Iowa Almanac
Iowa Almanac -- Thursday, October 10, 2024
Congress in session in Waterloo. More from the Iowa Almanac in a moment. Election Day is Tuesday, November 5th. Now is the time to make a plan. Whether you plan to vote absentee by mail in person at your county auditor's office before Election Day or at your polling place on November 5th, it's important you take steps now to make your plan at votingready.iowa.gov. Remember Election Day is Tuesday, November 5th. Find more information at votingready.iowa.gov. This message presented by the Iowa Secretary of State. In the early part of the last century, the Iowa State Dairy Association started holding dairy cow exhibitions as part of the group's annual meeting. The first year, in 1909, two dozen cows were exhibited during the meeting in Cedar Rapids. On October 10th, 1910, the Dairy Cow exhibition was moved to Waterloo's Chautauqua Park. More than 5,000 people attended the exhibition show, which featured 62 cows. The success of that Waterloo event led to the formation of the Dairy Canal Congress as a way to develop the dairy industry and promote it to the public. The events organizer was Hugh Van Pelt, a professor at Iowa State University. There were other shows starting up at the same time in Chicago and Milwaukee. But quickly, the show in Waterloo became the premier national event with local business people putting up prize money, the largest amount ever offered in the U.S. for a similar event at the time. Since 1912, the event has been held at the same spot in downtown Waterloo and has been held every year since, except for weather, war, and COVID. And even weather hasn't always stopped the cattle Congress. In 1925, a windstorm destroyed three original wooden barns just before the show. A local construction company rallied all the stone masons, bricklayers, and carpenters in the area. And within a week, the wrecked barns were replaced with brick barns that are still used today. An old promotional poster once noted that Congress Entertainment is educational. Its education is entertaining, but it is all inspirational. The current cattle Congress grounds operate year-round with a variety of events held in several multi-purpose buildings, including the Hippodrome and the Electric Park Ballroom. And each year's event also now features general entertainment and a midway. But the first National Dairy Cattle Congress held in Waterloo began on this date in 1910. And that's Iowa Almanac for October 10th. Follow us on Twitter @IowaAlmanac. Until tomorrow, I'm Jeff Stein.