This zany travel guide presents a more peculiar state than the Iowa Tourism Office might like out-of-towners to imagine. Leaving out the traditional scenic trips to the Mississippi River bluffs and the Amana Colonies, this guide will take the adventurous traveler to the future birthplace of Captain James T. Kirk, the home of the "Lonely Goat Herder" marionettes from The Sound of Music , and the world's largest Cheeto. To enhance the experience of this unusual side of Iowa, the guide includes facts about numerous events in Iowa's history, such as Ozzy Osbourne's infamous bat-biting incident and Jesse James's first moving-train robbery. Iowa is depicted as the birthplace of the Roto-Rooter, the Delicious apple, the electronic computer, the reinforced concrete bridge, and the Eskimo pie. The accompanying photographs and maps will direct travelers to other fun vacation spots and attractions, including the butter sculptures at the Iowa State Fair, the annual National Skillet Throw, the Hobo Convention and Museum, the Ice Cream Capital of the World, and the National Balloon Museum. "Pohlen...wrote them up with humorous glee and gentle jabs not common in travel guidebooks." — Des Moines Register "Who knew...there were so many odd and unusual places in the Hawkeye State?" — Chicago Tribune "In addition to off-beat locales worth a visit, the guidebook offers some fun, sometime-obscure facts." — The Hawk Eye "The state is more than corn, pigs and Amana Colonies...he unearths places worth exploring." — Chicago Sun-Times "Jerome Pohlen uncovers some really strange stuff from around the state, even right under our mid-Iowa noses." — Ames Tribune "Full of fun-to-visit sites and fun-to-know things." — The Daily Nonpareil Jerome Pohlen is the author of the Oddball series and a regular travel commentator for 848 on WBEZ, the Chicago affiliate of National Public Radio. He is a recent recipient of the Illinois Associated Press Broadcasters Award for Best Essay. Oddball Iowa A Guide to Some Really Strange Places By Jerome Pohlen Chicago Review Press Incorporated Copyright © 2005 Jerome Pohlen All rights reserved. ISBN: 978-1-55652-564-3 Contents INTRODUCTION, 1. THE NORTHWEST, Map of the Northwest, 2. THE NORTHEAST, Map of the Northeast, 4. THE SOUTHWEST, Map of the Southwest, 6. THE SOUTHEAST, Map of the Southeast, 7. THE CELEBRITIES IN TROUBLE TOUR, EPILOGUE, ACKNOWLEDGMENTS, RECOMMENDED SOURCES, INDEX BY CITY NAME, INDEX BY SITE NAME, CHAPTER 1 THE NORTHWEST Why don't we start at the top and work our way down? Northwest Iowa's Hawkeye Point, near Sibley, could be considered the "top" of Iowa, soaring 1,670 feet above sea level. It's not as enticing to mountain climbers as, say, Pikes Peak or Mount Rainier since most of the land around it is 1,660-something feet above sea level, but for burger-with-fries lovers, a brisk hike to the summit is just what the doctor ordered. OK, part of what the doctor ordered.... Hawkeye Point isn't the only record-breaking tourist destination in Iowa's northwest quadrant. The region is also home to the World's Largest Grotto, the World's First Digital Computer, the World's Largest Ice Cream Factory, the World's Longest Double-Track Train Trestle, the World's Largest Bull, the World's Largest Bullhead, the World's First Reinforced Concrete Bridge, the World's Largest Pocahontas Statue, the World's First Moving Train Robbery, and, best of all, the World's Largest Cheeto! What — you need more reasons to visit? Then read on. Adair World's First Moving Train Robbery Good ol' American ingenuity! When the James–Younger Gang derailed the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific train near Adair on July 21, 1873, they ushered in a brand-new type of grand larceny: robbery of a moving train. The gang loosened a rail at the Turkey Creek cut southwest of town, and when the eastbound locomotive approached, they pulled the rail free using a rope. The engine ran off the tracks and tipped over onto its side, followed by the tender and two baggage cars. The train's engineer, John Rafferty, was crushed in the rollover. Jesse James thought the train would be carrying $75,000 in gold bullion, but it turned out to only have $2,300 in cash aboard. He had missed the money train by 12 hours. To supplement their meager take, the thieves robbed the passengers of another $1,000. Twenty-eight children of the Chinese aristocracy and their two chaperones were riding the unlucky train that day; they returned home safely but would, from that point on, always refer to America as "Hell Country." Contrary to popular myths, the CRI&P locomotive was not destroyed and buried at the site. The railroad fixed it up and put it back into service. The large iron wheel used for the roadside marker (erected in 1954) is in no way connected to the infamous event. Derailment Site, Rte. G30, Adair, IA 50002 No phone Hours: Always visible Cost: Free Directions: Look f