The Webster County town will share a robust history with an eye on an ever-burgeoning future at its sesquicentennial celebration.

Even though the official town name didn’t come from P.T. Barnum, one of the “greatest showmen on earth”, but his third cousin, William, a senator from Connecticut who was strongly connected with the railroad that gave the town its first roots, the two-day celebration promises to be as memorable of some of the circuses that P.T. and his company delivered.

“Myself and the sesquicentennial committee have joined many other townspeople to schedule a fun weekend of reminiscing and community,” Mayor Cassie Dillon said. “We wanted this to be very special because it’s how we feel about the town. There is so much history here with examples of the men who created the breakaway basketball hoop residing in the area; Bonnie and Clyde hid out here after robbing the Knierim bank; the famous inventor Henry Ford made his way through and stayed in town.

“I picked up the centennial book a while ago and realized ‘Wow, we’re getting close to our 150th’,” she added. “So, myself, Anne Condon, Jodi Walsh, and Christy Bower sketched some ideas out and shared them with local businesses to get the sesquicentennial celebration going.”

-Submitted photo
King Tusk with trainer Jimmy Silverlake and other members of the circus troupe, including Ringmaster Jim Ragona and clowns David Solove and Craig DeSanto, walk along the parade route during Barnum’s Circus Parade in 1993 in this Journal-Herald photo.

The event begins Friday evening Aug. 16 with Cruise The Park, food, bouncy houses, and more downtown at 5 p.m. and continues through Saturday night, Aug. 17, with a street dance and DJ bingo included on the activity list.

“It’s all about family and fun,” Dillon said. “We look forward to everyone remembering 150 years with an eye on the next 150.”

Friday, Aug. 16

5 – 10 p.m. – Cruise the Park, bouncy houses, food and beverages

6 -10 p.m. – Live music by Jared Benson and Claudia Coltrain

-Submitted photo
This photo of Barnum’s downtown appeared in “A History of Barnum and Johnson Township, Webster County, Iowa,” which was published for the town’s centennial in 1974.

Saturday, Aug. 17

Noon -11 p.m. – Food and beverages

Noon – Bags tournament

Noon – 10 p.m. – Carnival

4 – 6 p.m. – DJ Bingo

-Submitted photo
King Tusk and trainer Jimmy Silverlake were part of Barnum’s Circus Parade in June 1993, in this photo from the Journal-Herald.

8 – 11 p.m. – Live music by Cory Waller & The Wicked Things

-Submitted photo
King Tusk enjoyed munching grass on the school grounds in Barnum prior to the start of the town’s Circus Parade in June 1993, in this Journal-Herald photo.

-Messenger photo by Britt Kudla
Manson Northwest Webster Elementary is a hub of activity during the school year in Barnum.