Mason City, We Are Here
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Day 3: June 7, 2023 Mason City, We Are Here Comment via blog |
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We spotted this statue of Chief Black Hawk
while looking for a Peter Toth sculpture. It was obviously not the
sculpture we were seeking but we stopped anyway.
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This is the sculpture we were seeking. Every state in the USA has at
least one Peter Wolf Toth carving. A plaque marking this one is
here.
When the statue was mentioned last night, I claimed to have seen it and told of the unusual Independence Day I had spent in its vicinity. I realized my error when I sought out the carving's location on a map. The Independence Day I spoke of was spent in another city on US-20 with a Peter Toth sculpture and a name that starts with "I" and ends with "Falls". My memories were of IDAHO Falls not IOWA Falls. |
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A Send Off in Estes Park was planned but rain prompted moving in inside.
Mayor Michael Emerson spoke to caravan members at the Iowa Falls
Historical Society Museum. Note that the painting
beside the mayor is a stylized view of the scene in the last photo in
the previous panel -- with fewer trees.
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The day's first stop was at the Franklin County Historical Museum where
Kathy Hotchkiss told the story of what might be the only Interstate Trail
Marker in existence. A readable version is here.
The museum's many artifacts include a couple from Ohio.
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The Windsor
Theater was built in 1913 and started showing movies in 1917. Jim
Davis told us about the theater's history while we all munched the popcorn
we were given on entry.
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Lunch was at Block
10 in the historic City Memorial Hall Building in Sheffield, Iowa.
Among other things, the building was once used as a dining hall and shower
facility by Jefferson Highway travelers. The tables are made from a
gymnasium floor. The jail cell was donated by another city as the one
Sheffield had originally has been lost to time.
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At Rae's Lighthouse, Rockwell's mayor, Larry Wentz, spoke
to use as we worked on our ice cream. I had Praline-N-Pecan.
I paused ever so briefly for a snapshot of the Rock of Ages Garden on the way out of Rockwell. |
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I stopped at the Surf Ballroom back in 2018 but this time I roamed
around a little more and got a better appreciation for the size of the
place. We were treated (Literally. Thanks BN.) to a tour which took us
into the green room and onto the stage. Don McLean inscribed the first
verse of American Pie on the green room wall in 1994.
Waylon Jennings signature is among the many
others on the green room wall. While on stage, I tried capturing the view
from the drum riser.
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The Sociability Caravan reached its goal and came to an end with Mason
City's welcome at East Park.
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A short time later, the conference began with a Welcome Reception at
Music Man
Square. After roughly four years of planning (COVID don't you know),
conference committee chair Sandra Huemann-Kelly was able to greet the
attendees. The museum had not been open during my previous time in Mason
City so I was kind of surprised at how big it is. In addition to lots of
Meredith Willson artifacts on display, there's a ceiling lined with
trombones and a Main Street ready for a parade.
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The day ended in this room at the
Historic Park Inn
Hotel.
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