The
chairman of the "Top 600 Most Beautiful Cities in Iowa" committee has
withdrawn his nomination of Jefferson. When asked to explain why he
originally submitted his nomination of Jefferson he stated that he "must
have hit his head on something hard" or perhaps he "got the name
confused with Algona". He could offer no other plausible reason that is
within the realm of believability.The withdrawal of Jefferson unofficially moves Grand Junction up to position number 537. Scranton, and Rippey were not affected, as they were already listed ahead of Jefferson. At this time, Jefferson is not expected to make the list of top 600 most beautiful cities in Iowa.
A local merchant who asked to remain anonymous stated, "Of course I think Jefferson is in the top 600. I certainly think Jefferson should have beaten Leon. At least the east side of Leon ... all the rich people live on the west side of Leon. The east side is nothing but blue collar."
On deeper investigation, we discovered another possible reason for Jefferson's being dropped from the list.
It seems more than a few members of the committee still hold a grudge against Jefferson based on their experiences at Jefferson's annual "Poison Oak Days" festival that they held briefly during the 1970's.
Although younger residents may not remember it, Jefferson annually held this event, but unfortunately gave it up after six years of dismal failures. You can't even joke about the "Poison Oak Pie Eating Contest" they tried back in 1975. Floyd Belstone almost died!
Jefferson residents should not despair, however. They are still in the running to make the list of "Top 1200 Most Beautiful Cities in Iowa". Although this is a much less prestigious honor, it will undoubtedly impress those who are unaware of the first list.
submitted by Rick Bland, city editor