It Happened in Iowa: Remarkable Events That Shaped History

by Tammy Partsch

Overview

For most Americans, Iowa brings to mind endless acres of corn fields, one of the country’s longest-running state fairs, and American Gothic, but few may know how it serendipitously became the birthplace of the most iconic apple, why thousands of cyclists brave the Midwestern heat and humidity to cross the entire state one week each year, or how a former Des Moines sports announcer became one of the White House’s most popular residents. It Happened in Iowa goes behind the scenes to tell these stories and many more, in short episodes that reveal the intriguing people and events that have shaped the Hawkeye State.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780762764402
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	05/01/2017
Series:	It Happened In Series
Edition description:	First
Pages:	144
Sales rank:	424,660
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.50(d)

About the Author

Tammy Partsch was born and raised just across the border from Iowa in Nebraska. In addition to writing, she organizes tours at Arbor Day Farm and plays the piano for a local high school choir. Her past experiences include being a photographer, a bookseller, a journalist, a radio broadcaster, and a travel agent.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments viii

Introduction ix

Dubuque Lead Mines-1788 1

The Death of Sergeant Floyd-1804 5

Grand Mormon Encampment-1846 9

The Tabor Underground Railroad-1857 13

Little Brown Church in the Vale-1857 18

The Circus Comes to Town-1867 22

Birthplace of a President-1874 26

Estherville Meteorite-1879 30

Kate Shelley Saves the Day-1881 33

Fenelon Place Elevator-1882 37

Belle Plaine Geyser-1886 40

Muscatine Pearl Button Factory-1891 42

Growing Red Delicious-1893 45

Summer of Dvorák-1893 48

Snake Alley-1894 51

Palmer School of Chiropractic-1895 53

Buxton: A Town Ahead of Its Time-1900 56

A Butter Cow Is Born-1911 59

Lady Liberty at Camp Dodge-1918 62

I Scream, You Scream, We All Scream for Ice Cream-1920 65

Taking to the Skies-1920 70

The Music Man of Fort Dodge-1920 75

Iowa High School Girls Basketball-1920 80

Entertaining with Train Wrecks-1932 85

Dutch Reagan on the Radio-1932 88

Bonnie and Clyde and the Dexter Police-1933 93

Iowa State Patrol-1935 97

Now Pitching Bob Feller-1936 100

Atanasoff Computer-1937 104

Christmas at Camp Algona-1945 108

The Day the Music Died-1959 112

RAGBRAI-1973 116

A Real Live Danish Windmill on the Iowa Prairie-1976 119

Bibliography 123

Index 128

About the Author 132