A month ago, Janna Jahn walked into White Duck Taco, where she struck up a conversation with co-owner Nelson Taylor.
“Do you guys like baseball?” Jahn asked, to which Taylor replied, “Yeah, I love baseball.”
Jahn went on to tell Taylor about the history of Engel Stadium, a storied ballpark in Chattanooga that will be torn down by the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga as early as next spring.
Taylor already knew that the film “42” was filmed at Engel Stadium, but he was fascinated by the stories of Joe Engel, Jackie Mitchell, Babe Ruth and other baseball greats who passed through the ballpark.
“As of the last couple weeks, I’ve heard more and more, and I’m like wow, what a travesty it would be to tear down a historic site like this with such a rich history and awesome stories,” Taylor said in an interview.