A Day Trip To Walnut - Gilded Bee Blog

The Gilded Bee blog has some great photos from a September day trip to Walnut.

Gilded Bee - Day Trip to Walnut

Walnut plans antique Christmas Walk

From the CB Daily Nonpareil:

WALNUT - The community of Walnut found its niche in society through their appreciation for longevity and uniqueness.

Known as a town that measures in yesterday's treasures, Walnut has been dubbed "Iowa's Antique City" since 1985. On average, 18 stores line Antique City Drive, the town's main street, attracting people from all over the world.

Antique collectors will have the opportunity to visit all the shops during the 27th Annual Antique Christmas Walk held this Friday through Sunday.

Strolling carolers, a Christmas tree festival, the "Goose Man" and free photos of Santa are just a few aspects that make up the walk.

While the Christmas Walk is Walnut's second biggest day to sell antiques, Hilligas said the intent is to create an old-fashioned shopping experience.

27th Annual Christmas Walk - November 28-30, 2008

Walnut's oldest annual event. Enjoy traditions of Christmas past with antiques, fun, food, and festivities. This event is held every year on Thanksgiving Weekend.

27th Annual Walnut Christmas Walk

November Fri 28th, Sat 29th, and Sun 30th

• Christmas Tree Festival: Walnut Welcome Center Friday & Saturday: 9:30 AM to 5:00 PM. Sunday: 12:30 - 4:00 PM


• Friends & Family Tree at City Hall


• Country School Museum: Open Friday & Saturday 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM.(Father Christmas appearing at 2:00PM) Sunday 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM


• Lunch with AmVets: The AmVet Ladies will be serving vegetable beef soup, chili, and pie at the AmVet Hall Friday and Saturday from 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM


• Special Appearance:Omaha Prime barbershop quartet downtown Friday 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM.


• Special Appearance:Gooseman and his Dirty Dozen downtown Saturday 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM


• Special Appearance:Santa Claus downtown all weekend with free gifts for shoppers with receipt of purchase

Other Links:

Holiday Events begin in Walnut Iowa - WOWT.com

Walnut Christmas Walk going strong after 27 years - Harlan Tribune

Walnut plans antique Christmas Walk --Council Bluffs Daily Nonpareil

walnutiowa.org Christmas Walk Page.

Nick Deal Named 2008 IMCA National Modified Rookie of The Year

In 2007, a 14-year-old from Walnut, Iowa, decided to try driving a race car. What he has accomplished in two short years has been nothing short of amazing.

Nick Deal made his racing debut in 2007 running in the pro stock class at I-80 Speedway. Because of his age, he agreed to start in the back until he could prove himself.

The results have been spectacular. Nick claimed 14 feature wins and was recently named the 2008 IMCA National Modified Rookie of the Year.

From the Omaha World Herald

Photos and Stats available at NickDealRacing.com

Sep 28 Sow-A-Seed/ Prior Attire Fall Style Show and Open House

Sow-a-Seed/ Prior Attire Fall Style Show and Open House

Sow-a-Seed/ Prior Attire will be holding its Fall Style show at the Walnut Public Library on September 28, 2008 at 4pm. This will be in conjunction with her fall Open house being held the same day from 10am-5pm. The show is free.

Events Page

16th Annual Walnut Optimist Club's Antique City Car Show Aug 3rd, 2008

The Walnut Optimist Club's Annual Antique City Car Show is always scheduled for the first Sunday in August. For 2008, that will be August 3rd. There are 27 Classes with 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place trophies and special awards given.


Walnut, Iowa - Iowa's Antique City Events Page

Walking in Walnut

Antique show and walk draws 300 vendors, lots of shoppers

For antique vendors, and shoppers as well, two out of three weren’t bad. While Friday and Saturday offered breezy summer-like weather, the morning of the third day of the 26th annual AMVET’s Walnut Antique Walk started out with grey skies, rumbles of thunder and enough rain to make many vendors pack up: but that was all before 10 a.m. and by noon the sun was coming through the clouds again.

Atlantic News-Telegraph

CURIOUS SOFA Takes a Trip to Walnut

I decided at the last minute Thursday night to drive up to Walnut, Iowa for the annual Fathers Day Weekend Antique Show.

Pearl and I get to Walnut and I was surprised to see that not one van was unloading but instead all dealers were waiting patiently in a row for the firehouse whistle to blow at 7 a.m. so they could begin setting up. Trust me, no other antique show has this kind of regimen. Promptly at 7 all Winnebagos, pick-ups and U-Hauls start their engines and marched in perfect harmony to their designated spot. I was amazed at the Swan Lake type orchestration of this event.

