June, My Feb. 6th response to your same question suggested you check the archives on RootsWeb. The Iowegians fingers are probably to numb from the cold to type. It's 90 today in beautiful downtown Lytle, Tx. Dick May you live to be a hundred, with an extra year to repent! (Irish proverb) ----- Original Message ----- From: "June Hebert" <junefh@gmail.com> To: <Iowa@rootsweb.com> Sent: Friday, February 27, 2009 1:32 PM Subject: [IOWA] ???? > Js Iowa list a sleep? I haven't seen anything for days on here. > Thanks

It was even warm today here in London! I wouldn't fancy an Iowan winter!!! Maybe some of you Iowans can tell us about the worst historical blizzard you can remember in Iowa or have heard about. Maybe associated with an ancestor. And when does spring come? We are getting snowdrops, crocus, and the daffodils are starting up here. Karen ----- Original Message ----- From: "Dick Tague" <dicktague@devtex.net> To: <Iowa@rootsweb.com> Sent: Friday, February 27, 2009 10:05 PM Subject: Re: [IOWA] ???? > June, My Feb. 6th response to your same question suggested you check the > archives on RootsWeb. The Iowegians fingers are probably to numb from the > cold to type. It's 90 today in beautiful downtown Lytle, Tx. Dick > May you live to be a hundred, with an extra year to repent! (Irish > proverb) > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "June Hebert" <junefh@gmail.com> > To: <Iowa@rootsweb.com> > Sent: Friday, February 27, 2009 1:32 PM > Subject: [IOWA] ???? > > >> Js Iowa list a sleep? I haven't seen anything for days on here. >> Thanks > > _____________________________________________ > > For additional information concerning how the list > works, how to sub and unsub and list rules, visit > http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~richard/ialist/ > _____________________________________________ > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > IOWA-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes > in the subject and the body of the message >

Greetings Everyone! You are about to get a tour of "Small Town Iowa". This will probably be a very long post - so if you're not interested just delete, no offense taken. It is late night here in little Kanawha, Iowa. The skies are clear, and the current temp. is 18F degrees ABOVE zero! Yesterday we had an "Ice/thunder" storm that was a real doozey. There was thunder and lightning, but at the same time it was literally raining "ice"! Not just hail, sheets of ice that coated everything from a half inch to a full inch. The roads were skating rinks, power lines were down, and - once again - the schools were closed. This winter has been a long one since we had our first snow in October and I'm sure we're not done yet. March is notorious for at least one or two blizzards - usually just about the time they have the state basketball tournaments in Des Moines, and everyone worries about all those high school kids traveling in buses. So far this winter we have had at least one two week period when the temp. never got above zero - and once it was at least -20 below zero for several days straight! The wind chill can quickly take that down as far as -40 below, and it's that wind chill that decides when the schools are closed. Since about 90% of the students are bus riders (the schools are split up between the towns: elementary is in one town, middle school in another, and high school in still another. That spreads the expense of schools among everyone. And these are wonderful schools - 80% of our high school graduates go on to college, most with scholarships.) But we Iowans just take it all in stride. The forecasting is always very accurate and so there's no reason to be unprepared to spend one or several days "homebound." Actually, Kanawha, where I live, is not exactly lovely in the winter - but it is, in it's own way, kind of cozy. This is a very small town (population about 650 kind souls) in north central Iowa, about 50 miles south of the Minnesota boarder. I suppose you could describe Kanawha as the "quintessential" Mid-American small town. Everyone knows everyone (really!) and the concept of neighbors and community are alive and well. There was a cartoon in this weeks Kanawha Reporter (our own little weekly newspaper) where the writer made the comment, "...when you enter Kanawha you're entering a different time zone - turn back your watches 50 years!" We are a "Prairie" town, surrounded by miles and miles of soybean and corn fields - and many of those corn fields are now heavily studded with towering wind mills. The land is flat and at night you can see the lights of other small towns 10-20 miles away. Also, at night, you can see the stars in the sky like no where else on earth that I've ever been. On a warm summer night I will often grab one or two of my grandchildren and drive about a quarter mile past the edge of town to the cemetery. (They know grandma is a genealogist and they have been taken to cemeteries since before they could walk or talk!) Once we are there I take the old quilt that is always in the back of the car and I spread it out on the grass, and then