Published: September 11, 2009 09:31 am      

The Iten Stadium at Coan Field, 1925

The year was 1925, and Clinton High School had been at its new site on Eighth Avenue since 1920. A new football field and track had been built and, on the occasion of the Second Annual Homecoming that year, the Iten Stadium was formally dedicated.

It remained in continuous use until 2008. Now, thanks to the work of hundreds of booster club members, CHS will have a new stadium in time for the 2009 Homecoming. A plaque will give testament to their hard work and memorialize the historic nature of the Itens and Coans before them. The Kings opened up the new facility with a big win over Davenport West last Friday night and, tonight, will try to win their third win in a row over Burlington.

Go on out and enjoy the game in the new stands.

In 1928, lights were added to the complex and were hoisted high on wooden poles. They survived until 1950, when steel towers were used. These were replaced again in 2007. I remember LeRoy, a great fan who attended every event at Coan Field, was there for the first lighted event. He lived in the neighborhood and was probably an alumnus.

The old press box was downright tiny, and many tall coaches and officials hit their heads when walking through its small doors. The room was very crowded, and radio and public address announcers sat side-by-side… often interfering with each other’s ability to speak.

In 1925, there was a big celebration, capped by a parade. L.R. Hypes, Rodney Fitch and Russell Hainline were the judges. Some 40 floats were entered in the gigantic display. At 6:30 p.m. Friday, a bonfire and snake dance took place. On Saturday, there were double header football games — at 2 p.m. between the Aggies and Bears (junior varsity teams), and at 3 p.m. the main event between Iowa City and the “Black and Red,” as CHS was then known. It wasn’t until the early 1930s that Clinton High became the “River Kings.”

Much of the area adjacent to the high school was donated by the Itens, owners of Iten Biscuit Co., then often referred to by locals as the Snow White Bakery. The family also gave the land for Franklin School and for the North Field, which came to be called Iten Field. On Jan. 2, 1942, Frank Iten told Raymond C. Jones, the president of the board of directors, “Christmas isn’t over yet,” and he handed over the deed for one square block of land, north of Eighth Avenue. Fifty years before, when Clinton’s sawmills had been fading, the city reached out for new businesses to locate here, which caused the Itens to come from Davenport to establish their company, which was later sold to Nabisco.

The Frank Iten family lived on Bluff Boulevard, where the Sarah Harding Home is now located, and were famous for the wonderful Iten Christmas display. The Louis Iten family lived at 835 Fifth Ave. South. The dedication of the old stands, on the evening of Oct. 10, 1925, was presided over by L.F. Sutton and School Board President O.H. Henningsen.

The Clinton High School River King & River Queen Booster Club deserves to be proud of the vision shown in creating this wonderful new facility, which will adequately serve many future generations of fans and students, for the athletic pursuits of track, soccer and football.



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Sources: The Advertiser,1925; the Clinton Herald archives; Dick Farwell; Hank Dihlmann; Dave Bahnsen, author of a soon-to-be-published book about the Itens; and Mike Kearney.



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Gary Herrity is the Clinton Herald’s historical columnist. His column appears on page 5A on Fridays.