As a kid, my artistic talents ran as deep as the paint-by-number options I found enticing before boys and puberty wreaked havoc with my powers of concentration. I think that's why when Jim and I recently passed through Mitchell, South Dakota on our way to Mt. Rushmore, I found the city’s Corn Palace so ah-maize-ing.
Mitchell's Corn Palace is not made of corn; the building is simply covered in corn.
It’s a 3-D paint-by-number canvas with corn the medium rather than old fashioned paint. Who comes up with these crazy, unique, clever ideas anyway?
According to the history books, a group of local businessmen looking to securing a return on their investments decided some crop art might just be the answer for Mitchell, South Dakota. Mitchell’s Corn Palace was not the first of its kind; two grain palaces in Iowa and two others in South Dakota predated Mitchell's first Corn Palace in 1892; Mitchell's is simply the only one that survived the test of time.
The Moorish design of Mitchell's first Corn Palce was lost and then found again years later.
By 1905 the success of this folk art necessitated a new structure (or maybe the birds were especially hungry that year!). Today’s structure is the third Corn Palace to be erected in Mitchell; the population is now a little over 15,000 residents, but the Corn Palace attracts half a million visitors each year. Pretty nice return on their investment, wouldn't you say?
Hurry and snap the picture Jim. This onion dome is getting heavy!
The design process begins in earnest in early June of each year when the border trim of rye and sour dock from the previous year’s theme is removed and replaced with 3,000 bushels of new rye, oat heads and sour dock cut, tied into bundles and stapled to the building. In early August, the old murals are removed, the blueprints for the new theme transferred to roofing paper and stapled in place. The delicate and detailed process begins again with 275,000 ears of corn (13 different colors) sawed in half lengthwise, shaped according to the blueprint and nailed into place by local artisans. The entire process is completed by October each year. It’s the corniest paint-by-number work of folk art I’ve ever had the pleasure of seeing and feeling.
Considering USA Today named the Corn Palace one of the Top Ten places to play high school
basketball, it seemed appropriate this year’s theme was “Saluting Youth Activities.”
Considering USA Today named the Corn Palace one of the Top Ten places to play high school
basketball, it seemed appropriate this year’s theme was “Saluting Youth Activities.”
According to our tour guide, another youth activity at the Corn Palace was her high school prom.
Inside this one-of-a-kind civic center Corn is King and more corn murals reign.
Presidents Roosevelt, Taft, Kennedy and Obama have all spoken at Mitchell's Corn Palace.
A cornucopia of information and souvenirs as lush as any fall harvest left Jim and I pickin’ our teeth and imagination the entire visit. Everything you were afraid to ask your local farmer about corn was readily available for consumption in one way or another at the Corn Palace. There’s obviously much more than a kernel of truth behind the corn craze in Mitchell, South Dakota.
Maybe it's time to invest in a few acres of corn rather than oil.
I put my money where my mouth was with this commemorative Corn Palace coin I pressed in less time than it takes to pop corn;
A penny for your thoughts, Jimmy!
Jimmy had his eye on this sweat shirt.
Is that milk on your beard, Jim?
I thought twice about a hat to complete my ensemble, but with flip flops instead of boots, I figured I’d look a little corny.
Does my head look fat in this hat?
There was the usual assortment of candy and confections always good for getting tourists with a sweet tooth to part with their money. I passed on the Candy Corn Salt Water Taffy (never been a fan);
I looked and looked, but never found any candy corn. Maybe Halloween.
but I bought four Caramel Cobs as gifts and then ate one during the ride out of town; I picked my teeth all the way to Mt. Rushmore.
Microwaving these makes it a chewy treat that melts in your mouth.
And of course any souvenir shop worth their salt-to-go-with-all-that-popcorn has the usual cornball knick-knacks to appeal to the hoarder in all of us.
Is it a salt shaker, a bird feeder, or an ornament? We'll never know.
The Corn Palace was really ah-maize-ing, all done with such detail and pride and hospitality I'd become a believer in all things corn.
It was tough saying goodbye to Mitchell's Corn Palace and the town's proud people. We talked shop for a bit with this dude before we hit the dusty trail. He was so personable too despite his rather stiff carriage. He was a font of wisdom when it came to moccasins, the history of Mitchell, the Corn Palace and South Dakota in general, which proved fortuitous for me. Blogs, like history, are always a blend of fact and fiction, just enough of both to weave a good story, albeit a rather corny one from time to time.
It was tough saying goodbye to Mitchell's Corn Palace and the town's proud people. We talked shop for a bit with this dude before we hit the dusty trail. He was so personable too despite his rather stiff carriage. He was a font of wisdom when it came to moccasins, the history of Mitchell, the Corn Palace and South Dakota in general, which proved fortuitous for me. Blogs, like history, are always a blend of fact and fiction, just enough of both to weave a good story, albeit a rather corny one from time to time.
I picked up a few pointers on my posture too while we were shooting the breeze.
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