Cairo, Illinois
Across Washington from what is possibly the ugliest county courthouse in the country is Harper’s (2013 Washington, 618-734-0538), a local institution that serves both normal fare and pretty good Chinese food. Harper’s has long been the nicest place in town, even after its recent purchase by J. Andrew Clarke, a former county clerk and current county commissioner. The garrulous local Teflon politician displayed Clinton-esque deftness when he was indicted in the mid-80s for crimes associated with his office. He got off, which seemed to suit everyone just fine. I was in Saint Louis at a Cardinals game with Andy shortly after his acquittal when he found himself at a urinal standing next to a state board of elections official. “Do you fuckers have to follow me everywhere?” he asked. “Just doing my job,” was the reply. Andy is a terrific host. I usually order the chicken livers.
Quincy, Illinois
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Quincy’s relative isolation did have one advantage: “Over the years, we had to have our own everything,” says Mayor Charles W. Scholz. “A great symphony, theater, an art center.” Quincy even made it into the book The 100 Best Small Art Towns in America, which described the city as “one-third New Orleans snobby, one-third Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil eccentric, and one-third Midwestern blue-collar industrial.”
The Quincy Community Theater (300 Civic Center Plaza, 217-222-3209)–located in the Oakley-Lindsay Center, a “performing arts and civic center complex” opened in 1995–is presenting Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s Into the Woods this summer. The center is also home to the Quincy Society of Fine Arts. Founded in 1947, it was the first Community Arts Council in America. Their “funline,” 217-228-2787, has recorded info on the current week’s events. The Quincy Symphony Orchestra is done for the season, but the Quincy Park Band (800-978-4748), which blares out marches and show tunes, is playing eight concerts in June.
The great thing about Quincy is that historic doesn’t always mean restored: sometimes it just means old. The Hotel Elkton (133 S. Fourth, 217-222-5660) hasn’t changed much since it was built in 1924. There’s a neon sign on the side of the building, the night clerk sits in a cage in the lobby, the wooden floors of the narrow hallways are warped under the carpets, and the single-room rate is under $30. You’ll feel like a traveling salesman in a James M. Cain novel. (Turn the free cable to A&E at 8 AM or 2 PM and you can watch “Quincy, M.E.” in Quincy, IL.) The Elkton also has its own restaurant, The Patio, which is known for charcoal steaks and pork chops.
If you didn’t come to Lake County prepared to hunt or fish, don’t worry. Everything you need is available, from rifles to tackle to canoes to the liveliest night crawlers. If you’re striking out on your own, don’t forget to ask about local restrictions: certain sections of the river are flies-only, for example, and while the Department of Natural Resources may not remind you, other fishing parties will. If you land a big one before July 22, be sure to weigh it in for the regional contest. Winners will be announced at the annual Troutarama Festival (800-245-3240), July 22-24, a Baldwin tradition for 43 years.
