Most People Don’t Know About These Strange Ruins Hiding In Nebraska
By Delana Lefevers|Published January 15, 2018
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Delana Lefevers
Author
As a lifelong Nebraskan, Delana loves discovering the many hidden treasures of her state. She has worked as a writer and editor since 2007. Delana's work has been featured on more than a dozen websites and in Nebraska Life Magazine.
With all of Nebraska’s vast expanses of sparsely-populated areas, there are plenty of places for secrets to hide. Some are just too fascinating to stay hidden.
The tiny town of Cowles, Nebraska - just a few miles northeast of Red Cloud in Webster County - has never been a particularly large or well-known place. In recent years, its population has steadily decreased; as of the last census just 30 people lived there.
There's a field just outside of town where you'll find a little part of American sports history and a mostly-forgotten piece of Nebraska history. In the late 19th century, a lad named Denton True Young pitched some of his first games on the baseball field that was once there. You may know this baseball star better as "Cy" Young, who is now widely regarded as one of the sport's all-time greatest players. Later on, another baseball legend, Clarence "Dazzy" Vance, would play on the same field.
But the historic former baseball field isn't the only special thing about this unassuming plot of land outside of Cowles. If you know where to look, you can see the ruins of a former resort in the very same area. In 1928, John Malick built up a little resort called Malick Park. It offered a pool, a dance hall, a horseshoe pit, and other amenities that made Cowles a destination for weekend recreation seekers.
When the Great Depression struck, Malick Park was forced to close. Today it has all but disappeared into the ever-growing vegetation. If you were able to find your way out to this field - and it's not easy, trust us - you would see only some crumbling foundations, the pool, and this beautiful concrete fountain.
The video above focuses mostly on Cy Young, but it also gives some interesting details about Malick Park and another historic event that likely took place on those grounds.
If you decide to go looking for the remains of Malick Park, be sure to seek permission from landowners first; you’ll have to travel through several fields to get there.
While you’re in the area, why not stop in and Red Cloud, “the most famous small town in America,” which is just a few miles away? Read up on that town right here.
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