Parks



Spencer Square – Part I

2nd – 3rd Avenues; 19th -20th Streets The tale of Spencer Square is one that has a beginning, a middle, and, sadly, there’s also an end.  But it’s a long … [ Continued



Black Hawk Watch Tower Amusement Park

Black Hawk Road near 17th Street Here is a peek at Rock Island’s own homegrown amusement park.  Like Chicago’s Riverview, New York’s Coney Island, and the much later Disneyland, the … [ Continued



Garnsey Square

5th – 6th Streets & 3rd – 4th Avenues  We think of Rock Island as a city of parks, especially large rambling parks.  But a century ago, parks and public … [ Continued



Spencer Square, Part 2

2nd -3rd Avenues; 19th -20th Streets An earlier article told the first half of the story of Spencer Square in downtown Rock Island — how the square block between 19th … [ Continued



Lincoln Park – Denkmann Memorial Pool

Near 40th Street & 11th Avenue This postcard, which dates from about 1960, isn’t as old as many in this series of articles, but it’s one with an interesting story.  … [ Continued



Long View Park – Stag Hill

Long View Park – it was originally spelled with two words – was probably the most “postcarded” place in Rock Island, with Spencer Square running a close second.   You probably … [ Continued



Long View Park Lower Lake

17th Street at 13th Avenue  The Augustana College Library holds many treasures.  Among the postcards in their Special Collections are these two Real Photo shots of the lower lagoon – … [ Continued



Black Hawk Watch Tower Inns

For decades, Watch Tower Park was a destination for folks all over the Quad Cities.  In 1891 when several local railways merged to form the Tri City Railway, the formerly … [ Continued