Ice Cream Capital of the World, Le Mars, Iowa 

In 1913, the Wells family started a dairy company out of their backyard in the small town of Le Mars, Iowa. Today, the city of Le Mars produces 100 million gallons of ice cream per year, more than any other city, prompting the Iowa state legislature to crown Le Mars the Ice Cream Capital of the World in 1994. 

With a population of 9,435, Le Mars seems like an unusual home for the acclaimed Blue Bunny company. Liz Crosten, manager of corporate communications and public relations, said that one of the two factories still stands at the edge of a housing development because the family just continued to build onto the original backyard business.

Pella, Iowa

An 1800s-style windmill stands in defiance of the wind, just off the town square of Pella, Iowa. This korenmolen, meaning corn mill in Dutch, boasts the record as the largest authentic windmill in America. The windmill serves as one of many examples of the Dutch traditions of Pella.

The Pella community of about 10,000 lives among a dappling of buildings that display a 19th century Dutch façade. Stores bearing names such as Bisschopswijn, Jaarsma Bakery and Van Den Berg’s Limited enhance the town’s Dutch culture by selling authentic Dutch products.
Jim Brandl, a retired businessman turned tour guide for the Vermeer Mill and Interpretive Center, said Pella has striven to preserve the town’s Dutch culture.

Over the years, the Pella Historical Society has worked hard to promote Pella as a place for visitors to view Dutch architecture and ways of living.

Originally settled in 1843, Dutch immigrants established Pella as a safe haven to escape from the religious persecution that plagued them in their homeland. In the Netherlands, the Dutch built many windmills because running water is scarce. Because rivers and streams stripe the Midwest, water could power the mills in Pella instead of wind. Despite the frequency and utility of windmills in their homeland, the original settlers chose not to build a windmill in Pella.

Cuba, Missouri

History no longer is confined to the books in Cuba, Missouri, but rather spills across the side of a shoe store, the local eye doctor’s office, traffic control boxes and a series of half-walls constructed around town.

Residents of Cuba, a town of about 3,500 people located about 85 miles south of St. Louis on historic Route 66 and I-44, began painting their history on various buildings and re-created structures around town in 2001 as a way to beautify the city. What began as a single mural that celebrated the centennial of the local bank has mushroomed into 12 full-size murals depicting historical events — some little known and some widely noted — that make the town a prime tourist destination for people traveling Route 66.