Take ONE; Once In Iowa - Master

Push and pull push and pull hit the line every time. Schoolchildren thought their arms would fall off before they got the hang of this new free flowing style of penmanship. But sooner or later most of us signed on the dotted line. The way Professor Palmer taught us for about a half a century before 1880 everyone had to learn to write in the spin sorry in a way. Was a slanting style achieved by spending hours with the copy book slowly and methodically writing each word over and over again trying to make it look just like the example engraved at the top of the page. Austin Norman Polmar thought this method of handwriting was tiring to him. And it disintegrated into scribbling when anyone tried to write fast. When he came to Cedar Rapids in 1884 to teach at a local business college. Palmer developed an unusual approach to handwriting to correct those flaws. He believed that by rotating the writing arm in a circular motion repeatedly drawing bad ovals and gently push pull lines one could develop what he called a muscular movement in writing.

Only when the student got those drills down could he move on to using it to make letters and numbers. He claimed his method developed muscular control that is needed not only to write correctly but rapidly legibly easily and with endurance. No more drudgery with the old copy book or as Palmer would say. It is not so much the amount of practice as the kind of practice that counts. A few minutes in the right way are worth hours of practice in the wrong way. The Palmer method quickly caught on and by the turn of the century was widely adopted in public schools business colleges and especially in Catholic parochial schools. The Palmer method involved more than just writing. It addressed how the pen was to be handled as demonstrated by Professor Palmer himself. Other papers should be leveled on the school desk. Even how the child was sitting. He would say it is impossible to write well in twisted unhelpful positions or with stiff and rigid muscles. To him posture was very important. With straight spinal

columns is far enough away from the paper for safety and both shoulders of equal height. When the student got into the Palmer swoop and swing he could in his best penmanship address a letter to the master asking for a final grade on the lessons. Would he get one of the hand ornamented certificates or not. Only the man would tell. A and Palm returned the relaxed method of writing he developed in his teens into a financially successful empire. He bought and operated three campuses of a business college out of Cedar Rapids. And there were any number of related items for sale. Palmer pens correspondence classes and textbooks. Remained active in academic teaching and administration for forty three years. At the time of his death in 1927 he was nationally known and successful to the figure of well over a million dollars all accomplished with a few simple strokes of a practiced pen. From the talk around Council Bluffs in 1855 you'd think the devil himself was

moving in next door. Or shall we say the devil herself for everyone was waiting for a glimpse of the woman whose name was known around the world for her brazen and shameless dress. Yes Amelia bloomer was coming to town. It was only a few years before while living in Seneca Falls New York that Amelia bloomer declared it was time for the women to rebel against the domination of men in the matter of clothing. In a temperance newspaper the lily. She began to promote a new and more practical dress for women. She endorsed a costume that consisted of a short dress that reached scarcely to the knees with the full Turkish consulate gathered in ruffles over the top of the shoe. And this was at a time when women appearing in public in pants of any kind caused quite a sensation. She was not the first person to support or wear the outfit but she'd made such a fuss over it that the fashion lines of 1851 adopted the name bloomers for the new style. And the name stuck. Society women found them shocking. Churches

condemned them. But more than a few men found them intriguing said one writer. The maids were very beautiful with Ebony locks and tresses but it was so much enhanced their charms with those short bloomer dresses. The word became synonymous with the women's reform movement. There were bloomer pokers bloomer theatricals and lectures on bloomers and packed the house. When she stepped off the stage coach in 1855 at her new home in Council Bluffs Mrs bloomer was decked out in the reform dress. A matter of principle if nothing else from her worldwide reputation. The townspeople had expected to encounter a flippant hussy. But after a while came to regard her as a mild mannered courteous and charming lady. The bloomers were to become one of Western I was most prominent families Amelia's husband Dexter set up a law practice and was elected mayor in 1869. Mrs bloomer I've lectured around the Midwest on issues of temperance and the women's right to vote

eventually serving as president of the Iowa's Women's Suffrage Association. She never wore her famous costume after 1860. She felt it had served its purpose. Besides the high winds of Council Bluffs kept blowing the skirt over her head and she become quite fond of the hoop skirts they were showing back east. But the bloomer home remained a fashionable gathering place for the discussion of women's rights. Suffragettes on the lecture circuit like Susan B Anthony were frequent guests and they always found an ally in Amelia bloomer. The woman who had raised the eyebrows and the consciousness of a nation simply by raising her skirts. Oh.

