A huge hog honors a fascinating piece of Fort Dodge history and is sure to help put Fort Dodge on the map in a positive way.

We are referring, of course, to Floyd of Rosedale. Or to be more precise, the 14-foot tall, 3,000 pound steel sculpture of Floyd that now graces the intersection of 10th Avenue North and 32nd Street.

Floyd’s legacy dates to 1935 when the governors of Iowa and Minnesota bet a live hog on the outcome of the football game between the University of Iowa Hawkeyes and the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers. Minnesota won and the governor of Iowa had to pay up. He turned to Rosedale Farms just east of Fort Dodge to get the hog. That hog became the basis for the Floyd of Rosedale traveling trophy that the two teams battle for every year.

The Hawkeyes possess the trophy going into Saturday’s game against the Golden Gophers.

While the Floyd of Rosedale saga is well known to college football fans, few knew that the original Floyd came from Fort Dodge.

One who did know that was Fort Dodge City Councilman Dave Flattery. Although he is a proud Iowa State University graduate, Flattery led the effort to get a piece of Hawkeye football history commemorated in Fort Dodge.

He led a group of 11 volunteers to see the project to completion. The group included Eric Anderson, Shelly Bottorf, Jennifer Dutcher, Carissa Harvey, Kelly Halsted, Scott Johnson, Jim Kersten, Councilman Terry Moehnke, Kevin Twait, Janece Valentine and Randy Kuhlman.

The group commissioned Dale Merrill, of Mount Vernon, to create the sculpture.

And while the sculpture sits on city property, not one dime of taxpayer money was used to pay for it. Floyd was paid for with donations. Major contributors include Tom and the late Norma Schmoker, the Catherine Vincent Deardorf Charitable Foundation and the Ann Smeltzer Charitable Trust. The Fort Dodge Community Foundation managed the finances for the effort.

We encourage everyone to check out Floyd of Rosedale. Park safely and legally in the lot for the nearby aquatics center and stroll over to get a look at the sculpture. And don’t be surprised if you meet some football fans from other communities there.