WHAT TO DO

Midwest Old Theshers Reunion

5 days leading up to and ending Labor Day

Midwest Old Threshers Reunion is a must-do Iowa classic for the whole family! The reunion started in 1950 and has taken place every Labor Day weekend since. Tens of thousands of visitors from all over the world flood the Mount Pleasant area for a week long celebration which began as a tribute to steam engines and antique agricultural equipment, and has grown to a multi-faceted history and entertainment institution.

Every night of reunion week features two world-class events- in the early evening the Theatre Museum puts on an old “Toby and Susie” Toby Tolliver play from the Schaffner Players, followed by a major musical act in the pavilion. Acts such as Minnie Pearl, Leroy Van Dyke, Tammy Wynette, George Strait, Johnny Cash & June Carter, Kenny Rogers, Brad Paisley, Terri Clark, Willie Nelson and LeAnn Rimes have all performed on the Big Stage.

Crafts in the Park

Thursday-Sunday before Labor Day

Over Labor Day weekend, thousands of visitors arrive in Mount Pleasant to shop at Crafts in the Park.  This event is organized by the Mount Pleasant Area Chamber of Commerce.  The show attracts over 90 antique dealers, vintage booths, handmade crafts and more, who make Central Park in downtown Mount Pleasant their home for four days.  Crafts in the Park begins the Thursday before Labor Day weekend and runs through Sunday.  Shoppers enjoy a free shuttle that runs tourists to and from Central Park and the Midwest Old Threshers fairgrounds the entire length of the show.

Main Street's Music on Main

Music on Main is free and open to the entire community.  The annual events are held each summer on a Friday in June and July.  In addition to the free concert, attendees enjoy food, beverages, games and prizes.

Main Street's Holiday on Main

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas and that means it’s time for our Holiday on Main.   Take a picture with Santa Claus at Amy Becker Photography and drop off your hand-written letter to Santa for Christmas. Enjoy live music, horse drawn carriage by “Clip Clop”, chestnuts roasted over an open fire, and hot chocolate. For more information please contact, Lisa Oetken at 319-385-3101 ext 225.

Festival of Lights

We like to brighten up your holiday spirit and spread the Christmas cheer here in Mount Pleasant, so join us on our annual Festival of Lights holiday light drive through the park.  Enjoy a mile-long drive with over 75 holiday displays that will have you smiling from ear to ear. This is located at our Old Threshers Campgrounds in Mount Pleasant. Prices are $10.00 for a family vehicle, $15.00 for a minivan, $25.00 for limo, $30.00 for a mini coach and $60.00 for a motor coach. While you are out taking some time to meet Santa. For more information please call, 319-385-8937 or visit www.oldthreshers.com

Thrashers House of Terror

Visit Midwest Old Threshers Fairgrounds for the state’s #1 Haunted House, open Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings at 6:00pm. Admission is $10 per person or skip the lines with a $15 fast pass. Youth ages 14 and under must be accompanied by an adult. For more details and the date of the event, visit www.thrashershouseofterror.com or call 319.385.8937.

North Pole Express

Climb aboard the North Pole Express! The North Pole Express is on the Midwest Old Threshers Fairgrounds and is organized by Midwest Central Railroad.  Tickets can be purchased in advance and sell out quick.  The train circles the park before pulling into the “North Pole” (usually known as the South Station).  Children line up for their chance to visit Santa in the caboose. Hot chocolate, coffee and cookies are available for participants. There is a craft room where children can make paper ornaments and other items.  The North Pole Express is the ultimate Christmas experience that you don’t want to miss out on!

Reservations are required for this event. On November 1st, online and telephone reservations for this event began. In the past, it has only taken 1 to 2 days to sell the seats. A link to the online reservations page will be posted on the main MCRR.ORG webpage and on the North Pole Express webpage. The call-in reservation telephone number will also be posted.

Midwest Haunted Rails

Midwest Haunted Rails includes a ride on the Ghost Train of NO RETURN and Ghostly Trolley.  Cost is $12 per person and ages 4 and under are free.  Visit www.oldthreshers.org for details!

Show Choir Invitational

Music InMotion is Southeast Iowa’s Premier Show Choir Invitational and hosts 15-20 different show choirs each year.  Show choirs from around the State of Iowa, as well as Wisconsin, Illinois, Missouri, and Minnesota are invited to Mt. Pleasant to compete in a friendly, educational and exciting venue.  Join us at the Mount Pleasant High School for Music InMotion to see some of the area’s best young performers!

Marching Band Invitational

The Marching Band Invitational is held each September at Mapleleaf Athletic Complex (500 East Mapleleaf Drive) in Mount Pleasant. Concessions will be available throughout the evening. Trophies are given to all participating bands and Caption awards are presented to: Best Guard, Best Horn Line, Best Drumline, Best Drum Major, and Fan Attendance Award.

