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Cooperstown, NY, is America's
favorite hometown
Come visit a village that
is a pure, wholesome trip back in time
| Main
Street, Cooperstown, NY (Photo by Eric J. Hurwitz) |
Article by Eric J. Hurwitz
There was an older man sitting
with his wife on a bench at Lakefront Park. The sun was going
down, and Otsego Lake couldn't have looked any more beautiful
with its pristine color of the day --limestone -- and the gentle
rolling green hills framing the body of water. The man from Georgia,
who appeared to be wordly, opened his tired eyes and said, "You
know, this is nice."
He said it as if this was the
best placed he ever visited. My wife and I nodded, in agreement,
telling him that we visit Cooperstown, NY, every year. We said
that it was indeed the greatest place we have ever visited, and
that, in no way, was based on being a tourist. Without living
there, we thought, it is our second home.
Cooperstown may be a tourist
destination, but ultimately it is small-town America at its most
beautiful. Seventy miles southwest of Albany, NY, and 45 miles
southeast of Utica, NY, Cooperstown is a place where people proudly
live in well-maintained homes, and close-knit family-oriented
neighborhoods --close to Otsego Lake and the toy village-like
charm of Main St. From the big but not ostentatious homes on
Nelson Ave. and Pine Blvd. to the peaceful tree-lined residential
streets like Beaver, Eagle, Delaware and Elm, Cooperstown never
overwhelms you. It is not about a honky-tonk, traffic laden,
and let's-see-how-much- we- can- buy mentality. Rather, Cooperstown is an authentic
village void of corporate America leanings, fast food chains,
and most importantly, stress. You can see the pride of the people,
be it a long-time Cooperstown native viewing the pleasing sunrise
above the scenic Susquehanna River, or the new residents trading
the Big Apple rat race for a walk with the family and an eternal
small-town smile to the world.
The Village appears
to be Norman Rockwell fully realized, in living color. Three
elderly brothers walk the streets in baseball clothing, as close
as can be. Little children stare, for extended amounts of time,
at the range of baseball memorabilia at stores. Mothers walk
their babies down "Main Street USA" and fathers see
their boyhood baseball heroes through the windows of their souls--first
their eyes, then beyond the glass displays in The Baseball Hall
of Fame and Museum. Romance indeed lives, not in a Shakespearian
sense, but in "It's a Wonderful Life" way--small town
America coming together. Perhaps
James Fenimore Cooper said it best in 1837, about his beloved
surroundings: "Lying, as it does, off the great routes,
the village of Cooperstown is less known than it deserves to
be. Few persons visit it, without acknowledging the beauties
of its natural scenery, and the general neatness and decency
of the place itself. ... Everything shows a direction
towards ... an improving civilization."
A Sunday morning
in church on peaceful Elm St., a seat in the Adirondack chair
overlooking Otsego Lake at the Blue Mingo Grill, or a walk--just
a walk-- is enough to inspire sunshine in one's soul that is
brighter than the sun. There
may be only one traffic light in town, but no matter where you
 spend you time in this quaint village,
the green light is always on to have a great time.
The Village takes care of its
residents quite well. Sometimes towns with tourists lose vision
of the people who live in town, all in the name of the mighty
buck. This is not the case in Cooperstown, as can be well evidenced
by community pride and services often seen in larger communities
-- for example, the highly developed, state-of-the-art Bassett
Healtcare (a network of three hospitals and 21 health care facilities
located across Central New York, with the main facility in Cooperstown)
and the modern Clark Sports Center, which offers residents and
visitors comprehensive recreational opportunities ranging from
a swimming pool to a well laid out workout area.
Tourism does boom in this quaint,
friendly small town, as baseball souvenir shops have grown considerably
over the past 15 years to align with the National Baseball Hall
of Fame and Museum's stately and historical presence on Main
St. Thousands of families visit the National Baseball Hall of
Fame and Museum every summer crowding the streets in a sea of
happiness, ice cream, and wide-eyed, kid-like wonderment on how
a small town can bring such big joy. The city and suburbs
just can't do this.
One of the great testaments to
a community is never feeling like you've completely walked the
entire community, no matter how many times you have strolled
the area. The splendid and myriad Victorians gracefully lining
Chestnut St. deserve more than one look. Turning Chestnut St.
onto Main St. and seeing the colorful hanging baskets, wide sidewalks,
well-maintained interesting and colorful shops needs to be retraced
at least 10 or 20 times a day.
On the corner of Main and Chestnut
Sts. is a splendid and inviting introduction to the town: Schneider's
Bakery. A long-time Cooperstown favorite, Schneider's has the
heavenly smell of donuts (far better than those chain stores
offering the slightly fresh version) and other handmade baked
goods piercing through the old fashioned windows.On the Chestnut
St. side, bakers can be seen through the window making their
sugar-themed magic. Inside is a comfortable little shop that
looks the way it did many years ago. A few doors down from Schneider's,
Hubbell's Real Estate displays inviting affordable-to-extravagant
Cooperstown real estate offerings in its window, drawing myriad
couples considering a move to a simpler life.
