Still Walking on Purington Bricks

Around the Midwest, it is possible to spot remnant brick pavement like this sidewalk located at Wilton, Iowa's train depot. Purington Brick (sometimes the word Pavers is used) was produced in nearby at East Galesburg, Illinois through 1949. Wilton's small train station, now a museum was built in 1898 and this brick walkway is presumably from that era - making the red colored rectangles a staggering 115 years old! Purington bricks are cherished for their aged look and durability. These reclaimed bricks are often used for restoration projects and new construction. Perhaps Wilton's bricks will look this good for another 115 years.

Rite of Passage in the Corn Belt

Everyone in Iowa should know what this vehicle does. It is a detasseling carrier where people (usually young teenagers) work for a few weeks in the summer removing tassels of certain rows of corn plants in order to produce seed corn. Crews generally work for contractors or directly for seed companies like Pioneer and Syngenta.



Some people call detasseling a rite of passage for young teens living in the corn belt. Detasseling provides work for teens, usually with their friends where they can earn a good wage for just a few weeks worth of effort. Note the taller corn row with tassels close to the carrier. That row will be the pollen source for the chopped and detassled smaller plants located in the foreground. Looks odd but it works out here in corn country.

Reuse of Building Material

This collection of bricks stand stacked and sorted by color. They await repurposing by a local business owner on her property. No extra charge for old-time moss. But beware. Organic growth on porous material degrade surface integrity by wearing down the material's inherent strength.

Ford Tractor Sign Helps Define Anamosa's Main Street

What visual tour of downtown Anamosa, Iowa would be complete without the sighting of this iconic sign with its busted neon tubes and rust stains? Last weekend I photographed this historic red Ford Tractor sign which hangs over Main Street, something I wanted to do for some time.

Ford sold its Tractor division 20 years ago yet this sign remains in place and has become an important visual element of Anamosa. Who knows when the red post will be sold and removed from its longtime perch? I figured it is best to get a record of how this display looked for many years in its original element before any change of ownership (and removal) or severe weather elements damage the relic of the past.

Iowa's Giant Hereford From Another Era

Travel west of Cedar Rapids, Iowa these days and you will see (actually can't miss) a giant hereford. Situated along Highway 30 (the old Lincoln Highway) near Keystone, Iowa is this seasonal advertising piece positioned in a former bean field. My resident farmer's daughter says the mobile hereford must be old since the modern, real life body style is quite different from the roadside eye stopper.

Eastern Iowa Corn Crop Growing Status

Earlier this year (May 2013) the Iowa corn crop struggled in many places due to wet and cold conditions. We experienced snow the first week of May (which is not typical) but by the end of the month we received non-stop buckets of rain. The top portion of photos are from May 26 and shows young corn emerging in wet conditions. The bottom row is from last week of that same location. I tried to match the tree line in both photos for comparison. Many farmers say everything looks good and have turned their attention to potential early frost concerns for September.

A Trout Will Show the Way

Weather vanes are available in many designs. Around the farm fields of eastern Iowa you can generally see vanes with farm motifs - farm animals, machinery and plain pointed arrows. But at the Manchester Trout Hatchery a fish theme vane is present on the DNR workshop building. The hatchery is in a micro-environment of steep hills, a spring fed stream and shade trees - about the farthest scene one would conjure for a farming state.

A Summer Visit to Manchester's Trout Hatchery

My third visit to the Manchester Trout Hatchery located just southeast of Manchester, Iowa occurred in early August. Previously, snow has been on the ground during the other trips. What a difference warmer months make. The facility is open to tour several concrete pools that hold growing trout segregated by species or size.

A big draw for kids of all ages is to feed the fish by throwing them tiny pellet sized trout food, probably something like Purina Trout-Chow. Hover above the long pools, extend your arm and drop the food into the water. Trout race to find the pellet feast. Even without food, the act of pretending to have some food for the fish, makes them ripple the water's surface in anticipation.

Most trout are eventually released into streams in throughout NE Iowa like this one which runs through the hatchery property.

Seems strange but anglers can try their luck catching trout that probably originated feet from this stream. There is a 14 inch minimum length limit in addition to having a fishing license and a trout stamp to catch these beauties.

Take the Road to Grant Wood Country

Eastern Iowa is Grant Wood country. Not far from Cedar Rapids is a road that runs north of State Highway 151. On county road X28 the Grant Wood Scenic Byway commences. It leads to nearby Stone City where you can see the stone quarry, church and general store that Grant painted (titled, Stone City.) The byway continues to nearby Anamosa where Wood is buried. Back in Cedar Rapids Wood's studio has been preserved for visitors and much of his work can be seen at the art museum. His most famous work, American Gothic hangs at the Art Institute Museum in Chicago.

Modern Day Tom Sawyer Drawn to the River

Mark Twain's Tom Sawyer lived along the Mississippi River in fiction a century and a half ago. Fast forward to 2013 and you can still see the how the river attracts youth to its banks. Fishing just feet from Lock & Dam 11 at Dubuque, Iowa this boy forgets about catching a catfish while focusing on Marquette Transportation's downbound barge and tow named, Show Me State. The barges contained covers, scrap metal and coal. Churn from the tow activates fish and lures nearby pelicans to feed.

SOO 4410 - A Rare Locomotive Still in Red & White

The SOO Line Railroad operates in the upper Midwest and is now part of the Canadian Pacific Railway. Last Saturday I spotted engine 4410, built in 1978, and is presently sitting at the Dubuque, Iowa CP yard. Since the early 2000s SOO locomotives have been repainted into the CP color scheme or have been scrapped. To discover a SOO colored locomotive, let alone an active engine is becoming quite rare. It's a piece of railroad history that is almost gone.

Rusty the Giant Sloth To Get Company

Ice Age Iowa hosted a particularly interesting creature - a giant sloth. At the Natural History Museum at Macbride Hall, in Iowa City is this display of a life size giant sloth, nicknamed Rusty. Recently nearly complete sets of huge sloth bones have been found in the state and are being prepared to join Rusty on display. For 28 years this display has been the center point for the museum including dressing Rusty on holiday ocassions. This practice ended sometime this year as his fur has shown wear from festive use. There is no timetable for the bones to be on display but the chatter around the museum is that the display will be forthcoming soon.

Been Off Line

I have been off line for a few days with a family matter. I will be posting again soon.

A Grandmother's Joy in a Water Fountain

On the tenth day of Summer 2013, this grandmother took her 1-1/2 year old grandson to play in Iowa City's pedestrian mall water fountain. Jets of water spray patterns at different intervals allowing the two to enjoy several minutes of watery fun. Grandma Lonnie told me that she looks forward to spending time with her first and so far, only grandchild.