On. OK everybody we're going. In one thousand ten most of the car manufacturing in the United States was centered in Detroit but there were also dozens of smaller auto makers scattered across the country which could go bumper to bumper with the big three including the Colby Motor Company of Mason City enterprising businessmen. William called already had an impressive track record in the promotion of. Tile and sewer pipe companies when he decided to go into the car business. According to his design the first vehicle to roll off the Colby line would be a 40 horsepower four door passenger automobile. It would be made primarily with quality parts from other

plants. Parts which would eventually be machine right here in his own factory. Colby predicted he would have his cars driving the streets of Mason City within three weeks. That may have been the optimist speaking but there was also a point of realism to the deadline. He wanted to have a model ready for the Chicago Auto Show in February 911. Where he would call the line. The race was on to get the Colby 40 into production. About 40 men working full time at 35 cents an hour. Not only had three cars ready for the auto show but they had about 100 others in stages of final assembly. With one week to spare. The popular Colby 40 had a four cylinder engine and a wheel base of one hundred twenty one inches. Rode on universal Baker demountable tires and could be ordered through the Iowa factory for seventeen hundred fifty dollars. As the first auto rolled off the line. The company's chief mechanic was anxious to test its performance so he took it for a quick spin around town. Too quick you might say. He planned to hold the touring car

down to a safe eight miles an hour but got carried away until a local policeman stopped him and handed him a ticket for speeding. At 24 mph. To show everyone with a cold you could do the company entered its cars in a number of in durance races that were popular during those days. On the challenging Glidden tour six hundred fifty eight mile run from Minneapolis to Helena Montana the Colby finished second only to the Marmon. Not only could the Colby go the distance it could go fast. As it proved in the world of dirt track racing. In one thousand twelve. The Colby clocked 78 mph on the Indianapolis Speedway with the flamboyant Billy Pierce behind the wheel of his red devil. The company set records and collected trophy after trophy at tracks all over the Midwest. The magic partnership came to an end when Paris was killed during a race at Sioux City. By early 1913 the finances of the Colby Motor Company were also already several forced mergers over the next couple of years affectively closed the factory doors and the Colby fell by the side of the road.

Today the only complete coldly known to exist is permanently parked in the canny pioneer museum in Mason City. In the early years of the century up until World War 1 I was quite the Center for horse

racing. Not your regular thoroughbred or harness racing but the kind that would make legends out of such teams as Bob and Bob Clinton Lou and herb of Council Bluffs and Fred Mack of Des Moines. They were run like a house of fire. Well that was their job and their support. Other states had competitions for volunteer fire departments where they could test the speed of a fire horse on a straight away run. Only Iowa came up with a unique and practical test for both fire men and the fire horses. It was called the bunker. It's Ray's room. Working in an open skeleton of a two story building so spectators could see a gong sounded and four firemen leapt from their bunks slid down the pole and hitched the horses already on the move as quickly as possible. Sometimes they would be heading out the door for five seconds after the starting bell. The horses took off at full speed dragging eighteen hundred pounds of hose wagon and another 600 pounds of men. Around two turned a half mile track near the end of which slowing down just enough for the men to jump off the

