and drum music and dancing. 309/694-3193.
Jordbruksdagarna
(Agricultural Days)
Bishop
Hill
Traditional
harvest festival featuring 19th-century crop-processing
demonstrations, traditional music, children’s games, farm produce
and colony stew served throughout the historic village.
309/927-3345.
Annual
Taste of Illinois food and
beverage fair
Apple
Basket Farms, Barry
Snack
on apples, wine and cheese, among other food items, while learning
all about herbs, during Herbfest 2000. The Illinois Herb Association
convenes its annual fall meeting at the apple business, so seminars
and other educational features on how to cook and make crafts with
herbs are on tap.
[Penny
Zimmerman-Wills]
(More
fall festivals)
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