Admission: $5

Car Cruise

The Car Cruise is held the second Friday of the month during May-September downtown Mount Pleasant.  The event includes a large variety of cars on display and music sets the tone for the event.

Southeast Iowa Symphony Orchestra

The mission of the Southeast Iowa Symphony Orchestra is to promote quality orchestral experiences for our regional community and musicians by providing live performances, educational opportunities and rural outreach programs for all ages.  View the schedule of upcoming events on their website at www.seiso.us.

Greater Iowa Swap Meet & Flea Market

The Greater Iowa Swap Meet & Flea Market is held Memorial Day Weekend at McMillan Park in Mount Pleasant.  The event is free admission for the public and includes a variety of items on display, including: cars, tractors, steam, motorcycle & gas engines & parts & there is a large craft & flea market.  Food is available on the grounds for purchase.  For details visit www.oldthreshers.com or call 319-385-8937.

Wayland 4th of July Festival

Start the day with a delicious Lions’ Club Breakfast at the Wayland Community Center then run it off at the Freedom Fun Walk/Run in Wayland Central Park. Throughout the day you can enjoy a parade while snacking on homemade ice cream cookie sandwiches. There will be city-wide scavenger hunts and tractors on display. Then everyone will gather at the WACO Football Field for beautiful fireworks.

Red Flag Horseless Carriage Tour

Join us for the Annual Run from New London to Brighton, Iowa!  This event is always held the last weekend in September.

The event includes an antique automobile reenactment.  Go back to the Heritage of the Automobile.  They are reenacting an event that happened in the late 1800’s in England, which raised the speed limit from 4 MPH to 14 MPH.  This event draws participants from all around the US.

Visit www.redflagmotortour.com for details.

Salem Old Settlers Reunion

Held each August, come enjoy great conversation and free music all weekend. Other activities include a car show, carnival, fun run, horse shoes & more

Winfield Crooked Creek Days

The annual Crooked Creek Days are held the first weekend in August and includes the annual cardboard box regatta at the Twin Lakes Recreation Center. Other activities include the kids’ donut-eating contest, tractor pulls, and the glow-in-the-dark bags tournament. Crooked Creek days run Friday through Sunday, concluding with fireworks show.

WHAT TO SEE

Airport Road Vineyard & Winery

Our Event Center is a great place to host any type of event. The building can accommodate up to 300 inside and the patio provides space for an additional 70 people. With each rental, tables, chairs, wine and beer glasses, and bartenders are included. We also offer wonderful catering services, as well as full service plated dinners for a more elegant event or wedding. Airport Road Vineyard has had raving reviews and is one of the best wedding venues in Southeast Iowa.

2555 Lexington Avenue
Mount Pleasant, IA
319-400-8808

airportroadvineyard@icloud.com

airportroadvineyard.com

East Grove Farms

East Grove Farms is located 5 miles southeast of Salem, Iowa.  We specialize in organically grown alternative crops such as elderberries, aronia berries and other native and heirloom fruits. We are situated on Iowa’s oldest continuously settled farm established by Joel C. Garretson in 1837.

1878 335th Street,
Salem, IA
319-217-3524

eastgrovefarms.com

Join us Saturday’s and Sunday’s at 10:00 AM for a free wine & mead tasting!

Main Street District

njoy a cup of coffee, dine in a local restaurant or shop at one of our many downtown retailers. Mount Pleasant’s historic Main Street District is a great place to shop, dine or enjoy a warm sunny day in the beautiful Central Park.  Check out our website for a complete list of downtown businesses.

Main Street Mount Pleasant, IA
319-385-3101

Iowa Wesleyan University

Located in Mount Pleasant, Iowa Wesleyan offers a variety of arts and cultural opportunities for southeast Iowa. Art shows, concerts, lectures, and plays take place throughout the year and most are open to the public at no charge. The Clifford and Maxine Manning Speaker Series brings noted theologians and religious speakers to campus each year while the Haselmayer Endowment for the Arts sponsors events such as performances by the Montana Repertory Theatre and the American Shakespeare Center. ​

601 N. Main St.

Mount Pleasant
IA 52641
800-582-2383

admit@iw.edu

iw.edu

Henry County Conservation

Located in Oakland Mills, Henry County Conservation has something for the whole family to enjoy. From guided canoe trips to parks and trails, recreational cabin rentals to educational training classes, night hikes to summer youth programs, disc golf course to swinging bridge, live raptor programs to Oakland Mills Nature Center. Contact the Naturalist Cari Nicely at 319-986-5067 for questions about their services.

Henry County Conservation Department
2593 Nature Center Drive
Mt. Pleasant, IA. 52641
Phone: 319/986-5067 Fax: 319/986-5469

www.henrycountyconservation.com

Harlan-Lincoln House

The Harlan-Lincoln House, located on the north side of the Iowa Wesleyan University campus, has been maintained as a museum since 1959. The museum includes artifacts belonging to the Harlan and Lincoln families: a fragment of the coat Abraham Lincoln was wearing when he was assassinated; Mary Todd Lincoln’s mourning veil; Harlan’s desk, globe, and recliner; a door measuring the heights of the grandchildren in 1883; grandson Jack’s rock collection and tennis net; family silver, dishes, and more!

