Category Archives: Art

Animals, Art, Black & White, Candid Portrait, Christianity, History, Jesse, Sarah Toot, Travel

NYC – Two

November 27, 2021 Christopher D. Bennett Leave a comment

Here is another collection of images from my trip to New York City with Jesse back in 2011. Most of these pictures are taken around Ellis Island, but some are taken where all the white collar criminals hang out. It was scary hanging out in such a bad neighborhood, but we got in and out without anybody getting us involved in shorting stocks.

By adding these pictures to the Photography 139 Gallery, I was able to restore the following historic “An Artist’s Notebook” entry to its original glory:

MORE RANDOM NYC – ELLIS ISLAND AND FINANCIAL DISTRICT

Next Saturday’s walk down memory lane will also involve New York City.

Art, Flowers, History, Jesse, Lensbaby, Movies, Music, Road Trip

Cerro Gordo and Worth County Auxiliary Images Vol. 1

November 24, 2021 Christopher D. Bennett Leave a comment

A few weeks back Jesse and I traveled up north to harvest the town signs of Cerro Gordo and Worth County. This trip included a stop at the Music Man Square in Mason City. Music Man Square is devoted to the history of famous composer. Wilson is most famous for writing the Iowa State pregame song “For I, For S”. Some people recognize the name because he wrote THE MUSIC MAN too. I think there is some little ditty you hear coming out of Iowa City now and again that he also wrote. A song that is based on another one of his hits, “It’s Begging to Look a Lot Like Christmas”. But he is definitely best known for “For I, For S”.

Here is the first collection of pictures from the road trip:

Rockwell

Mason City

The starts the T and that rhymes with P and that stands for Pool!

If you think I was watching the inferior but still great Matthew Broderick version of THE MUSIC MAN that you can watch for free on YouTube while I was writing this post, well you would be right! One of the greatest musicals ever.

Art, Road Trip, Town Sign Project

Town Sign Project: Mills County

November 23, 2021 Christopher D. Bennett Leave a comment

A few weeks back I made a solo town harvesting trip to Mills County.

Here are some facts about Mills County:

+ The population of Mills County is 14,484, making it the 54th most populous county in Iowa. Below Harrison County and above Butler County.
+ The largest town and county seat is Glenwood.
+ Was formed in 1851 and named for Major Frederick Mills of Burlington, Iowa who was killed at the Battle of Churubusco during the Mexican-American War.
+ The first settlement was founded in 1846 by persecuted members of The Church of Latter-day Saints.
+ Major highways are I-29, US-34, US-59, US-275, and IA-370.
+ Adjacent counties are: Pottawattamie, Montgomery, and Fremont.
+ Population peaked in 1900 at 16,764.

Mills County has a pretty ugly courthouse:

The Mills County Courthouse in Glenwood, Iowa.

The Mills County Freedom Rock is located in Emerson, Iowa:

With Shelby County conquered, this is the updated Photography 139 Conquest Map:

PURPLE=COMPLETED

46 counties completed. 46.5% of the Cyclone State conquered.

Here are the town signs of Mills County:

Glenwood, Iowa
Welcome to GLENWOOD
Population: 5,073 (-196)

Malvern, Iowa
MALVERN
Population: 1,046 (-96)

Emerson, Iowa
Emerson
NEXT LEFT
EMERSON DAYS SEP 11
Population: 403 (-35)

Silver City, Iowa
Welcome to Silver City
ESTABLISHED 1879
Where “This is Home”
Population: 245 (0)

Mineola, Iowa (Unincorporated)
MINEOLA
EST. 1880
Population: 154 (-12)

Hastings, Iowa
THE CITY OF HASTINGS WELCOMES YOU
EST. 1877
FOUNDED 1869
Population: 152 (0)

Henderson, Iowa
WELCOME TO HENDERSON
Population: 144 (-41)

Pacific Junction, Iowa
Welcome to Pacific Junction
Rise Above the Water
Population: 96 (-375)

Mills County has a pretty solid set of signs. There isn’t really a bad sign in the county. But if I had to pick the worst, I would go with Glenwood. Just boring corporate art.

