Anamosa - A Reminiscence 1838 - 1988
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Anamosa - A Reminiscence 1838 - 1988

The definitive history of the community of Anamosa, Iowa, USA The definitive history of the community of Anamosa, Iowa, USA

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In regard to the Polarstik. Mr. Guy Farmer owned the Candy Kitchen on Main Street. a candy and ice cream store. The candy (chocolates) was made there. The son. Cecil Farmer. also learned the candy-making trade. An ice cream sandwich was a very popular item. It was made of two cookies. like the Nabisco wafer. with a filling of ice cream. These were wrapped and put in the ice cream case. One day. seeing the large pots of chocolate sitting in the kitchen. someone got the idea to dip an ice cream sandwich coated with chocolate. Through trial and error they concluded that it would be easier to dip if a stick was inserted into the ice cream. Hence. the ice cream on a stick became a reality. This confection might have been made in other parts of the country. but it was a first in this area. This became a very popular-selling treat and very reasonable. as most ice cream novelties cost more. Mr. Farmer realized he had a very marketable product. He R. D. Finnigan Mayor and Inventor submitted by Wilma Finnigan Petersen and Joyce Finnigan Hoyman (daughters of R.D. Finnigan) Ren Finnigan. I 926 Above photo shows Ren Finnigan. chairman of the Jones County Salvage Committee during World War ll. During the three years he served. he gathered over 3.600 tons of old iron. besides all the paper. rubber and rags. (Photo submitted by his daughter) came to Ren Finnigan for advice and found a receptive listener. Mr. Finnigan became financially and personally involved in the product. and a partnership was formed. The product became so popular that it outgrew the Candy Kitchen. and it was arranged to be produced through the Anamosa Farmers Creamery. This also brought changes to the confectionary. The wafers were eliminated and the ice cream bars were dipped directly into the chocolate and a new name was given — the POLARSTICK. Ren Finnigan's part in this project was promotion.(the Farmer family created the Polarstick). He hired some young men to take the Polarstick to “Big Days" and state fairs. They had posters printed and used a local boy. Barney Bunce. an adorable youngster. with a Polarstick. Wilma worked at the Candy Kitchen and recalls helping out. especially when they would get large orders from the Men's Reformatory. Names were not used. only numbers. with each inmate's order packaged separately. The orders were then passed around to other merchants in town. This was done on a monthly basis. R.D. Finnigan served as mayor of Anamosa from 1925 to I927. During his administration. $5.000 in back-payment water rents were collected and this was used to clean the city well. The well was 1.700 feet deep and was fllled to the I .300 foot mark with rock and dirt. The city council at that time was composed of Miller Crispin. William Strawman. Clark Joslin. Herbert Gee. Dr. E.R. Erb and Albert Clark. Others in the city administration were: Daisy Stevens. city clerk: George 299

A I 915 photo ofRen Finnigan and his stacker hood. C. Lawrence. city attorney: Tom Watters. treasurer; and George Joslin. city marshal. Ren D. Finnigan and Jess Holden were great friends. Ren was Jess's uncle. and they had a lot of political debates published in the paper. Jess was a Republican and Ren was the Democrat. The articles were widely read and was also very much enjoyed by Ren and Jess. When Ren was about 40 years old. he invented a stacker hood for the threshing machine. Ren had i farmed and was living in Viola while doing threshing work. using a high steam engine. Ren's son. Galen. was working with him and they shipped their threshing equipment to Kansas and followed the harvest to Montana. The great need to save straw was a continuing problem. so Ren built his first stacker hood. He hired a fine tinsmith from the Reformatory and manufactured the Finnigan Stacker Hood. They were popular and sold well. Ren and his son. Galen. traveled throughout the midwest wherever grain was being harvested and sold the Stacker Hood. Harvest methods changed in this area with the arrival of the combines. However. they were used many years on ranch-type farms in the Dakotas. Montana and Kansas. The business was sold to Bert Strawman. who kept it until the Stacker Hood became obsolete. Mr. Strawman gave the original model to the family. He felt that it should be kept in the family and it is now in the possession of Ren's grandson. Don Petersen. In 1923. Ren D. Finnigan and his son. Galen. started the Buffalo Oil Company. It was located on Main and Cleveland streets. It was sold after the death of his wife. Mary. in I925. He also served as chairman of the Jones County Scrap drive during World War II. He shipped out 3.600 tons of old iron. as WCll;3.S rags. paper. and rubber. He died in I947 at the age of 74. Wrote “Flash Gordon” Comic Strip Don Wynkoop Moore Don Wynkoop Moore was the only son of Eugene R. Moore and Mary Wynkoop Moore. He was born August 22. 1904. the same year his father became editor of the Anamosa Journal. He was born in the home now owned by Kay and Neil Dougherty. next door. south of the post office. Don was a quiet little boy who was close to his father and mother and shared their love of knowledge. Both of his parents were involved in education. His father. E.R. Moore. sewed as superintendent of schools in the middle 1890s and his mother was a high school teacher at the Anamosa High School When Don finally started his formal schooling he was skipped through grades one through four. and went into fifth at the age of seven. When Don was ll years old the family moved to Dubuque. and he started high school. graduating four years later at the top of his class. The family moved to Florida after his high school graduation. He attended Dartmouth College and graduated in 1925. standing second in a class of 387. He then headed for New York in search of a job. He landed a position writing for the Argosy-Allstory Weekly that specialized in adventure and science fiction stories. Moore eventually became the editor. For the next couple of years Don moved through a progression of jobs. serving as story editor for Warner Brothers. RKO Radio Pictures. MGM television and Screen Gems. manager of the story and script department at CBS television. contributing editor to Cosmopolitan magazine. and a writer for the New Yorker. This Week and the American Weekly. compiled by Anne B. Moore 00 '.I\ .lI. .._’ #1,, F-‘U Don Moore. author of Flash Gordon comic strip. and his wife. Anne. He was primarily an editor who "moonlighted" on the side as a writer. That's when King Features asked him if he could write Flash Gordon. Alex Raymond. the man who drew Flash Gordon, wasn't really a writer. and a “ghost writer" was necessary. Moore took the job. For a long time he received no credit for his work and was only paid $25 per week. His association with Flash Gordon lasted 20 years — until I954 when science began to catch up