 The
shops spanning a few blocks on Main St. represent individual
slices of locally-owned Americana. The Cooperstown General Store
is huge and carries everything from socks to Adirondack chairs.
The help is always friendly and emphasizes service -- the way
its predecessors McCrory's and Kresge's conducted their business
in this exact location. Davidson's Jewelry/Augur's Bookstore
also favors service. Whether it is a wedding diamond ring or
a book written by Yogi Berra, the staff makes sure to help the
customer. In its display window, there are books on how Walmart
is destroying America, but you would never know it by the way
locals and tourists support local businesses on Main St. Down
the street the Willis Monie bookstore has books piled up to the
ceiling. It is a fascinating trip back in time, including that
old book smell we remember from elementary school. For women,
Ellsworth and Sill brings back a nice selection of women's traditional
clothing in a nice, unpressured atmosphere. The older women managing
the store and the racks of discounted clothing at the outdoor
entrance make for a warm shopping experience.
While your significant other
shops at Ellsworth and Sill, a short walk to National Pastime
is mandatory. National Pastime has a marvelous collection of
baseball art work, photographs, cards, prints, clothing and more.
For the baseball fan, this small shop with a great layout and
detail to the history of the game will give the true baseball
fan goosebumps. It's sort of the retail version of the National
Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, as the history of baseball
merchandise is well displayed.
 Across
the street is Danny's Market, which celebrates the glory of community-oriented
food shopping in a small, old-fashioned store, where, somehow,
one can find anything. The anti-supermarket superstore, Danny's
has a beautiful green and tan awning out front, and inside, an
impressive deli counter, on the premise hearth-cooked breads,
delicious baked goods, and a few seats to eat while reading the
paper under the ceiling fans.
Doubleday Field, one of the best
kept baseball fields known, is a great place to catch amateur
baseball games for free, all day during the summer. The combination
of sun, charming village homes, churches and trees surrounding
the park, the picture-perfect green grass on the field, an old-fashioned
scoreboard, and some baseball being played by people truly interested
in the game, makes for a relaxing, slow-pace-in-the-best-sense
afternoon.
Before, during or after the game,
there are well-run Village ice cream shops to enhance your Cooperstown
stay, including the Red Nugget (a nice selection of Hershey's
ice cream) and Carmen Esposito's Italian Ices serving addictive
flavored ices, homemade ice cream and gelati -- root beer with
 vanilla gelati is the recommended
choice.
The National Baseball Hall of
Fame and Museum, one of the great treasures in our country, resides
proudly on Main Street in a stately large, brick building with
a new, inviting outside entrance. The National Baseball Hall
of Fame Hall and Museum's mission is to "relive the history
of the National Pastime, through artifacts from historic records,
to the plaques of the game's greatest players in the Hall of
Fame Gallery," according to its literature. Once inside,
that mission comes to life whether it be the incredible New York
Yankees displays, an Abbott and Costello "Who's on First,"
movie clip, a wonderful baseball card display, or, of course,
the memorable and historical Baseball Hall of Fame where one
can read plaques all day on all the great players inducted into
this illustrious museum.The National Baseball Hall of Fame and
Museum has a wonderful library and an appealing park area, perfect
for a short stroll or yet another perspective on Otsego Lake.
The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a must-see for
the baseball fan or anyone with an interest in history. It is,
simply, one of life's great joys.
Walking nearly
outside the village will bring you to another source of enjoyment,
The Farmers' Museum which portrays rural life in early times.
An herbal pharmacy, blacksmithing, weaving, printing, stickball
games, music, the great Empire State Carousel, farming, -- with
many different animals -- and more make for a lively  afternoon. Unlike other
places of this ilk, it's not forced or hokey. Everything seems
authentic. Virtually across the street is the Fenimore
Art Museum, "home to one of the country's premier folk art
collections, and now the American Indian Wing with a dazzling
collection and galleries 'any museum in the world would envy.'"
(The New York Times). The Fenimore Museum also has great kids
activities; we particularly enjoyed the gingerbread house-making
class. So did the kids.
The museums attracts visitors
year round for special events such as the Farmer's Museum Candlelight
Evening in December. The Candlelight evening represents the true
essence of the holiday season with a beautiful Christmas tree,
musical performances by local schools, delicious wassail, a wonderful
Santa Claus telling great childrens' stories, horse-drawn carriage
rides, warm, comfort food in the tavern, thousands of lights
illuminating the beautiful countryside, and beautiful voices
either singing holiday songs. The weather might be cold, but
the feeling is ultimately warm at this grand Farmer's Museum
event.
 The overall feeling that Cooperstown
offers goes beyond the written word. If the words sound appealing
here, your Cooperstown vacation will bring that special feeling
out in multi-dimensional ways. Someday, whether it's a permanent
or summer home, we envision ourselves sitting hand-in-hand on
a Lakefront Park bench staring at the marvelous lake. and saying
or thinking the words,"This is nice." The words
already play in our mind everytime we think of Cooperstown, America's
most perfect village.
For more information on
Cooperstown, NY, view the Cooperstown
Travel Library, Attractions Resource
Guide, Calendar of Events, Dining and Lodging sections, and photo gallery
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