I might actually surprise some people (even persons that might have to begrudgingly admit that I’m pretty much always right about the town sign each week) with my pick for my favorite town sign in Mills County. It is a little more corporate art looking than I usually pick and if the sign was standalone, I wouldn’t even give it a second look. However, they augment the sign with an incredible tree sculpture and that puts it over the top for me.

Malvern – Best in Show – Mills County

There is one alternate town sign in Mills County:

Malvern – Alternate

Here is the current list of Best in Shows:

Best in Show – Adair County

Best in Show – Adams County

Best in Show – Audubon County

Best in Show – Benton County

Best in Show – Boone County

Best in Show – Butler County

Best in Show – Calhoun County

Best in Show – Carroll County

Best in Show – Cass County

Best in Show – Cerro Gordo County

Best in Show – Clarke County

Best in Show – Crawford County

Best in Show – Dallas County

Best in Show – Franklin County

Best in Show – Fremont County

Best in Show – Greene County

Best in Show – Grundy County

Best in Show – Guthrie County

Best in Show – Hamilton County

Best in Show – Hancock County

Best in Show – Hardin County

Best in Show – Humboldt County

Best in Show – Ida County

Best in Show – Jasper County

Best in Show – Lucas County

Best in Show – Madison County

Best in Show – Marion County

Best in Show – Marshall County

Best in Show – Mills County

Best in Show – Monona County

Best in Show – Montgomery County

Best in Show – Page County

Best in Show – Pocahontas County

Best in Show – Polk County

Best in Show – Poweshiek County

Best in Show – Ringgold County

Best in Show – Sac County

Best in Show – Shelby County

Best in Show – Story County

Best in Show – Tama County

Best in Show – Taylor County

Best in Show – Union County

Best in Show – Warren County

Best in Show – Webster County

Best in Show – Worth County

Best in Show – Wright County

The next time we hit the open road for THE TOWN SIGN PROJECT that open road will take us all the way to Bremer County.

Art, Flowers, History, Road Trip

Pocahontas County Auxiliary Images Vol. 2

November 21, 2021 Christopher D. Bennett 3 Comments

This the second and final collection of auxiliary images I took while harvesting the town signs of Pocahontas County. Although almost half of these images were taken in Buena Vista County.

Marathon

Albert City

Pocahontas

I wonder if this is the same Bob from Bob’s Bench?

Don’t get me wrong. I hope the Pocahontas statue stands for a thousand years. I hope that when the apes inevitably taken over the planet from our failed species, that it is the head of this statue that Charlton Heston finds washed up on a beach before he damns humanity to hell. But man is it one ugly statue.

Art, Black & White, Christianity, Flowers, History, Road Trip

Pocahontas County Auxiliary Images Vol. 1

November 17, 2021 Christopher D. Bennett 3 Comments

Several weeks back I cruised around Pocahontas County harvesting their town signs. Pocahontas County is the home of the most awesome statue in Iowa. It is also home to one of the worst statues in Iowa. In this collection you will see the most awesome statue in Iowa.

Rolfe

Plover

Havelock

Laurens

I want to meet Bob.

There is one more collection of images from Pocahontas County still left to be shared.

Art, Mom, Road Trip, Town Sign Project

Town Sign Project: Shelby County

November 16, 2021 Christopher D. Bennett Leave a comment

A few weeks back I made a solo town harvesting trip to Shelby County.

Here are some facts about Shelby County:

+ Population is 11,746. Making it the 65th most populous county in Iowa. Below Lyon County and above Cherokee County.
+ The largest town and county seat is Harlan.
+ Formed in 1851.
+ Named after Revolutionary War hero Isaac Shelby.
+ Major highways are: US-59, IA-37, IA-44, IA-173, and IA-191.
+ Adjacent counties are: Crawford, Audubon, Cass, Pottawattamie, and Harrison.
+ Population peaked in 1900 at 17.932.

The Shelby County Courthouse is pretty:

The Shelby County Courthouse in Harlan, Iowa.

The Shelby County Courthouse is located in Earling, Iowa:

With Shelby County conquered, this is the updated Photography 139 Conquest Map:

PURPLE=COMPLETED

45 counties completed. 45.5% of the Cyclone State conquered.