This was a nice write-up from a few years back that we missed. It shows a new perspective on how well-run this annual event is. A fact lost on many of us who take it for granted every year. Kudos to all involved in another excellent show.

Curious Sofa is a retail boutique located in Kansas City. Read more at this link...
CURIOUS SOFA Diaries: June 2006

The 26th Annual Walnut AMVETs Antique Show June 13-15

The 26th Annual Walnut AMVETs Antique Show will continue the tradition. More than 300 dealers from across the United States will set up their booths, restocking daily with newly displayed items. If you haven't attended the Walnut AMVETs Antique Show, you will discover that this is the show to "find it and buy it."

Walnut's turn-of-the-century buildings, brick and tree-lined streets, country hospitality and existing malls and shops are the perfect setting for the show.

June 13-15, 2008

Father's Day Weekend

Friday 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Saturday 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Sunday 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Walnut Antique Show Official Page

Obsession #1 ~ Antique Shows/Flea Markets

Kansas City designer Julie Reed confesses her addiction to antique shows and shares some photos from her trip last year to the AMVETS Antique Show in Walnut, Iowa.


Obsession #1 ~ Antique Shows/Flea Markets

MidAmerican Plans Turbine Project Near Walnut

A wind farm in Pottawattamie County would put 67 massive turbines in the northeast part of the county. The farm is just part of a larger strategy by Iowa's MidAmerican Energy to harness the power of wind.

MidAmerican said the area chosen near Walnut is prime for wind harvesting."They've done a lot of tests to make sure this works out or not. In some cases, you think you have a lot of wind, but you ain't got the proper wind," King said.


Wind Power To Spring Up In NE Pott. Co. - Omaha Weather News Story - KETV Omaha

Rediscover Walnut - Spring Fling and Flower Sale Saturday May 10th

Saturday May 10th. Walnut, Iowa's Antique City, will be welcoming spring with the annual Spring Fling event and flower sale.

5th Annual Dale Lynch Memorial Alumni Weekend

The 5th Annual Dale Lynch Memorial Alumni Weekend kicks off tonight (March 28th) with the open Dodgeball Tournament at 5:30 PM at the Walnut High School.

Dale Lynch Alumni Weekend

Friends of WCS Project Update

The Friends of WCS volunteers have been busy updating the appearance of our school as part of the Facilities Facelift Project. Many items included in this project are scheduled to be completed in time for the Dale Lynch Memorial Alumni Weekend activities beginning on Friday March 28, 2008.

Earl Caddock, 1888-1950 Heavyweight Champion of the World

Earl Caddock World Champion Professional Wrestler

In 1917, the heavyweight champion of the world was Earl Caddock, a handsome young man who was raised on a farm near Walnut, Iowa. He won three AAU national titles in the years 1915-1916 (winning two weights in 1916), and was never beaten in 53 amateur bouts.





Caddock Defeats Stecher

April 9, 1917

Caddock was 29. He had been a resident of the Walnut area since, at 14, he had come to live with an uncle, Isaac Brown, who farmed near Berea, Ia.

He took the world title from the great Joe Stecher in Omaha. The epic match lasted nearly three hours, with each man winning a pin fall and Stecher declaring he was too exhausted to continue for the third and deciding fall.



World War I



His popularity soared when he stepped up and volunteered to fight in World War I, when no other professional athletes were doing so.


“Before the draft law was in effect, Caddock, with his title and all, reported at the recruiting office and volunteered his services at the call of his countrymen. He was rejected after careful medial examination because of his tonsils. This, however, did not deter Caddock for long. He left the same night for Rochester, Minnesota, called on the famed Mayo Brothers at their sanitarium, and had them perform a tonsil operation, and then returned to Des Moines less than a week later and this time was accepted.

Caddock saw plenty of action, fighting in foxholes in France, and was injured by an attack with mustard gas.





Stecher Defeats Caddock

BUT CADDOCK was never quite the same after he returned home from the war. In another epic match, he faced off against Stecher on January 30, 1920, in New York City’s famed Madison Square Garden. All 14,000 tickets sold out in a few days and the match was the No. 1 sports event of the year. Stecher had served in the navy during World War I and the Army escorted Caddock into the ring while the Navy led Stecher.

The match was sensational. The two warriors squared off in long black tights – two Midwestern farm boys back from the war to see who was the best wrestler in the entire world. Caddock was still unbeaten, and Stecher had still just one loss to his name.

The match went back and forth, with Caddock scoring the most takedowns and Stecher proving he was the best on the mat. Eventually, Stecher’s greater size (he weighed in at 205 to Caddock’s 188) and the mustard gas damage wore Caddock down. After two hours and three minutes, Stecher caught Caddock in a half nelson and body scissors and turned him to his back. Caddock bridged valiantly, but was finally pinned. It was the first loss of his entire career!