101 West Broad Street
Mount Pleasant, IA 52641

Museum Hours: Monday to Friday, 12:00pm – 4:00pm
Admission: Free

Anna Villareal
Director of the Harlan-Lincoln House
hlhouse@iw.edu
(319) 385-6319

Harlan-Lincoln House

The Theatre Museum of Repertoire Americana

The Theatre Museum houses a most unique collection of memorabilia from early American popular entertainment. Priceless stage drops, quaint artifacts, a massive computer catalogued library, scripts and music scores dating from 1850s are arrayed for the curious visitor and the dedicated scholar. The photographs, show heralds, playbills, scrapbooks, newspapers, costumes and scenery are from touring companies that played in hundreds of American opera houses, town halls and tent theaters.

405 East Threshers Road
Mount Pleasant, IA 52641

Hours: Tuesday-Sunday 10am-noon; 12:30pm-4:30pm (Memorial Day-Labor Day); Remainder of the year by appointment

Admission: $3; group rates available

319.385.9432 or 319.385.8937

theatremuseum@yahoo.com

thetheatremuseum.com

Midwest Old Threshers Heritage Museums

Come visit the Heritage Museums where you can step back into our agricultural heritage. We invite you to climb aboard one of the many tractor steam engines, including the largest steam engine, a Case 110 horsepower. You can even sit behind the wheel of an antique tractor or take a look at the stationary steam engines with a Murray Corliss engine display.

405 East Threshers Road
Mount Pleasant, IA 52641

Hours: Monday-Friday 8am-4:30pm, Saturday 9am-4:30pm, Sunday noon-4:30pm (Memorial Day-Labor Day); Monday-Friday 8am-4:30pm (Labor Day-Memorial Day)

Museum is not climate controlled

Admissions: Adult $5/person; kids 14 & under free with adult; group tours and rates available

319.385.8937

info@oldthreshers.org

oldthreshers.com

Swedish American Museum

Discover the story of Swedish immigration through exhibits in four buildings. Also contains a coffee shop, gift shop & library containing genealogical & historical materials.

107 James Avenue
Swedesburg, IA 52652

Hours: Monday-Tuesday, Thursday-Saturday 9am-4pm (April-December)

Thursday-Saturday 9am-4pm (January-March)

319.254.2317

swedish@iowatelecom.net

Lewelling Quaker Museum

Once known as the main ticket office of the underground railroad, the Lewelling Quaker House contains grim reminders of the anti-slavery movement. Features a trap door and other hiding places for the runaways who were fleeing the evils of slavery.

401 South Main Street
PO Box 245
Salem, IA 52649

Hours: Sunday 1-4pm (May-September or weekdays by appointment)

319.258.2000

lewellingquakermuseum@gmail.com

Lewelling Quaker Museum

Howard and Helen Hills Henry County Heritage Center

Henry County Heritage Center is housed in the former Saunders Elementary School building and is open Saturday afternoons, May through October; any other time by appointment. Historical displays and memorabilia featuring Saunders School, Rural Schools, the Van Allen family, Mount Pleasant, Henry County Veterans and all the towns and townships of the County are featured. The Donald Young Memorial Room houses a collection of Henry County books, maps, photos, postcards and files for historical research.

203 North White Street
Mount Pleasant, IA 52641

Hours: Saturday 1pm-4pm or by appointment

319.385.4983

Henry County Heritage Center

Wayland & Midwest Memories Museum

WAYLAND MUSEUM – Originally founded as Crooked Creek by a group of settlers, the name was changed to Marshall in 1851. The town prospered and was known for its great farming land.  In 1880, to eliminate the confusion over a larger place called Marshalltown, the town changed to its final name of Wayland. Be sure to visit the Wayland Museum located at 217 W Main Street to find out more interesting facts about the community then and now.

217 West Main Street
Wayland, IA 52654

Hours: Tuesday & Thursday 9am-4pm or by appointment

319.331.5986

midwestmemories@farmtel.net

midwestmuseum.blogspot.com

Winfield Museum

114 South Locust Street
Winfield, IA

Hours: Monday 10am-12pm or by appointment

319.257.6661

winfieldhistoricalsociety.com

The Dover Museum & Depot

Two floors of exhibits relating to the New London- Lowell area. Restored railroad depot with train memorabilia. Genealogical, cemetery, and historical records also available.

213 West Main Street
New London, IA 52645

Hours: Saturday-Sunday 1-4 pm (May-October or by appointment)

319.367.2573 or 877.468.7700

dovermus@iowatelecom.net

dovermuseum.org