wagon. A hundred and fifty feet of hose and brake the coupling and attached the pipe ready for water. Was a test of the coordination between animal and man in a race against the clock. Records were pared from one minute twenty three and for five seconds in the first ever blanket race of 900 for one minute twelve and four fifths in one thousand fourteen. The nature of the competition was fierce. Every fire department wanted to show off its horses and skills at the state tournament and the citizens of the host towns went out of their way to make the event festive with parades speeches banquets and balls for the visiting firemen. There were other events at the tournaments such as the hand-drawn hose cart races what the teams and the reputation of jack and jack of Des Moines Patty and Prince of Sioux City and Bonnie and beauty of Clinton were the best entertainment bets. The tournaments were suspended during the war years of 1917 and 1918 and never really made a comeback. The horses which had torn up the racetrack and fired the

imagination of the crowds had been put out to pasture in favor of fire trucks. It was sold by the barrels of gold sometimes given away as premiums with food products

and peddled by salesman throughout the rural Iowa countryside. Now collectors hold the few remaining pieces of a story that is not exactly crystal clear. The story of the Iowa City glass company. 1080 Eastern businessmen considered I was city an opportune place to start a glass factory. There were a nearby sources of sand clay water and wood. Glass was coming into common use throughout the Midwest and a lot of local investors were anxious to get in on the ground floor of the industrial revolution. So the Iowa City glass factory was founded at the corner of Maiden Lane in Kirkwood Avenue. Employing about one hundred fifty men with many of the glass blowers and Pattern Makers shipped in from glass factories back east. Before long they were turning out at least a train car load of glassware each day. The pieces were distinguished by a predominance of animal and bird figures often combined with mottoes such as be affectionate. Be true. Or be

playful. The glass had a slight color cast sometimes described as cloudy grey yellowish or with a hint of green the founders weren't interested in turning out a particularly good product. They were interested in turning a quick dollar. So the workmanship tended to be on the crude side. Even the more formal patterns like Alhambra sometimes called the were thick wrap textured pieces of glass with obvious mold lines and other imperfections. The sketches carried from buyer to buyer by the salesman were just as crudely drawn. And rarely identical to the finished piece. The company only operated for about 15 months between 1880 and 1880. The venture had turned into a dismal financial failure. The sand in the Iowa City area wasn't the right kind for making glass freight rates had gone up. Eastern factories were enticingly offering new patterns each year and I was city glass was a cheaper and

poorer quality product. In fact many pieces of it self destructed. There are a number of stories about bringing home a table set and having several pieces explode as soon as they were put on the dining room table. Because of some flaw in the basic manufacturing process. The glass could not withstand even moderate or gradual changes in temperature. The business was such a failure one woman had a habit of pointing out a particular piece of eye was city glass as being worth a thousand dollars. Meaning that it was what her husband had invested and lost in the factory. Her remark has become prophetic as the few pieces that remain are tucked away in collectors cases antique shops or among heirloom treasures. Survivors of a factory the florist and then fled after cutting its name into the pages of history. The word was spreading throughout the territory. Iowa was going to war with Missouri

and the militia was gathering in Burlington to march to the conflict. It would prove to be a honey of a war for both sides. The issue was last about twenty six hundred square miles of land which Missouri was laying claim to and which Iowa had long claimed to belong to us. Our justification was in 1816 survey by a man named Sullivan which marked the northern boundary of Missouri at about where it is now. In 1837 Missouri hired its own surveyor Joseph Brown to draw a new border line based on the recent cessation of land by Indian tribes in the northwestern part of the state. The brown line came out 13 miles north of the old Sullivan line. Between the Lines was the kindling for civil war. Missouri asserted its claim in 1839 by sending a sheriff into Van Buren County to collect taxes. The local farmers refused to pay. They were Iowans and settled there deliberately to escape the slave state to the south. Their

response was to assert their own claim by arresting the sheriff and taking him to the territorial governor Robert Lucas in Burlington. Missouri Governor Boggs was outraged and called out his troops. Governor Lucas considered that an act of war and some in his militia to repel any invaders. A motley crew of about twelve hundred Iowans responded. Armed with just about anything they could find from around the farm. Everything calmed down without the firing of a shot. In fact the only violence reported was to some trees. A few Missouri men sneaked in the van Buren County and cut down three trees full of beehives which a local farmer treasured as a source of sugar. The entire conflict has since been labeled the honey war. The boundary question was not settled for another 10 years when the U.S. Supreme Court decided an I was favor. Setting the line. In fact a tad south of the old Sullivan line. Providing a sweet victory in the honey war. Corn was king in northwest Iowa and nowhere was it more easily treated than in Sioux