Here are the town signs of Shelby County:

Harlan, Iowa
HARLAN
A growing tradition
Population: 4,893 (+48)

Shelby, Iowa
WELCOME TO SHELBY
Population: 727 (+76)

Elk Horn, Iowa
Welcome to ELK HORN
Population: 601 (+65)

Earling, Iowa
WELCOME TO EARLING
Population: 397 (+27)

Irwin, Iowa
Welcome to… IRWIN
Home of the…. STATE CHAMPS
Population: 319 (-25)

Defiance, Iowa
welcome to DEFIANCE
Population: 245 (+41)

Panama, Iowa
RIDE-WALK-RUN PANAMA
EST 1882
Population: 235 (+31)

Portsmouth, Iowa
WELCOME TO PORTSMOUTH
BIGGEST LITTLE TOWN IN THE U.S.
Population: 182 (+56)

Portsmouth back of sign.

Westphalia, Iowa
WELCOME TO WESTPHALIA IOWA
FOUNDED 1872
Population: 123 (-23)

Tennant, Iowa
WELCOME TO TENNANT
EST. 1903
Population: 78 (+8)

Kirkman, Iowa
WELCOME TO KIRKMAN
Population: 56 (-12)

Shelby County has a solid but maybe not spectacular collection of signs. I don’t know that there is a bad sign, but if I have to give a worst sign out, I’d give it to Westphalia. Looks like the cornerstone to a bank.

As for Best in Show in Shelby County, I love the sign in Portsmouth and I don’t usually count murals as town signs, but this mural is definitely the first thing you see when you pull into Panama, but Best in Show clearly goes to Elk Horn:

Elk Horn – Best in Show – Shelby County

There are a few alternate town signs in Shelby County:

Westphalia Alternate

Portsmouth Alternate

Portsmouth Alternate Back

Panama Alternate

Earling Alternate

Best in Show – Adair County

Best in Show – Adams County

Best in Show – Audubon County

Best in Show – Benton County

Best in Show – Boone County

Best in Show – Butler County

Best in Show – Calhoun County

Best in Show – Carroll County

Best in Show – Cass County

Best in Show – Cerro Gordo County

Best in Show – Clarke County

Best in Show – Crawford County

Best in Show – Dallas County

Best in Show – Franklin County

Best in Show – Fremont County

Best in Show – Greene County

Best in Show – Grundy County

Best in Show – Guthrie County

Best in Show – Hamilton County

Best in Show – Hancock County

Best in Show – Hardin County

Best in Show – Humboldt County

Best in Show – Ida County

Best in Show – Jasper County

Best in Show – Lucas County

Best in Show – Madison County

Best in Show – Marion County

Best in Show – Marshall County

Best in Show – Monona County

Best in Show – Montgomery County

Best in Show – Page County

Best in Show – Pocahontas County

Best in Show – Polk County

Best in Show – Poweshiek County

Best in Show – Ringgold Count

Best in Show – Sac County

Best in Show – Shelby County

Best in Show – Story County

Best in Show – Tama County

Best in Show – Taylor County

Best in Show – Union County

Best in Show – Warren County

Best in Show – Webster County

Best in Show – Worth County

Best in Show – Wright County

The next time we hit the open road for THE TOWN SIGN PROJECT it will take us all the way to Mills County.

Art, Automobiles, Black & White, Flowers, History, Nature, Railroad, Road Trip

Hancock County Auxiliary Images Vol. 3

November 10, 2021 Christopher D. Bennett Leave a comment

Here is the final collection of auxiliary images I took while harvesting the town signs of Hancock County. Although I would say about 50% of these pictures were taken in other counties. Like Winnebago County or Cerro Gordo County or Worth County.

Forest City

Pilot Knob State Park

Fertile

Thornton

Dows

The next county I need to share auxiliary images from is Pocahontas County.

Art, Road Trip, Town Sign Project

Town Sign Project: Monona County

November 9, 2021 Christopher D. Bennett 2 Comments

A few weeks back I cruised around Monona County on a solo town sign harvesting trip.

Here are some facts about Monona County:

+ Population is 8,751, making it the 84th most populous county in Iowa. Below Greene County and above Lucas County.
+ The largest town and county seat is Onawa.
+ Was a stopping point in 1804 for Lewis and Clark.
+ Where the Turin Man was discovered.
+ Formed in 1851.
+ Possibly names for an “Indian” word meaning beautiful valley.
+ Major highways are I-29, IA-37, IA-141, IA-175, and IA-183.
+ Adjacent counties are Woodbury, Crawford, and Harrison.
+ Population peaked in 18,238 in 1940.

