Ayyyyy! (That's The Fonz for, "What's up?") This was such a fun episode to dive into. A lot of the research about the bicentennial history came from History Comes Alive by M.J. Rymsza-Pawlowska. It's definitely work reading, if you're interested in this wild history.
To give you a sense of where the federal government's landed on celebrating the bicentennial, watch this PSA from the American Revolution Bicentennial Administration (ARBA) featuring, who else, but Arba the Eagle. (Get it?)
episode info
Ayyyyy! (That's The Fonz for, "What's up?") This was such a fun episode to dive into. A lot of the research about the bicentennial history came from History Comes Alive by M.J. Rymsza-Pawlowska. It's definitely work reading, if you're interested in this wild history.
To give you a sense of where the federal government's landed on celebrating the bicentennial, watch this PSA from the American Revolution Bicentennial Administration (ARBA) featuring, who else, but Arba the Eagle. (Get it?)
episode info
But the colors of the summer were red, white, and blue. We couldn't find a lot of photos from the summer at the Dickinson County Museum, but The Spirit Lake Beacon published a lot of interesting pieces in the weeks leading up to the Bicentennial 4th of July.
Here's a Hy-Vee insert from the last week of June, 1976. Can you believe these prices?
We also talked about how completely strange (and awesome?) the culture was the week America turned 200: Silly Love Songs by Paul McCartney topped the Hot 100, The Omen won the week at the box office, and, of course, Happy Days was all the rage. Watch the videos all together for a glimpse into the period.
We also talked about how completely strange (and awesome?) the culture was the week America turned 200: Silly Love Songs by Paul McCartney topped the Hot 100, The Omen won the week at the box office, and, of course, Happy Days was all the rage. Watch the videos all together for a glimpse into the period.
And here's our favorite part: the Bicentennial Parades in Spirit Lake and Lake Park. Here are a few pictures that we mentioned in the episode... plus some fun bonus commemorations. All photos are courtesy of the Dickinson County Museum.
Before we get to the Spirit Lake and Lake Park Parades, we have to share this incredible video of Operation Tall Ships 1976. It's quite a spectacle, even through a late 70s video lens. You can also learn more about watching the Tall Ships in 2026 here!
It's always amazing to learn how far Okoboji folks go in the world, so we definitely recommend reading about Tom's childhood friend, Captain Bert Rogers, and his contributions to tall ship sailing in the U.S.
Before we get to the Spirit Lake and Lake Park Parades, we have to share this incredible video of Operation Tall Ships 1976. It's quite a spectacle, even through a late 70s video lens. You can also learn more about watching the Tall Ships in 2026 here!
It's always amazing to learn how far Okoboji folks go in the world, so we definitely recommend reading about Tom's childhood friend, Captain Bert Rogers, and his contributions to tall ship sailing in the U.S.
And here's our favorite part: the Bicentennial Parades in Spirit Lake and Lake Park. Here are a few pictures that we mentioned in the episode... plus some fun bonus commemorations. All photos are courtesy of the Dickinson County Museum.
But the colors of the summer were red, white, and blue. We couldn't find a lot of photos from the summer at the Dickinson County Museum, but The Spirit Lake Beacon published a lot of interesting pieces in the weeks leading up to the Bicentennial 4th of July.
Here's a Hy-Vee insert from the last week of June, 1976. Can you believe these prices?