we just lay down and stare at the wonder of the milky way - and count the shooting stars. I like to move around there, placing the quilt near one old neighbor one night, and visiting another long passed resident the next trip. Getting through an Iowa winter has a splendid reward. Spring comes from late March to early April, depending on where you are in the state; earlier in the south near Missouri and later here in the north. But oh, when it comes it is wonderful! The trees bud out so fast it's amazing; one day it's winter and a few days later everything is green and the temperature is in the 70's. The crocus, daffodils and tulips encircle every house in town as well as all along Main Street. They are quickly followed by pink, white, and purple lilacs on "bushes" that are 7-10 feet high, and they send their fragrance out to enfold the whole village. Then come the peonies, and the roses and hydrangeas, the geraniums and dozens and dozens of carefully tended flowers in gardens spreading from one yard to the next. Cars are left parked in the driveway and walking is the accepted form of transportation - after all, it's only six blocks in any direction from one end of town the the other. And within those six blocks there are no less than *five* city parks! There is a park on the far east side with a full size football field (football being the major passion in all of Iowa, and a field for summer practice being necessary in each town.) That park also has it's own area set aside for children to play on swings, slides, and a merry-go-round. Along main street, just before the "two block" business district, is the baseball park. This is really large, with two baseball diamonds on one end, a garden area and Veterans Memorial in the center, and the "teenagers" park at the other end. The teenagers have a few swings, several picnic tables, and a shelter house for shade, or rainy times. Shelter houses are structures that have a storage room on one end and are open on the other three sides. They are usually large enough for up to ten picnic tables and, of course, they have sturdy roofs. The teenagers can gather there, watch or play baseball if they wish (always a game on a summer afternoon or evening), and do what is most important to teenagers - talk and be with their friends. Yet they are still there along Main Street, out in the open, and out of trouble. On the far north west side of town is the pool park. The swimming pool is probably the town's biggest boast. It is really a very nice pool (open air - summers only) with an area for experienced swimmers who can use the diving board and the depth is ten feet, an area for the younger children that slopes from two to five feet deep, and the kiddie section for toddlers and babies (accompanied by parents, of course.) There are two certified lifeguards on duty at all times (the city pays for high school seniors and "home for the summer" college students to get training and certification.) The "pool house" has male and female changing rooms, showers, and a small "concession store." There the children can buy sodas and candy, etc. with all the profit used for upkeep. Once a month someone in a pickup truck drives up and down every street in town picking up the bags of soda cans that the residents place by the road. Here in Iowa recycling is a must, and each of those soda cans is worth five cents - and all of that money is used for the upkeep and maintenance of the city pool. Next to the pool park is the "little kids" park. The play equipment there is designed for the 2-5 year old crowd and the shelter house is a little larger and equipped with electricity and bar-b-q grills; which makes it a favorite place for birthday parties and/or family get-togethers. Just north and a little behind that shelter house is the "Old School House." This is an 1890's era, one room, school house which is lovingly cared for by the citizens. Inside all is just as it was one hundred and more years ago. The desks that each seat two children, the chalkboards, the potbelly stove, the teachers desk, and the few and precious books and maps, etc. It is open weekends or by appointment, and one of the ladies of Kanawha, in period dress, will sweetly greet you at the door and be your guide as long as you wish. The outside of the building is simple white clapboard but the bell has been taken down from the old tower and placed on a cement stanchion. At least once, late on a summer's night, one or more teenagers will make a right of passage and ring the bell, breaking the quiet stillness of the prairie and stirring the sleeping townspeople, all of whom giggle or smile and just roll over and go back to sleep. Running along and behind the pool, little kids, and schoolhouse parks is "The Creek." I think it has a formal name, but we all just call it "The Creek." It meanders and curves around the west end of town, and forms a small pond just near the old school. The Creek is a magical place if you are a child in the 7-12 year range. You can fish off the western banks and maybe even catch a small crappie or bluegill. You can wade and, if the water's