2024/04/07

Arthur, Iowa popcorn history

Odebolt was once known as the "Popcorn Center of the World". 

Our neighboring town, Arthur, also has popcorn history.  Below are the Shotwell Elevator and cribs in Arthur about 1913.

 
 The Chronicle, August 22nd, 1912

It is announced that the Shotwell Manufacturing Co. of Chicago will construct an elevator and popcorn cribs in Arthur yet this fall. The plant will be built by Contractor Birchard of Lincoln, Nebraska at a cost of about $15,000. 
 
The Shotwell people manufacture "Checkers," a confection similar to Crackerjack and are said to be the second largest consumers of popcorn in the country. For some years their supply of corn has been purchased direct from Odebolt dealers, but they have now decided to erect their own plant, and it is understood will buy for their own use only. The plant would have been built here [in Odebolt] had a site with trackage [railroad tracks] been available.
 
The Chronicle, October 10, 1912

The Shotwell popcorn plant now building at Arthur will have a capacity of 80,000 bushels. Eight cribs are being built, each 160 feet long, 10 feel wide and 16 feet high. Thirty men are doing the construction work as it is planned to have the plant completed in time to handle this year's crop. 



Apparently there was also The Famers Elevator Company in Arthur
 
The Chronicle, November 12, 1914

A large amount of popcorn is being marketed at Arthur. The Farmers Elevator company has its cribs all filled, having taken in 1,500,000 pounds in four days.  They have been taking in corn at the elevator and cribs at the same time, loading several cars a day.

The Shotwell elevator handled from the second day of November until Thursday, the 8th, 1,118,230 pounds of ear popcorn. On the first day ninety-one wagon loads were brought in, nine of which were left in the yard unloaded on account of the day being too short. The average weight of these loads were 3,340 pounds. The corn is being sorted and cleaned and the shelled corn taken out as it passes over the cleaning mill. The corn goes into the crib free of dirty or shelled corn, so it has plenty of ventilation. A crew of eight men besides the manage, J. C. Mickelson [? hard to read] are at work. The old popcorn is being shelled, sacked and shipped every day. The machinery works automatically, the belts going at the rate of 800 feet a minute.
 

 
"Time Machine: Iowa was once No. 1 in popcorn" -  Cedar Rapids Gazette, March 28, 2023

Hardly anyone has heard of the Chicago-based Shotwell Manufacturing Co. popcorn plant in Arthur, east of Ida Grove in northwest Iowa.

Sitting in the heart of what was then known as popcorn country, the elevator and cribs were built around 1913.

In 1918, the Carroll Times reported about 18 million tons of popcorn had been raised the previous year around Arthur and Odebolt, “the largest popcorn markets in the United States.”

The plant at Arthur was the largest popcorn processor in the country when it was sold for $50,000 — about $850,000 in today’s dollars — to Shotwell’s main competitor, the Cracker Jack Co. of Chicago, in August 1925.

1931 fire

On Dec 5, 1931, fire destroyed the Cracker Jack popcorn plant in Arthur.

“The blaze swept through the elevator and shelling and cleaning plant of the Cracker Jack Popcorn Co., destroyed expensive machinery and caused damage estimated at $50,000.” according to a wire service story in The Gazette.

Firefighters were able to save “several hundred thousand bushels of popcorn on the cob that was stored in the company’s cribs,” the story stated.

By 1935, though, the storage cribs — that once had held 7 million pounds of ear corn and 1.75 million pounds of shelled popcorn — were empty.


From the Ida County Courier 8/22/12


                                                 

 - Barb Horak, editor

2022/05/26

Those who gave their life

Originally called Decoration Day, from the early tradition of decorating graves with flowers, wreaths and flags, Memorial Day is a day for remembrance of those who have died in service to our country.

This Memorial Day, be sure to stop whatever you are doing at 3:00 pm and take a minute or two to thank the brave men and women who are no longer around to enjoy the day with their families.

Below are those listed on Odebolt's Veterans Memorial Monument as "died in service"up until 2000.