In regard to the Polarstik. Mr. Guy Farmer owned<br />

the Candy Kitchen on Main Street. a candy and ice<br />

cream store. The candy (chocolates) was made there.<br />

The son. Cecil Farmer. also learned the candy-making<br />

trade.<br />

An ice cream sandwich was a very popular item. It<br />

was made of two cookies. like the Nabisco wafer. with a<br />

filling of ice cream. These were wrapped and put in the<br />

ice cream case. One day. seeing the large pots of<br />

chocolate sitting in the kitchen. someone got the idea to<br />

dip an ice cream sandwich coated with chocolate.<br />

Through trial and error they concluded that it would be<br />

easier to dip if a stick was inserted into the ice cream.<br />

Hence. the ice cream on a stick became a reality. This<br />

confection might have been made in other parts of the<br />

country. but it was a first in this area.<br />

This became a very popular-selling treat and very<br />

reasonable. as most ice cream novelties cost more. Mr.<br />

Farmer realized he had a very marketable product. He<br />

R. D. Finnigan<br />

Mayor and Inventor<br />

submitted by Wilma Finnigan Petersen and<br />

Joyce Finnigan Hoyman (daughters of R.D. Finnigan)<br />

Ren Finnigan. I 926<br />

Above photo shows Ren Finnigan. chairman of the<br />

Jones County Salvage Committee during World War<br />

ll. During the three years he served. he gathered over<br />

3.600 tons of old iron. besides all the paper. rubber<br />

and rags. (Photo submitted by his daughter)<br />

came to Ren Finnigan for advice and found a receptive<br />

listener. Mr. Finnigan became financially and<br />

personally involved in the product. and a partnership<br />

was formed.<br />

The product became so popular that it outgrew the<br />

Candy Kitchen. and it was arranged to be produced<br />

through the <strong>Anamosa</strong> Farmers Creamery. This also<br />

brought changes to the confectionary. The wafers were<br />

eliminated and the ice cream bars were dipped directly<br />

into the chocolate and a new name was given — the<br />

POLARSTICK.<br />

Ren Finnigan's part in this project was<br />

promotion.(the Farmer family created the Polarstick).<br />

He hired some young men to take the Polarstick to “Big<br />

Days" and state fairs. They had posters printed and<br />

used a local boy. Barney Bunce. an adorable youngster.<br />

with a Polarstick.<br />

Wilma worked at the Candy Kitchen and recalls<br />

helping out. especially when they would get large<br />

orders from the Men's Reformatory. Names were not<br />

used. only numbers. with each inmate's order<br />

packaged separately. The orders were then passed<br />

around to other merchants in town. This was done on a<br />

monthly basis.<br />

R.D. Finnigan served as mayor of <strong>Anamosa</strong> from<br />

1925 to I927. During his administration. $5.000 in<br />

back-payment water rents were collected and this was<br />

used to clean the city well. The well was 1.700 feet deep<br />

and was fllled to the I .300 foot mark with rock and dirt.<br />

The city council at that time was composed of Miller<br />

Crispin. William Strawman. Clark Joslin. Herbert Gee.<br />

Dr. E.R. Erb and Albert Clark. Others in the city<br />

administration were: Daisy Stevens. city clerk: George<br />

299

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