high, swim in the pond - though you have to really like mud. But the very, very, best thing about the creek is the frogs! In the spring you can lay on your belly, elbows right in the water, and watch the tadpoles darting around and around. As summer comes your can see those very same tadpoles transform and finally climb up to the land as fully developed frogs. And then - and then - if you're very quiet, and very quick, you might be the one who catches the biggest bull-frog of the season! If your bull-frog is a whopper you and he will get your picture in the newspaper that week. The frog is then returned to the pond to do his frog thing - until another boy catches him and they get their picture in the paper, and no one really knows for sure if it's the same frog or not. Two summers ago my grandson caught what was surely the granddaddy of them all, and everyone in town made sure to congratulate him. He's still certain that was a "special" frog, and was surely never caught before, or since. The summer here is definitely sent from heaven just for the children. They are free and young, and life is full. Up early to get their chores done, and then off to find their friends. By July the days are hot, usually in the 80's and often up in the 90's. The children are in the pool by 10:00 AM and playing and swimming till noon - with swimming lessons provided for the younger ones. Lunch depends on which friend's house you happen to land at first and then it's off the "The" park. I haven't told you yet about "The" park? Hear 'bouts they call it "Central Park" because geographically it is just about near the exact center of town. One block west of Main Street, just behind the business district. From Memorial Day to Labor Day, Central Park is the heart of town. Weekdays it is the domain of the children and weekends there is nearly always some sort of "community" event - except on Monday afternoons when the Farmer's Market takes over the shelter house. Oh, I'm so tempted to get off track and tell you about the Farmer's Market! I'd love for you to see the tables piled edge to edge with the freshest produce of the week; beans and peas, early small salad potatoes, beets and asparagus. And oh, Dear Lord, the baked goods!! Fresh, home made breads and rolls, Kringla and cakes, pies, cookies, and banana or zucchini breads. All made in the home kitchen early that morning. Jams and jellies, and apple butter, and oh yum, yum the wonderful plum butter (I think Nancy L. makes the finest.)!! Of course there's always a big pot of fresh coffee or some cool lemonade, 'cause you gotta' sit a spell to learn the latest - and see how the babies have grown. But this is getting too long so I won't take up time describing the Farmer's Market. And, no, I refuse to let you get me started on the sweet corn. Kanawha sweet corn is the sweetest, most tender, best, finest, greatest sweet corn on the face of the earth - we don't even need to get into the details! You'll just have to imagine for yourself what it's like late summer and early fall - melons and squashes, and pumpkins and gourds, and..... So, after lunch the kids are in the park; swinging and climbing, and running and sliding. After an hour or two of that you're pretty darn hot and sweaty - so naturally you just take off and run about two and a half blocks (the short-cut is through Grandma Kate's yard) to the pool. I don't want you to think they get water logged; they keep their "stuff" there at the pool, too. So, they can swim and cool off and then run around on the grass, or find a shady spot under a big 'ol tree to play pirates with action figures, or dress up Barbie dolls, or braid each other's hair and pretend they are Hanna Montana. Then back in the pool for 20 or 30 minutes - in and out all afternoon. Folks are home from work usually between five and six and supper is ready by 6:30 or about. Kids are headed home, but the smell of brats and steaks on neighborhood grills might easily cause one to stop and chat a bit - not many parents are surprised that a tummy is already full by the time they get home. After supper might mean heading down to the baseball park to watch or play a game, or walking over to Grandma and Grandpa's to say Hi, and do a chore or two. Some families get a little yard work done or just sit out on the deck. Decks in Iowa, by the way, are most always built on the front of the house, not the back. How can you call out a hello to a neighbor walking by if you can't see 'em? Nope, they put their decks on the front of the house. The children are just plain all over town after supper, and sure enough they get all sweaty again. So along about seven or seven-thirty (you guessed it) they head back to the pool. The pool stays open till 8:00 PM (ok, maybe nine if they feel like it - 'cause it's not really, really dark till after nine.) Depending on their age they are fresh and clean, and off to home (and bed) by eight or nine pm. And (this is special) all that day long their parents always knew where their children were - everyone in town knew where everyone's children were. That's just the way it is - everyone keeps