The Monona County Courthouse is fair:

The Monona County Courthouse in Onawa, Iowa.

The Monona County Freedom Rock is located in Onawa, Iowa:

With Monona County conquered, this is the updated Photography 139 Conquest Map:

PURPLE=COMPLETED

44 counties completed. 44.4% of the Cyclone State conquered.

Here are the town signs of Monona County:

Onawa, Iowa
EST. 1857
IOWA’S BEST KEPT SECRET
ONAWA
WIDEST MAIN STREET IN THE U.S.A.
Population: 2,906 (-92)

Mapleton, Iowa
Mapleton
Population: 1,165 (-59)

Whiting, Iowa
welcome to WHITING
Population: 745 (-17)

Ute, Iowa
UTE
Population: 338(-36)

Blencoe, Iowa
Welcome To Blencoe
“You Are Among Friends”
Populatoin: 233 (+9)

Moorhead, Iowa
MOORHEAD
Population: 199 (-27)

Soldier, Iowa
SOLDIER
Population: 184 (+10)

Castana, Iowa
Welcome To Castana
Established 1886
Population: 107 (-40)

Turin, Iowa
WELCOME TO TURIN
HEART OF THE LOESS HILLS
Population: 72 (+4)

Rodney, Iowa
RODNEY
“ON THE GROW”
Population: 45 (-15)

Grant Center, Iowa – Unincorporated
GRANT CENTER
ESTABLISHED 1881
LITTLE SIOUX VALLEY

I don’t think there is a bad town sign in Monona County, so I’m not going to single one out for having the worst.

Despite there being some really solid town signs, I think the best is pretty obvious. It goes to Onawa. The rare triple crown winner. County Seat, Home of the Freedom Rock, and Home of the Best Town Sign.

Onawa – Best in Show – Monona County

And yes, their main street is very wide. I think 8 lanes wide. There are no alternate town signs in Monona County.

Here is the current list of Best in Shows:

Best in Show – Adair County

Best in Show – Adams County

Best in Show – Audubon County

Best in Show – Benton County

Best in Show – Boone County

Best in Show – Butler County

Best in Show – Calhoun County

Best in Show – Carroll County

Best in Show – Cass County

Best in Show – Cerro Gordo County

Best in Show – Clarke County

Best in Show – Crawford County

Best in Show – Dallas County

Best in Show – Franklin County

Best in Show – Fremont County

Best in Show – Greene County

Best in Show – Grundy County

Best in Show – Guthrie County

Best in Show – Hamilton County

Best in Show – Hancock County

Best in Show – Hardin County

Best in Show – Humboldt County

Best in Show – Ida County

Best in Show – Jasper County

Best in Show – Lucas County

Best in Show – Madison County

Best in Show – Marion County

Best in Show – Marshall County

Best in Show – Monona County

Best in Show – Montgomery County

Best in Show – Page County

Best in Show – Pocahontas County

Best in Show – Polk County

Best in Show – Poweshiek County

Best in Show – Ringgold Count

Best in Show – Sac County

Best in Show – Story County

Best in Show – Tama County

Best in Show – Taylor County

Best in Show – Union County

Best in Show – Warren County

Best in Show – Webster County

Best in Show – Worth County

Best in Show – Wright County

Next time we visit THE TOWN SIGN PROJECT, we will visit Shelby County.

Art, Baseball/Softball, Black & White, Road Trip, Ruins

Hancock County Auxiliary Images Vol. 2

November 7, 2021 Christopher D. Bennett Leave a comment

Here is the second collection of auxiliary images I took while harvesting the town signs of Hancock County back several weeks ago:

Britt

Crystal Lake

Woden

Forest City

I’ve decided to start incorporating hobo signs into my everyday communication. There is one more collection of Hancock County pictures still to come.

Art, Road Trip, Town Sign Project

Town Sign Project: Ringgold County

November 3, 2021 Christopher D. Bennett Leave a comment

A few weeks back I cruised around Ringgold County on a solo town sign harvesting trip. I actually harvested the town signs of 3 different counties on this trip. Ringgold was the last of the three counties.