Footage from the January 30th, 1920 match at the second Madison Square Garden in New York City has survived and although grainy and low quality can be seen below. Stecher pinned Caddock in 2:05:00

Earl Caddock, 1888-1950 @ iagenweb.org

Des Moines Register Article

Walnut Community Meeting Monday Feb 4th

The Walnut CSD is conducting a community meeting on February 4, to discuss the current educational programs at Walnut and the partial day sharing programs with Atlantic.

The goal of the evening will be to provide current information: enrollment data, testing data, financial data, sharing with Atlantic, and staff information to the community. Small group discussions will be facilitated by board members and administration to help promote communication. A supper and child care will be provided to encourage all community members to attend. To help plan for the meeting, you are requested to RSVP to Patty Kay by Friday, February 1. Please call the school at 784-2251 to indicate your needs for child care. The board is hopeful of a large community turn-out to help planning for the future of the school district.

More details available at FriendsofWCS.com

Antique Doors as a Dressing Screen

When we finished our basement, I took a vow that I would not clutter up my living room with any electronics. But we did have a nice stereo system that would come in handy for entertaining or just background music while hanging out reading a book or cleaning. I came up with the idea to make a screen and hide it. I went to a surplus antique shop in Walnut, Iowa that is full of furniture and fixtures from old houses. I came across these doors for $35 a piece and couldn't be happier with them!

Antique Doors as a Dressing Screen

Blum Hand Planes - A Great Design

Continuing the theme started a few days ago of rave reviews for local businesses, I present this from Dennis Perkins at Woodworking Online:

As I was stepping out to do a seminar on hand planes and scrapers at the Woodsmith Store last week, I noticed a couple of new items on Randy’s desk. He had just received two new planes from the Blum Tool Company, a small firm in Walnut, Iowa.

I’ve seen good-looking wooden planes before and been a little disappointed.

After setting everything up for the seminar, I had a little time to spare. So I dug out the instructions on the Blum planes and gave them a quick glance. I wasn’t planning on doing an extensive setup or anything, but I wanted to at least see how they worked. After all, they had a different design from anything I’d ever tried before.

After five minutes of tweaking the smoother, I was taking whisper-thin shavings off a birdseye maple board. Okay, now they had my full attention. I already liked the way they felt in my hand (very light weight with a comfortable tote), and clearly they were serious tools—not just eye candy.

Link to Woodworking Online

One of the Best Sandwiches, Ever

Ontario writer James Bow blogs about [re]discovering a world-class sandwich at the Villager in Walnut, Iowa.

"The Villager is a locally owned restaurant outside of Walnut, Iowa — apparently a town specializing in antique shops — which is clearly popular with the locals.

...The local dish I tried was a beef brisket sandwich, which came as a third of a pound of juicy beef, chopped into hunks, smoked pink and served on a roll. It was an impressive sandwich, especially when combined with the barbecue sauce that was supplied.

...I urge anybody on I-80, heading for Omaha, to take a meal break at Walnut, Iowa

...I’m pleased that I can count some really special sandwiches among my life experience, that I can genuinely recommend to anybody looking for something to remember. These include the tongue sandwich at Moe Pancers’ Deli on Bathurst Street in Toronto (no, I’m serious, try the tongue!), the burnt-ends sandwich at Arthur Bryant’s in Kansas City and now the beef briskit at the Villager in Walnut, Iowa."

We can forgive James the downtown snub, a trip from Lincoln to Ontario doesn't leave much time for antique shopping, after all. Plus, how can one really criticize a man with such an affection for the simple pleasure of a good sandwich?

One of the Best Sandwiches, Ever - Bow. James Bow.

Video Highlights from 2007 Walnut Warrior Football

Video highlights of Walnut Warriors' district championship season in Iowa eight-man football action have been posted on the Friends of Walnut Community School website.

Click Here for the Video

From : www.FriendsofWCS.com

Iowa Caucus frustration CNN Video

I-Reporter Kathy Barger describes her experience at a caucus in Walnut, Iowa in a call in to CNN during the Iowa caucuses.

Follow this link for to findinternettv.com then follow the link to the video on CNN.com (It seems that CNN has made it difficult to link directly to the story)

Click here for the CNN Video

A New Year - A New Blog

Its in with the new out with the old time again. As the beginning of a full site revamp I will be reorganizing many of the various and sundry blogs into a more logical structure. This is where you will find any interesting tidbits regarding Walnut, Iowa which can be found on the web (if you were inclined to search for hours.)