City a town that had built not one but five magnificent palaces to proclaim the reign of its chief resource and crop. When the doors opened to the first corn palace in October of 1887 it was a sight to behold. Never before had anyone built an exposition hall and covered it inside and out with corners. The people of Sioux City had builded to celebrate their prosperity. Based on an economy dominated by corn production. There was corn everywhere sliced and chopped into the right sizes and nailed to the walls and intricate designs. Fifteen thousand bushels of yellow corn and another 5000 bushels of Indian corn in assorted colors were used to create agricultural scenes honoring the bountiful Northwest. There were corn parties. Women wore necklaces of corn beads men wore corn house ties more than a hundred and thirty thousand people visited the Corn Palace during the weeklong festival of street parades fireworks Indian dancing speeches and band concerts including

President Grover Cleveland who brought his wife to the palace on their wedding trip left the hall with an ear of corn in his pocket proclaiming at least someone to show me something new. You're the Corn Palace was such a hit. The next year they build another bigger and better than the first. This time thirty thousand bushels of corn equal to the product of any of a section of land in northwest Iowa where used to cover every square inch of the wooden structure. Inside the palace was equally amazing. Moves around the walls displayed grains woven and twisted by local artists to resemble Grecian temples barnyard scenes arches animals and the state capitol building. Probably none of the Corn Palace festivals attracted more excursion parties than the one in 1889. Passenger trains had to add extra cars to carry Eastern vacationers in Chicago New York and London. They'd all read about the astonishing displays created of corn. And the railway companies set up exhibits from other states aboard special trains

bound for Sioux City Illinois even commissioned a play which advertised its route as the best way to get to the Corn Palace. The towers of the palace that year were taller than a nearby church steeples and people reveled at the new products displayed at the Exposition including phonograph records made for the new talking machines. The 1890 palace adapted exotic Turkish design with a giant globe of the world on top. Each country was outlined with kernels of corn. And there was nothing it seemed that couldn't be made out of corn and people would return home to talk for months about the sights they'd seen. The 1891 Corn Palace may have been the best one yet you could hop a street car on Pierce street and ride right through the block long palace. There were many paintings and statues artfully constructed grain. Perhaps the most elaborate ever in a corn palace. When they lock the doors of the fifth Corn Palace at the end of the three week festival. They also sealed the end of an era. Local

businessmen felt the idea had run its course and decided to quit while they were ahead. There would be no more of the annual altars built to King Corn. But Sioux City had done quite well marketing its local resources in grand style and earning the worldwide reputation as the Corn Palace city. No.

To the people of northeast Iowa the area known as Pictured Rocks has a beauty all its own. Iron oxide mixed with water had percolated from the overlying limestone to create a veritable palette of colors in the sandstone. A local boy took his granular palette and invented an art so unique it is rarely Bennie. Andrew Clemons an ordinary childhood for a boy in the 1850s and 60s in McGregor until a bout with brain fever left him totally deaf and consequently mute. He attended a special school in Council Bluffs and by the time he was 20 he told his mother he would never try to make a living because of his affliction. He wanted to do something with his life. He collected colored sand particles from nearby Pictured