WORLD WAR I

Robert F. Bernhardt
George J. Bihrer
Ernest J. Buller
Iver H. Carlson
William F. Martin
Fred C. Meyer
Andrew G. Norton
Robert M. Pike
Herman A. Roose **
Charles A. Wekmeister      






 WORLD WAR II

Gerald R. Bauer
Norbert B. Bengford
Wayne W. Bernhardt
Harry W. Briggle
Donald C. Huebner
John O. Hunt
Delbert W. Lewis
William C. Malone
Glenn R. Pedersen
Norman F. Petschauer  
Wendall D. Reinhart
Joseph L. Simon
Joe L. Sixon
Edward H. Stauffer
Edward N Walters
William Walters
 KOREAN WAR  

















 WAR IN VIETNAM   
Kenneth L. Boger
Thomas J. Kelly
Leonard E. Neville
Robert F. Rex.**MIA
Earle E. Schwaller












 ** *Odebolt's American Legion Roose Post 313 was named after Herman A. Roose, the first soldier in Odebolt, and in Sac County, to die in the service of his country in World War I.  Herman August Roose, the son of Mr. and Mrs. Edwin Roose, was born in Odebolt, Iowa, January 9, 1901, and died at Chaumont, France, December 31, 1917, at the age of 16 years, and 11 months.

Click to see all veterans listed on the monument

Click to see photos of servicemen lost in WWI

Click to see photos of servicemen lost in WWII (3 pages)

All the military history on the Odebolt History Pages

2022/01/01

The Old Log Swing

 


Recently Jane Lashier Harter, posted the above photo of the legendary "log swing" in the playground of the old school on the Facebook group, "If you grew up in Odebolt you remember". So of course, I had to try to find more information!

I ran a search for "log swing" on the newspaper archive site and this is what I found. The log swing was first placed on the playground in the fall of 1930.

- Barb (Girvan) Horak

ALL OF THE BELOW ARE FROM THE ODEBOLT CHRONICLE AT VARIOUS DATES

Thursday, October 30th, 1930
SCHOOL NOTES
Mr. Adams Gives Grade Pupils New Swing - A unique swing, like one Mr. W.P. Adams saw the children of the Philippines enjoying, has been set up for pupils of the public schools. The swing is perhaps unlike any that one has ever seen. It is a huge log suspended from a framework of steel. The pupils are truly elated over it, and are showing their gratitude to the donor by their enthusiasm.

Thursday, October 30, 1930
NEW SWING MADE FOR KIDDIES
A new swing which is decidedly unique has been provided at the new school grounds through the kindness and generosity of a friend who asked permission of the school board to install one for the pleasure of Odebolt kiddies.

The frame work of the swing is constructed of heavy galvanized pipe, very strongly braced at each corner with inch cable and to this frame work a highly polished cypress log has been hung on swiveled pipe, which allows the log to swing backward and forward end-ways. Upon this log the little tots are supposed to ride and the polished surface of the log make the feat difficult enough to put in the proper amount of kick to the entertainment.

We are not so sure that we won't slip up there some dark night and try a little ride for ourselves, and we know that the children will offer a vote of thanks to the donor for his kindheartedness. 

Thursday, April 1, 1937
W.P. Adams
Several years ago, while traveling through an island on the south seas, Mr. Adams noticed a novel swing made from a rough log suspended from a crude framework. He saw little native children playing on it and enjoying themselves to the utmost. When he returned to Iowa, he had a similar swing constructed with a steel frame and presented it to the Odebolt public school. It now stands at the southwest corner of the school grounds.

Thursday, October 31st, 1940
TEN YEARS AGO (1930) - A kind and generous friend donated a cypress log swing to be used on the local school grounds.

Thursday, November 1st, 1945
FIFTEEN YEARS AGO (1930)
A new swing has been placed on the school grounds for the children (the log swing)

Thursday, September 26th, 1946
ACCIDENTS WILL HAPPEN - Thursday night after school on the school ground, an accident occurred which made the students vow to be more careful. Lawrence Hoefling, a freshman, broke his arm while playing on the log swing.

Thursday, September 3rd, 1987
THIRTY YEARS AGO (September 5, 1957) - Work began last week on the new Odebolt school building. The old log swing will be removed and put on the new school playground.

MEMORIES

Jane's  post brought out a lot of comments from people that remembered the log swing.

Judy Pudenz
That log swing had to be the most dangerous swing ever. The senior boys would line up on it, standing, and got that log to swing back and forth as far as it would go.

Zola Jean Kelly
My first year in the new building was in 1st grade, which I believe was in 58/59. That log swing was moved to the new playground and I remember it well. I think it was there until I went to Arthur in 6th grade.

