John K. Daniels' butter cow at the 1911 Iowa State Fair.

The butter cow has been an Iowa State Fair staple since 1911, when J.K. Daniels created the first cow.[1] The popular exhibition, which consists of hundreds of pound of local butter applied to a wood and metal wireframe, is showcased in the coolers of the fairground's Agricultural Building.

History

The Iowa State Fair butter cow has had just five sculptors in its more-than 110-year history. Daniels was succeeded by J.E. Wallace, a sculptor and taxidermist, who also created butter sculptures for state fairs nationwide, including Florida, New York, and Texas.[2] Wallace sculpted the State Fair's butter cows for 36 years until his death in 1956.[3] Earl Frank Dutt was the butter cow's official sculptor from 1957–1959[1]

Norma "Duffy" Lyon petitioned fair officials to become sculptor for the 1960 Iowa State Fair;[4] she would go on to have the longest tenure, sculpting the fair's butter cows and companion sculptures for the next 45 years. Lyon was succeeded in 2006 by Sarah Pratt, her apprentice of 15 years.

Pratt is State Fair's butter cow sculptor as of 2022.[1]

Companion sculptures

In 1994, Lyon won the fair's approval to create her first butter sculpture of a living person, country music singer Garth Brooks.[5] Subsequent companion butter sculptures paid tribute to famous people, as well as historical, cultural, and current events.,[3] including entertainers Elvis Presley and John Wayne; athletes Tiger Woods and Olympic gymnast Shawn Johnson; a Harley-Davidson motorcycle, for the manufacturer's 100th anniversary; Grant Wood's American Gothic and Leonardo da Vinci's The Last Supper; and the 50th anniversaries of Star Trek and Sesame Street.

Year Additional Butter Sculpture
1994Garth Brooks
1996Grant Wood's American Gothic (honoring Iowa's Sesquicentennial)
1997Elvis Presley
1998An American eagle
1999Duffy's own version of Leonardo da Vinci's The Last Supper
2000Christian Peterson sculpting The Gentle Doctor statue (Petersen was Duffy's mentor and teacher.)
2001John Wayne
2002Peanuts Gang
2003Harley-Davidson motorcycle (in honor of the company's 100th anniversary)
2004Birthday cake in honor of the Fair's Sesquicentennial and an Iowa barn
2005Tiger Woods
2006"Mr. State Fair" Bill Riley (in honor of his 60th Fair) and Superman (Norwalk, Iowa, native Brandon Routh)
2007Harry Potter
2008Olympic gymnast Shawn Johnson and a tribute to four Iowans who changed the face of the world's agriculture: Etta May Budd, George Washington Carver, Henry Wallace and Norman Borlaug.
2009Tribute to the 40th anniversary of Neil Armstrong’s walk on the Moon
201050th anniversary of Dr. SeussGreen Eggs and Ham
2011Replica of 1911 butter cow sculptures, including a calf, young boy and chicken. A sculpture of a young girl with a butterfly was added as a tribute to Norma "Duffy" Lyon.
201275th anniversary of Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
2013A Tribute to the Historic Lincoln Highway (and President Lincoln)
201425th anniversary of Field of Dreams
2015Monopoly's mascot Rich Uncle Pennybags - 80th Anniversary
201650th Anniversary of Star Trek - Captain Kirk, Spock, Dr. McCoy, and Uhura
2017150th Birthday of Laura Ingalls Wilder
2018100th Anniversary of John Deere's Waterloo Boy Tractor[6]
201950th Anniversary of Sesame Street
2020Canceled due to COVID-19
202150th anniversary of the Giant Slide (an attraction at the fair)
2022The Music Man[7]
2023Kurt Warner, Caitlin Clark, and Jack Trice[lower-alpha 1]
  1. At the time of the fair, each subject was a former or current athlete at one of Iowa's three public four-year universities—Warner for Northern Iowa football, Clark for Iowa basketball, and Trice for Iowa State football. This edition took place in the 100th anniversary year of Trice's death.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Butter Cow History".
  2. "Artistry in Butter". history.nebraska.gov.
  3. Don Terry (1996-08-12). "Iowa's Annual Fete for the Fat of the Land". New York Times.
  4. Paul Vitello (2022-06-28). "Norma Lyon, the 'Butter-Cow Lady,' Dies at 81". New York Times.
  5. "Photos: Butter Cow ready for 2018 Iowa State Fair". Des Moines Register.
  6. "Get a first look at the Iowa State Fair butter cow and 'The Music Man' butter sculpture". The Des Moines Register.
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