Here are some facts about Ringgold County:

+ Population is 4,663 making it the 98th most populous county in Iowa. Below Audubon County and above Adams County.
+ Named after Major Samuel Ringgold a hero of the Battle of Palo Alto during the Mexican-American War. It is one of 26 counties in Iowa that has a completely unique name.
+ Mount Ayr is the largest town and county seat.
+ The birthplace of Hy-Vee.
+ Birthplace of astronaut Peggy Whitson.
+ Major highways are US-169, IA-2, and IA-25.
+ Adjacent counties are Union, Decatur, and Taylor.
+ Population peaked in 1900 at 15,325.

The Ringgold County Courthouse is fairly nondescript.

The Ringgold County Courthouse in Mount Ayr, Iowa.

The Ringgold County Freedom Rock is located in Diagonal, Iowa:

With Ringgold County conquered, this is the updated Photography 139 Conquest Map:

PURPLE=COMPLETED

43 counties completed. 43.4% of the Cyclone State conquered.

Here are the town signs of Ringgold County:

Mount Ayr, Iowa
Mount Ayr
ESTABLISHED 1855
Population: 1,623 (-68)

Diagonal, Iowa
WELCOME TO DIAGONAL
EST. 1888
Population: 344 (+14)

Kellerton, Iowa
WELCOME TO KELLERTON
EST. 1881
Population: 243 (-72)

Tingley, Iowa
TINGLEY
EST. 1883
Population: 136 (-48)

Redding, Iowa
U.S. POST OFFICE REDDING, IA 50860
Population: 63 (-19)

Benton, Iowa
Welcome to BENTON
EST. 1889
Once a Railroad Town
Population: 39 (-2)

Delphos, Iowa
DELPHOS
Population: 26 (+1)

Maloy, Iowa
MALOY
EST. 1887
Population: 22 (-7)

Ellston, Iowa
WELCOME TO ELLSTON
EST. 1881
Population: 19

Beaconsfield, Iowa
Welcome to BEACONSFIELD
EST. 1881
HOME OF ASTRONAUT PEGGY WHITSON
SITE OF THE FIRST HY-VEE
Population: 15 (0)

Shannon City, Iowa (Partially in Union County)
Shannon City 2 ->
Population: 73 (-12)

I think it is pretty obvious that Shannon City has the worst town sign. Just a DOT sign. Obviously Delphos isn’t much better, but somehow their DOT sign manages to have more character. Redding isn’t great, but at least they had a post office to photograph.

But what gets Best in Show for Ringgold County? There really isn’t that sign that blows me away, but there are a couple that I really like. Maloy and Benton. I’m going to give it to Maloy by hair because it more colorful.

Maloy – Best in Show – Ringgold County

Only one town had an alternate town sign:

Diagonal – Alternate

Here is the current list of Best in Shows:

Best in Show – Adair County

Best in Show – Adams County

Best in Show – Audubon County

Best in Show – Benton County

Best in Show – Boone County

Best in Show – Butler County

Best in Show – Calhoun County

Best in Show – Carroll County

Best in Show – Cass County

Best in Show – Cerro Gordo County

Best in Show – Clarke County

Best in Show – Crawford County

Best in Show – Dallas County

Best in Show – Franklin County

Best in Show – Fremont County

Best in Show – Greene County

Best in Show – Grundy County

Best in Show – Guthrie County

Best in Show – Hamilton County

Best in Show – Hancock County

Best in Show – Hardin County

Best in Show – Humboldt County

Best in Show – Ida County

Best in Show – Jasper County

Best in Show – Lucas County

Best in Show – Madison County

Best in Show – Marion County

Best in Show – Marshall County

Best in Show – Montgomery County

Best in Show – Page County

Best in Show – Pocahontas County

Best in Show – Polk County

Best in Show – Poweshiek County

Best in Show – Ringgold Count

Best in Show – Sac County

Best in Show – Story County

Best in Show – Tama County

Best in Show – Taylor County

Best in Show – Union County

Best in Show – Warren County

Best in Show – Webster County

Best in Show – Worth County

Best in Show – Wright County

The next time we hit the open road for THE TOWN SIGN PROJECT, we will hit it in Monona County.

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