Rocks. Some of them colors you know where to bind and began dropping them into glass bottles in artistic designs. Having no formal training in art. It began with simple form diamond shaped patterns or serpentine design. Gradually he developed a technique of using different shades of a color to create overtones and miniature landscapes. By the late 1800s. Andrew Clemons was selling his work as souvenirs of the area asking a dollar for a simple bottle like this. Perhaps six to eight dollars for a more complex design. He used only a set of tools he invented and TOG for himself from the group a long pointed stick one with a crude hook on the end and a small tin spout for dropping the grains of sand through the mouth of the bottle. In those days they clear round top bottles of the mythic Dorian era were quite popular. So Clemens had the additional task of beating all of the designs upside down. It could take two to three days or two to three weeks to create one sand bottle depending

on its size and complexity because of the fragile nature of both the container and the artwork inside. A few of the sand paintings remain however several are on display at the Iowa Historical Museum in Des Moines. They were arranged with mirrors to show the intricacies of each bottle. The George Washington bottle was regarded as Clemens finest work was 12 inches high and 14 inches around showing the founding father astride his favorite horse. On the back is a side wheel steamboat correct in every detail. On one side are American Indians standing against a teepee. And on the other an accurate reproduction of the Great Seal of island. The words surely written in single grains of sand. And remember all this was worked upside down. When he died in 1894 regional newspapers said he had brought to surprising perfection an art of which he alone was the inventor.

The Master. His special art has perished with its originator and will be lost forever. Andrew Clemons the self-taught deaf mutes sand artist of McGregor had indeed overcome his affliction and done something with his life. A. On December 7th many people will be reminded of the most devastating surprise

at Pearl Harbor but only a few Japanese bombs fell on Iowa near the end of the war in 1945. Japanese military scientists were desperately trying to find a way to bomb the U.S. mainland seeking for the physical and psychological damage caused by U.S. bombing raids over Japan. After two years of research and testing the Japanese launched their secret weapon bombs attached to large blue moons carried to North America by the prevailing winds in the jet stream 20 to 40 thousand feet up. People saw giant fireballs in the night sky or heard stories explosions in the distance. U.S. bomber pilots saw large balloons rising up off the coast of Japan. As the pieces of the puzzle fell together we realized that the continental United States was under attack for the first time in history by a weapon too incredible to believe.

This exhibit in the State Historical Museum in Des Moines displays parts of the complex mechanism that dropped the bombs designed to burn forests and terrorize us with silent random attacks. Almost 10000 of these hydrogen filled balloons were launched. They were made of rice paper or rubber ice silk. Thirty three feet in diameter and carried 55 pounds of explosives. Usually one anti-personnel and two to four fire bombs. The altitude over the board a flight was controlled by altimeters in a sand bag releasing mechanism after the bombs were dropped. The balloon and the mechanism would self-destruct on a farm near Pocahontas in northwest Iowa poll Felson was doing chores when he saw what looked like a parachute drifting down. He investigated and discovered a balloon with a burning fuse leading to the charge that destroys the balloon. After cutting off the fuse with a pocket knife he notified authorities. The FBI searched the area but no were found and for a long time

was worried that he might strike one of the missing bombs while plowing other reports of recoveries in northwest Iowa include parts of a paper balloon near Lauren's fragments of a fire bomb by Holstein and a release valve near Webb in northeast Iowa near Charles City. Balloon and release mechanism were found. Little more is known about these incidents. In fact the exact origin of the museum exhibit is unknown. A miscalculation by the Japanese and a calculated risk by U.S. officials caused the offensive to fail. It's believed that most of the balloons fell into the ocean because the battery the control mechanism was in the cold temperatures at high altitude. U.S. officials risk by asking castors not to report incidents. The press blackout worked. The Japanese presumed they were unsuccessful as they found out about only one bomb out of the two hundred eighty five bombs that actually made it to North America.

