Country Life: Springtime in Adair County

Another post from the tourism series I wrote in 2014.

It's been one of those looong painful winters. Snowy days, bad roads, just not the best time to be out and about. So when April rolls around many of us have a SERIOUS case of cabin fever and can't wait to get back out there.

Today we are visiting Adair County. The newly remodeled Warren Cultural Center right on the square in Greenfield is a beautiful old building, now fully restored to its original glory. Hosting musical performances, plays and other events the Cultural Center is a great weekend destination. Right next door is the beautiful Hotel Greenfield so you can make a weekend of your visit. And of course, you can't visit the old Opera House without stopping in Ed & Eva's on the main level.

Ed & Eva's is an amazing shop that showcases artwork from all different kinds of Iowa artisans. Everything from candle to dog biscuits to jewelry and crazy lawn decorations made from old golf clubs, it's a fun store with friendly staff and LOTS to look at, and lots to buy. 

I didn't get out of there without spending any money, either. Louie, my dog, got a great big cupcake-shaped dog biscuit, while I picked out a lovely scented candle and the cutest garden bugs to put in the garden- made from old metal pieces, old antique keys and big old fashioned Christmas light bulbs. Fun stuff.

The day of my visit the Cultural Center was hosting an art exhibit of drawings done by local school children, and I was also able to tour an available space that would be perfect for a restaurant. It's a fabulous building with so much potential- that alone is worth the drive.

Directly across the street from the Cultural Center is the Adair County Courthouse. The courthouse was built in 1981 in the "Romanesque" style and features beautiful woodwork fixtures, arched doorways and a spiral staircase connecting all floors.

I couldn't spend a day in Adair County without a stop in it's namesake town of Adair, which is right along Interstate 80. Adair is the home to the Smiley Face water tower. Adair is also known as "The Happiest Town on Earth" because of that great big smiling greeting.

The town is named after General John Adair, a general in the War of 1812, and was also the scene of the first train robbery in the west when the Jesse James gang derailed a Rock Island Express train, killing the engineer. The gang escaped with a mere $3,000.

Downtown Adair

Today when you visit Adair, you will be greeted by the brand new sign welcoming you, and announcing events around town.

 

Adair County is also home to many other attractions, such as The Freedom Rock and the Aviation Museum- we just can't seem to fit it all in one day!!  

Country Life: Off we go.....into the wild blue yonder.......

Here is another post from the 2014 tourism series. It's a nice look into my region of Iowa.

Lots of interesting things to see here.....

Aviation is fascinating to me. From the silly commercials on tv showing the earliest attempts at flight to modern military aircraft, I have always had a love for flying. Even as a little girl when we first moved to Des Moines from Minnesota, we lived near the airport and I loved watching the planes fly over our house. I don't get to fly very much but just getting to see planes in museums and airshows makes me happy. So I was so excited to discover that right here, in Adair County, we have the Iowa Aviation Hall of Fame.

It was a baking hot day when I made my way around Adair County checking out the interesting places to visit. The aviation museum was one of the first stops early in the day, but an airplane hangar is not a cool place by any means, and bless his heart, the kind gentleman who gave the tour that day was a real trooper. I was ready to DIE and he was ready to talk all day !

The tour started off by me just standing in awe of the A7 Corsair mounted outside the building. Growing up in Des Moines the Air National Guard stations and the "Blue Lights" viewing area in a huge part of my childhood. So to get to see this wonderful piece of Iowa military history and actually lay my hands on it......well, it was quite an experience.

Entering the museum, where it was nice and cool, there were loads and loads of interesting items on display. Flight suits, news clippings, photographs, articles in frames. Military and civilian planes and stories and articles of all kinds. Even the newspaper articles about the plane crash that took the life of Buddy Holly and several other musicians was there. 

After looking at many displays in the museum building I was taken on a tour of the hangar. Wow, just wow. So many amazing planes, gliders, engines, engine parts- I don't even think I can list everything I saw. You really need to experience this amazing place yourself to appreciate the pristine quality of the planes, all of which actually flew into the airport and drove into the hangar and very likely can still fly.

There is no way I can remember everything he had to say about each plane- there was just so much information. I just enjoyed story after story and admired the aircraft of days gone by. 

They have a full listing of all the aircraft in the hangar on their website, http://www.flyingmuseum.com/Aircraft.aspx, some of which are the last or one of the last two in existence. 

We posed for pictures with different equipment. My friend Sarah took the seat at the controls of a DC10. 

We both decided to have a silly pic taken with a cartoon character. It was great fun.

On the north end of the hangar is the Hall of Fame. In this room you will find framed photos of the various flying pioneers with an Iowa connection, from the earliest years of flight to astronauts. 

The USAF SR71 Blackbird- my favorite of all military aircraft, and they were based
at the air force base we lived nearby in England years ago. I got to see them fly everyday.

Display cabinets line the walls with donated collections of memorabilia, and a wall of glass blocks is etched with the names of the many donors that helped make this unique attraction possible.

The Iowa Aviation Museum is really a true treasure to have here in our area. It's a quick drive from Des Moines, and the city of Greenfield offers lots of options for a lunch or dinner to go along with your road trip. This truly is a must-see destination.