An in-depth study of the magical era of amateur baseball in Minnesota, from 1945 to 1960, looks at the social and economic factors that contributed to the sport's success, profiles some of the teams and their players, and includes a collection of anecdotes, vintage photographs, and statistics.

Minnesota has over three hundred town ball teams, more organized amateur baseball teams than in any other state in the country.* Town Ball, Parks of Minnesota takes the reader on a tour of the state's most revered ballparks, ranging from a multi-million dollar complex in the Twin Cities to a rural field at the end of a dirt road ? arguably the most remote ballpark in the state.Over the course of several years and thousands of miles, the author traveled the state to visit these ballparks, then selected twenty-seven unique, historic and most beloved ballparks. The result is a book on town ball unlike any other publication. The book features five hundred baseball photographs selected from over 20,000 images, together with entertaining stories about the teams, the ballparks and the towns. For those readers who grew up with town ball, this book will highlight the sport they know and have loved for generations. For those unfamiliar with town ball, the book will afford you a glimpse into why these ballparks are considered some of the state's greatest sports treasures.Ready to come along on the tour? This is a trip worth taking.*According to the Minnesota Baseball Association

From the early days of town ball to the latest seasons of the Twins and Saints, Stew Thornley offers the ultimate history of the Great American Pastime in the North Star State.

From the rickety to the palatial, ballparks have grown up with and defined baseball in Minneapolis and St. Paul. Some old-timers have vivid memories of cheering for Willie Mays and Roy Campanella at Nicollet and Lexington. Others marveled at a majestic Killebrew home run at the Met. Many a lucky resident celebrated two world championships in the Metrodome and witnessed one of the greatest pitching performances in World Series history. More recently, fans have enjoyed the return of sunshine and even raindrops at Target Field. Described by City Pages as "the most respected local baseball historian," Stew Thornley leads a tour of where we--as well as our grandparents and now our children--discovered baseball.

"This book combines text and image to reveal the real-life origins of the place where "the women are strong, the men are good-looking and the children above average." Keillor meditates on the enduring culture of the county and on the years he spent there as a young writer and an outsider. And a short story of Lake Wobegon, "October," appears here for the first time in print."--BOOK JACKET.

A fabulous showcase of individuals, events, and inventions that have made Minnesota.

From Bushville: "The game is a fine construct. Its trace through anyone's life can range from a youthful diversion to a full-blown career, a tender small-fingered grasp to a deep muscular understanding. It provides a focus and a way to express the physical self in a physical world. I've played every moment of every game in my life as an amateur in the best sense of that word--doing something I love just for the love of it. The roots of that soulful effort run as deep as my earliest memories, measuring them. And possibly, yours likewise." To play baseball is to become part of the game. One need not be a megabuck star to live baseball as a participant, to figure into its geometry and its drama. The friendly exertions of amateur play lie at the heart of the sport, comprising the wellspring of its professional levels. Here viewed as a pastime through the eyes of a lifelong amateur player, baseball unfolds as an experience of motion and time and senses--the work of muscle, the textures of wood and leather, the warmth of sun, the scents of a grassy field. In the timeless continuity of the game can be glimpsed part of baseball's singular appeal: the lively tension between the momentary and the eternal, what is over and what is never over. The interwoven essays making up Bushville are a poignant reflection upon the pursuit of what is essentially a ball, but what is crucially human as well.