The U.S. military had received alarming reports that the Japanese were planning more in the next wave of bomb attacks with even more destructive potential. It's possible. That this threat. May have. Been timed present. To do. I. Gather around ladies and gentlemen and your eyes on the greatest scientific discovery of our

time. Petrified giant. He's 10 feet 4 and I have been in 1869 on a small farm in New York thousands of people came to see the eighth wonder of the world. In reality a rock quarry near Fort Dodge Iowa gave birth to one of history's huge hoaxes. The Cardiff Giant George Hall of Binghamton New York was visiting his sister in Ackley Iowa. He met the Reverend Mr. Turk after a heated argument regarding Turks belief in biblical Giants conceived an idea to confound religious extremists and make some money. Two years later George Hall returned to Iowa and with great difficulty moved a five ton piece of gypsum to Chicago where it was sculpted to appear as a giant man who had died in agony. The statue was then pasted in sulphuric acid to give it an ancient hue. Well you knew a relative owned a farm near Cardiff New York an area rich in fossils and ancient relics. Together they

secretly delayed the giant to rest. After waiting almost a year. Newell hired two men on the pretense of needing a new well near the barn. Imagine their surprise when they on earth to put in Finally the body of a huge man. News of the discovery spread quickly but not too quick for the next day a tent was erected and locals were charged orbits ahead to satisfy their craving to view marvels. The Joint also attracted those interested only in its moneymaking abilities. Within the week hole sold 75 percent ownership to three local businessmen for the amazing sum of thirty seven thousand five hundred dollars. The giant was promptly moved to well-populated Syracuse New York. It was a sensational success in a time when the a study of natural sciences attracted attention especially when it conflicted with religious beliefs. George Holmes simply gave the people what they wanted to believe in.

Theories of petrified man versus ancient statue or so heavily debated that the idea of it being a faith was unfashionable. The Providence exhibitor of humbugs Phineas T Barnum tried to lease or purchase the giant failing that he made his own replica and claim that his was the original. The real phony giant went on display in New York only two blocks away from Barnum's Phony phony giant and soon after continued on its tour of the northeast United States. After three months of relishing in his success and seeking revenge on Rev. Turk George Hall admitted to the fraud people continued to see the giant because they still believed in it. Or to laugh at how it had fooled the great minds of the time. The giant once a great scientific discovery slowly sank to the level of a sideshow freak. After 40 years in storage it was bought and sold many times on two different occasions a return to port dodge and in 1935 it was shown at the

Iowa State Fair. The original card of giant was finally laid to rest at the farmer's museum in Cooperstown New York in 1948. In recognition of this national monument to a practical joke with an Iowa connection. The Fort Dodge Historical Foundation had a twin made after a three year search for the perfect piece of gypsum Carlson of Wesley Iowa began chipping away on giant number three is the only joint that's not a hoax claiming to be a genuine imitation of the original. Now on display at the Ford Dodge Ford Museum. In 875 Christmas was a mixture of traditions and customs from the many

nationalities that settled in Iowa. Christmas was a unique holiday with its own songs. Foods and decorations. It was a time of giving and sharing good cheer and hope for the new year. Over a hundred years ago the general store must have seemed like a dream come true. But with so many new and wonderful presents for Christmas today it's hard to imagine but these simple toys would be greatly cherished in a time when oranges were the breakfast food. But a rare and sweet stocking stuffer. There and right Merry Christmas to you. I do have exactly what your wife needs right here. This is what I would like to show you. Is there signed by for your wife. And this when you Irish always have a cool handle because you can remove

it see you have three irons heating on the stove and you always have a hot iron and a cool hand. Go buy this for grandma. I think she'd like some snuff and you can buy for the granddaughter I think fan would be nice you know there's fan talk that goes with fan if you fan away this means I like to get a coin and somebody is watching us so follow me. And if a boy ask you for a buggy ride this is yes it's a social time. There will be a few a little get togethers at the meeting out of the churches and maybe at the schoolhouse but still it's a festive time because they're coming and swapping yarns. Maybe these neighbors six miles south of us haven't seen the one five miles north since last fall it's very possible. So they're going to be shutting around us swapping yarns Randi it's really a wonderful time of the year I love. Before Santa Claus became popular in Iowa there was Brother Christmas. He was dressed in green from head to toe with pine boughs wrapped around his head. His

beard was white or the evil servant by his side. Bad children away with a handful of switches but Father Christmas always gave good children a treat. Christmas in the city was a busy and festive occasion where maximum effort went into cooking and baking flowers and Christmas greenery were placed throughout the house. Many of the presents were handmade and wrapped with great care. All my decorations were hung next to delicate glass blown ornaments. Children waited patiently for the great event when all the candles were lit on that spectacular Christmas morning. It was a time to entertain friends and relatives by feasting singing carols and playing games. We. Try to stress too much of. The. Time. And so. For instance we have a new.