Charles Lashier
(Once it was moved to the new school playground) ... It was on the northwest corner of the playground just south of the elementary wing.

Jim Girvan
I remember the log swing. It was reinstalled when I was in grade school and sat at the southwest corner of the elementary wing. I think everyone knew if they walked in front of it when it was swinging it would probably kill them.

Sandi Lickteig
The log swing, terrifying especially when Kent Ogden got it going so fast that you slid back and forth with nothing to hold on to but it was always the first thing we were on. So many memories! Does anyone else remember when Bob Brower took the dare and stuck his tongue on the frozen monkey bars? I remember the teachers herded us all back into the school while someone "unstuck" him. Ouch!

Jennifer (Sellman) Shipman
I think that playground was my second home and needless to say, so close to our home. I remember that log so well. Roger Peters, Linda's brother would get us on it and get it going as fast as it could and we were scared to jump off.
..... (another post) love these old pictures and I saw so many people ride that log since it was directly across the street from our home on the corner.

Judy Frey-Hemphill
I remember when they were tearing down the old school building. My cousins Dennis & Danny McFarland and I had a lemonade stand across the street where Martha Kennedy use to live. We made enough money that we all went to Singers store and bought new bathing suits.

On moving to the new school
Bloyce Johnson
I remember volunteering to move the books from the old school library to the newer one. Quite a line up and it took us a while. Then two years? of using the bus barn for school lunches, band rehearsals, and maybe some classes, too.


OTHER CONTRIBUTED PHOTOS 
(If you have photos of the log swing, please send to our email address on the right column!)

 
Both the above photos, taken in 1932, are courtesy of Joan (Lundell) Paup. The bottom one is of her parents, Edmund and Lillian (Dahlstrom) Lundell.  Marvin and Edna Hultman asked Lundells to stand up for them at their wedding in Papillion, NE. Lundell's secretly got married there too and didn't tell anyone until Joan was on the way!

I found the above photo in the on-line archive of Odebolt school yearbooks. It is from 1946. If someone has this yearbook and can get a better scan, please send it to me!

 

This photo is from Mike Peterson and shows Dan Griffin and Mike on their first day of school, September 4th, 1956.
Note the school buses in the background. 

Steve Loger posted this photo, which has a development date of June, 1957.
From the right are:  Dave McDonough, Daryl Hoefling, Bruce Hokanson, Scott Bergren, Steve Loger, Myron Siebrecht, Kerm Ziegmann, Carl Moberg, Roland Schmidt & unknown on the far left.


2021/11/26

Odebolt's 75th Parade

 Thanks to Deb Reinhart for this photo of a parade back in the day. It is believed to be taken in very early 1950s and could be of Odebolt's 75th Birthday celebration in August of 1952. Although many of the cars appear to be older then the 1950s, not everyone had new cars!

The Odebolt Chronicle, Thursday, August 14, 1952, page 1
BIG PARADE HERE TUESDAY DRAWS 4,000
Seventy-One Major Entries Compete For Prizes In Local Fair's Largest Show

Approximately 4,000 people were on hand at 6:30 Tuesday night [August 12th] to watch the largest and most interesting parade in the history of the Community Fair. Crowds line the parade route from Fifth street through the center of town and part of the way back to the assembly area near the park.

This year's parade, considerably larger than in former years, consisted of 71 major entries in addition to dozens of children's entries and the local Saddle club which entered as a group. Many organizations and business houses entered large decorative floats along with numerous commercial displays.

The parade was led by a large group of residents of Odebolt who have lived here for 75 years or more, in observance of the town's 75th anniversary. The old-time residents rode at the front of the parade in open convertibles and received a nice hand from the thousands along the parade route. Those in the 75-year group were Mrs. Charles Smith, Mrs. W. Shaw, Mrs. Charles Kistler, Mrs. Frank Searight, L.L. Goreham, E.E. Goreham, A.S.Teaquist, John Gonnerman, Henry Buehler and Will Raasch.

Grand Prize for parade entries went to Iversen's square Dance kids who appeared in an old-time barn dance on the largest portable dance floor ever to enter a parade. The float, pulled by a large truck tractor, consisted of a dance floor complete with about 40 dancers, musicians, spectators and square dance caller.

(list of various categories of winners)