The Charleston Alley Cats, a Single A affiliate of Toronto, play in Watt Powell Park. Watt Powell park opened in 1949 and this is its last year before the Alley Cats move to a new stadium. For a stadium this old it is in relatively good condition as there have been some improvements made over the years. Walter B. (Watt) Powell was a long-time Charleston baseball figure and former minor-league player who died shortly before the park's opening. We tried to find where the new stadium is being built, but construction has not yet begun. We aren't sure that the new stadium will be ready before the beginning or end of the 2004 season. On May 24th the Legends starting pitcher hit the first three Cats batters in the 3rd inning. But the Cats were unable to get any of them across home plate. The Alley Cats won on May 24th 3-2. The box score was Legends R-2, H-7, E-3 and Alley Cats R-3, H-8, E-1. The Alley Cats won again on May 25th 4-2. The box score was Legends R-2, H-7, E-1 and Alley Cats R-4, H-7, E-1. The field lines are RF & LF-330' and CF-407'. There is an extra corner in center field towards right field. The bleachers on the third base side do not have backs. Al E. Cat is the mascot. There is a guy who sits behind home, named The Toast Man, who has made up small signs supporting the Cats players. He holds them up when the Cats come up to bat to get the fans cheering for them. He makes burned toast in a toaster and get the fans to chant "You are toast!" three times when an opposing player strikes out while holding up a handful of toast. Then he throws the pieces of toast into the crowd. Jim was told that the new stadium has an electrical outlet in the design for the Toast Man. If you want to see the game for free you can bring your lawn chair and sit on a small hill just beyond the right field fence. Of course you are right by the railroad track when the train comes by. The souvenir stand is called the Meow Mart. There are several different between inning activities that we have not seen before. They have two children dressed in a jumpsuit with velcro strips on it roll around in a plastic swimming pool filled with velvet pieces. After a timed period the one with the most pieces on his/her suit is the winner of Rolling in the Dough. Another has two teams of two children crawl through a cloth tube in a relay in the Pipeline Race. Two adults in large knight costumes joust in the Jock Joust and try to knock the other person's make-believe head off the costume to win the maiden who is Al E. Cat dressed in a skirt. They strap a person in a 6-foot steel fabricated open sides ball and roll them down a 6-foot ramp to try and knock over 6 6-foot bowling pins. They have a person dressed in a chicken costume for the chicken dance song. They have a race beyond the left field fence of airplanes on a stick that are carried by stadium personnel. Jim was in a contest to guess the price of a quart of milk in 1910, after four guesses he got it right--12 cents, and won a coffee mug. We would like to thank the family who gave us a victory soft baseball after the game on May 25th. New name the West Virginia Power located in a new stadium. 2009 affiliated with Pittsburg Pirates. New Logo.
Attractions
Craik-Patton House built in 1834 by James Craik, the house later was purchased by George Smith Patton, a Confederate colonel and grandfather of WW II Gen George S. Patton. Fee.

Memorial Day Week -end the Vandalia Festival on the grounds of the State Capitol Complex featuring dance and crafts of West Virginia. Free