an eye on all the kids. In closing I'm going to tell you the greatest secret about Kanawha - you have to promise to keep this quiet - ok, here goes... Probably about one of every five families are not native Kanawhans. Really, it's true. Krista and her family came from Minneapolis, Barb's family is from New Jersey, Nancy and her husband spent most of their lives on the west coast, and there are dozens more like them - from all over the US, and India, Mexico, Europe, and Australia! I came from Wisconsin. Came here to spend my retirement and raise my grandson. Why? Everyone has just about the same story. They may have family here that they visited, or maybe they were traveling (and got lost) and discovered the area. They didn't come for fancy jobs, or big city entertainment. They sure didn't come for the convenience - the closest Wal Mart is nearly an hours drive. If you ask them why Kanawha (and I have asked) they can't give a simple answer. But to a person they will tell you they think it's the best move they ever made, and no one wants to leave. Actually, I was looking to retire around the area of Marble Rock, Rockford, or Green (where Don lives - Hi Don!) But when my house sold in Wisconsin I only had four weeks to move and I couldn't find the "right" house over there, east of I-35. Then one night I saw a big, hundred year old beauty (and a bit of a fixer upper) advertised on the internet. That's right, I found my house online. I had often been to Iowa on genealogy trips, and spent a lot of time over near Don's area of the Shell Rock river (absolutely beautiful - can't for the life of me figure out why my ancestors ever left for Minnesota and Wisconsin?) As for Kanawha? I never heard of the place, didn't know a soul who lived there, and since it was December I didn't imagine what it would be like without snow. But the house had beautiful stained glass, a huge yard, and a good price. The school system was very high rated - and I *had* to move. My family thought I was crazy - but the kids packed me up (two big U-Hauls) and helped me move. My oldest son said, "Mom, why in the world did you pick a place in the middle of nowhere?" He moved to Kanawha that same year. His sister and her husband, with my little granddaughter moved here the second year - and their baby son was the first member of our family actually born here. Another son is still in college in Wisconsin, he "says" he doesn't care for "hick" towns - but he's here on every break. My eldest daughter and her fiancé are in Denver while he finishes up his schooling; they come here for every holiday and vacation. Two other sons have good jobs in Wisconsin - for now - but they are feeling the pinch and those jobs aren't very secure anymore. They also have wives who talk about the quality of the schools and a safe place for children - so those three little grandchildren that I miss, well let's just say I keep an eye on any homes for sale within a block or two of grandma's house. I remember a few days before I was to leave Wisconsin, my sister said to me, "How can you move so far away from your children and grandchildren?" I asked her if she had seen the movie, "Field of Dreams"? There is a famous line from that movie (which was filmed in Iowa); a mysterious voice that keeps repeating, "If you build it, they will come." I've only been here a little over three years - and half of my children and grandchildren have already come. There is another line from the movie "Field of Dreams" where one of the ball players (Ray Liotta) calls out to the farmer (Kevin Costner) from the edge of a cornfield - my son has fiddled with my computer so that every time I get an email from this list, instead of a ding or a ping, I hear Ray Liotta say, "Hey, is this heaven?" and Kevin Costner replies, "No, it's Iowa!" Blessings, Kate ----- Original Message ----- From: "Karen Conroy" <karen.conroy@virgin.net> To: "Dick Tague" <dicktague@devtex.net>; <Iowa@rootsweb.com> Sent: Friday, February 27, 2009 4:25 PM Subject: Re: [IOWA] ???? > It was even warm today here in London! I wouldn't fancy an Iowan > winter!!! > Maybe some of you Iowans can tell us about the worst historical blizzard > you > can remember in Iowa or have heard about. Maybe associated with an > ancestor. > And when does spring come? We are getting snowdrops, crocus, and the > daffodils are starting up here. Karen > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Dick Tague" <dicktague@devtex.net> > To: <Iowa@rootsweb.com> > Sent: Friday, February 27, 2009 10:05 PM > Subject: Re: [IOWA] ???? > > >> June, My Feb. 6th response to your same question suggested you check the >> archives on RootsWeb. The Iowegians fingers are probably to numb from the >> cold to type. It's 90 today in beautiful downtown Lytle, Tx. Dick >> May you live to be a hundred, with an extra year to repent! (Irish >> proverb) >> ----- Original Message ----- >> From: "June Hebert" <junefh@gmail.com> >> To: <Iowa@rootsweb.com> >> Sent: Friday, February 27, 2009 1:32 PM >> Subject: [IOWA] ???? >> >> >>> Js Iowa list a sleep? I haven't seen anything for days on here. >>> Thanks >> >>