The Two Towers
by Denise Sawicki on July 19, 2010
So last week Darrell's friend Mike discovered on Wikipedia that Galesburg, North Dakota, a town near where Darrell and Darrin grew up and where they often hung out at the cafe, actually has the third tallest structure in the world. I find the photo on the wikipedia page rather amusing, by the way, due to its unusual dimensions. Upon discovering this, Mike, Darrell, and Darrin immediately drove out to pay the tower a visit. (I was at work). Hearing this, I pointed out what they had somehow missed on Wikipedia, that the second tallest structure in the world is only a few miles away from there. So this weekend Mike came by again and took us to the second tallest structure. There really isn't much to see there. It's just in the middle of some farmer's field. There is no plaque or anything denoting its significance. This one was actually the tallest structure in the world from 1963 to 1970 and also from 1991 to 2008. What's most alarming about this is that we hadn't really heard of it before. As far as North Dakota landmarks, the giant cow gets a lot more fame and attention but hardly seems as impressive. I suppose if they made a big deal of it, kids would be trying to break in to the fence and climb the tower?
Darrell took some video of both excursions and coincidentally also caught a family of raccoons who were feasting on roadkill near the second tower.
Seven Replies to The Two Towers
Jackie Mason | August 7, 2010
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Denise Sawicki | August 8, 2010
And you're deciding this based on pictures of radio towers? haha. I'm confused. North Dakotans are generally very negative towards their state. This actor Peter Jurasik at the sci fi con said in his speech that it was beautiful because you could see forever over the flat land. Everybody started laughing before realizing he was actually serious.
Scott Hardie | August 8, 2010
Snow, snow, snow, snow, snow... This was what I saw out of the airplane window as I flew into Fargo in a February. No buildings, or trees, or hills, or even roads. Just endless flat snow for many miles. If we suddenly passed over the giant cow, I would have been very confused.
Jackie Mason | August 10, 2010
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Scott Hardie | August 15, 2010
It's all perspective. I didn't grow up with farmers in my extended family like Kelly, but I grew up close enough to farms that I would visit friends on them or spend school field trips there. That much open space between your home and anything else nearby begins to feel normal. I have big-city friends who find Sarasota way too spread out between buildings; I have to wonder what they'd make of rural Illinois.
Amy Austin | August 15, 2010
Cherish it while you can. I can't, for the life of me, understand how it is that the population just keeps on growing and the farmland keeps on diminishing... and yet, we aren't in "crisis". Yet.
(Well... unless you count all the disastrous health problems that are a direct result of mega-industrialized ag/animal husbandry -- one might say that we already are if you look at it closely/carefully enough.)
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Scott Hardie | July 31, 2010
The greatest prank ever would be to put the giant cow on top of that tower in the middle of the night.
I'm a little surprised there's nothing acknowledging it, not even a plaque. If that was in Florida, there would be an admission charge to see it and a gift shop.