Place. You're kind of trying to see. The city children. Are able to. Enjoy Christmas just the way they always one. Christmas past in a simpler time a good balance and generosity. In the dead of winter in 1900 the peaceful quiet life on the farm was interrupted by

jingling bells on the slaves that brought relatives out to the family farm for Christmas. It was just after a depression and the farm economy was improving. But christmas was still completely homemade. All of the ingredients in Christmas dinner presents and decorations came from the farm and were the result of your own hard work throughout the year. Christmas is a nice small family holiday for us. It's kind of gives the family a chance to. Do something special and get together in the winter. It isn't as big I would say a. Lot more things are planned. Because my children start asking for one.

Very nice things. Money for things like that. And we make a tree. And we treat. Everybody. It's

all about presence of course that we give each other and we don't. Really Give A lot of presents but the ones we do give are homemade my. Children and myself and my husband start planning pretty far ahead of time to knit things or make things for each other. Usually something pretty practical something everybody in the family can use. We don't usually get fancy gifts like they do sometimes in town and then when everybody gets up the next morning those are the things that we open first and then we usually have breakfast and it's back to chores and other things that have to be done. Stay on the on the farm isn't any different than it is on the other 364 days of the air it's not a day off like it is in the city. Animals that we have out here need need to be fed during the during the winter months just as they do the other year and during the winter months and they like Christmas it's often a lot harder than during the summer because you're letting them into the buildings so they can get out of the weather should get more cleaning to do and their water is freeze up overnight. You got to break open the ice and there standing this can break every

day. So actually just quite a bit more work on a day like Christmas. The glorious aspect of Christmas is that peace love and goodwill are free and that is the true spirit of Christmas. It is truly the holiday to warm your heart in the cold of winter. A. Mm hmm. In 1885 many people resided in this grand old building.

But it wasn't exactly a hotel. It was an unusual example of new technology in the form of a county rotary jail. The Council Bluffs population more than doubled from 1870 to 1880 and violent crimes increased accordingly creating the critical need for a new jail. This patented rotating design seemed like a good idea providing maximum security with minimal contact. This model shows the three storey inner cylinder with 10 cells on each level inside a metal cage with only one opening for level. Prisoners enter their cells only when the cylinder was in line with the cage opening. By turning this large handle the jailer can rotate cells and inspect and control the prisoner. From the back of the jail. In the bullpen. Metal cage locked in the inmates will climb up and down the exercise overly from sheer

boredom. There are three floors of rooms in the front section of the bill. The jailer's office on the first level also functioned as a living room and at one time held a piano across the hall is the kitchen where the jailer's wife assisted by trustees would prepare the meals. Juveniles and women prisoners were held in the cells on the second floor. And at one time a matron jailer lived in this room across the hall. The third floor hospital were not occupied by the sick became sleeping quarters for the trustees. Recently remodels realized how much the trustees enjoyed the hospital. When these empty beer cans and liquor bottles were found hidden inside a wall. The jailer's family lived on the top floor in these rooms shared by the upper mechanism for the rotating cells. This eighteen eighty five new high tech jail was. Dr. Groopman over the one room jail in the basement of the fourth. But serious problem soon became apparent. Prisoners get taken for by rocking a rotating the inner cells against the jailers wishes.

Many arms and legs were maimed and broken when caught between the rotating cells and the outer bodies. After only two years the inner cylinder failed to rotate properly and in 1960 the state fire marshal ordered changes. Doors were cut in the outer cage to allow immediate access to the ball in. The infamous cage. Jail was closed in 1969 but was saved from demolition by the historical society of Pottawattamie County who now operates it as a museum.