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Johnny Kaw is a fictional Kansas settler and the subject of a number of Paul Bunyan-esque tall tales about the settling of the territory.
The legend of Johnny Kaw was created in 1955 by George Filinger, a professor of horticulture at Kansas State University, to celebrate the centennial of Manhattan, Kansas. The stories were initially printed in the city newspaper, The Manhattan Mercury, during the centennial and later collected into a self-published book by Filinger, who created Kaw to be Kansas' answer to other heroes like Bunyan and Pecos Bill. Elmer Tomasch of the Kansas State University Art Department provided ink drawings to illustrate the stories and the book.
Fiilinger's stories related how Johnny Kaw created the Kansas landscape, geography and pioneer trails. Kaw was said to have dug the Kansas River Valley, planted wheat, invented sunflowers, and grown giant potatoes. Kaw even controlled the weather, lopping the funnels off tornadoes and wringing out the clouds to end droughts. His pets were the mascots for the two state universities: a wildcat and a jayhawk, who enjoyed a good fight. The Dust Bowl was said to be a result of their fights.
Filinger's book was not republished after 1969, but Kansas author Jerri Garretson released a children's picture book about Johnny Kaw in 1997. Her book was illustrated by another KSU art instructor, Diane A. Dollar. A color edition of the book was published in September 2011 and the original version was included in the 2008 anthology, Kansas Tall Tales.
A 24-foot-tall (7.3 m) statue of Johnny Kaw holding a scythe stands in Manhattan City Park, Kansas (39°10′49″N96°34′25″W / 39.1802°N 96.5736°W / 39.1802; -96.5736 (Johhny Kaw statue)).Three small statues were created before the large one was erected in City Park. Mrs. Walter O’Neill of Manhattan sculped the first one for the centennial. It was featured in City Park during the 1955 Centennial, but vandals beheaded it. It was then moved to a farm, where someone backed a wagon over it. The statue seen today was built in 1966, eleven years after the Manhattan Centennial celebration that inspired George Filinger to write the story of Johnny Kaw. George Filinger worked hard to promote the statue’s construction and donated a large share of the required money. The statue cost approximately $7,000, far exceeding the estimates of $3,000 to $3,500. Although, local citizens donated the money required, hoping that the statue would establish Johnny Kaw as a local legend and prove to be a roadside attraction. The statue is constructed of concrete over a steel beam framework. The design was intended to withstand wind and weather and be easy to maintain.[1]
^"Johnny Kaw Statue". City of Manhattan Parks and Rec. Retrieved July 26, 2022.
May 02, 2024
johnny, this, article, relies, largely, entirely, single, source, relevant, discussion, found, talk, page, please, help, improve, this, article, introducing, citations, additional, sources, find, sources, news, newspapers, books, scholar, jstor, september, 202. This article relies largely or entirely on a single source Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page Please help improve this article by introducing citations to additional sources Find sources Johnny Kaw news newspapers books scholar JSTOR September 2020 Johnny Kaw is a fictional Kansas settler and the subject of a number of Paul Bunyan esque tall tales about the settling of the territory Statue of Johnny Kaw in Manhattan Kansas The legend of Johnny Kaw was created in 1955 by George Filinger a professor of horticulture at Kansas State University to celebrate the centennial of Manhattan Kansas The stories were initially printed in the city newspaper The Manhattan Mercury during the centennial and later collected into a self published book by Filinger who created Kaw to be Kansas answer to other heroes like Bunyan and Pecos Bill Elmer Tomasch of the Kansas State University Art Department provided ink drawings to illustrate the stories and the book Fiilinger s stories related how Johnny Kaw created the Kansas landscape geography and pioneer trails Kaw was said to have dug the Kansas River Valley planted wheat invented sunflowers and grown giant potatoes Kaw even controlled the weather lopping the funnels off tornadoes and wringing out the clouds to end droughts His pets were the mascots for the two state universities a wildcat and a jayhawk who enjoyed a good fight The Dust Bowl was said to be a result of their fights Filinger s book was not republished after 1969 but Kansas author Jerri Garretson released a children s picture book about Johnny Kaw in 1997 Her book was illustrated by another KSU art instructor Diane A Dollar A color edition of the book was published in September 2011 and the original version was included in the 2008 anthology Kansas Tall Tales Contents 1 Statue 2 See also 3 References 4 External linksStatue editA 24 foot tall 7 3 m statue of Johnny Kaw holding a scythe stands in Manhattan City Park Kansas 39 10 49 N 96 34 25 W 39 1802 N 96 5736 W 39 1802 96 5736 Johhny Kaw statue Three small statues were created before the large one was erected in City Park Mrs Walter O Neill of Manhattan sculped the first one for the centennial It was featured in City Park during the 1955 Centennial but vandals beheaded it It was then moved to a farm where someone backed a wagon over it The statue seen today was built in 1966 eleven years after the Manhattan Centennial celebration that inspired George Filinger to write the story of Johnny Kaw George Filinger worked hard to promote the statue s construction and donated a large share of the required money The statue cost approximately 7 000 far exceeding the estimates of 3 000 to 3 500 Although local citizens donated the money required hoping that the statue would establish Johnny Kaw as a local legend and prove to be a roadside attraction The statue is constructed of concrete over a steel beam framework The design was intended to withstand wind and weather and be easy to maintain 1 The statue was featured in a Zippy the Pinhead comic strip on September 17 2005 2 See also editFakelore Novelty architectureReferences edit Johnny Kaw Statue City of Manhattan Parks and Rec Retrieved July 26 2022 Griffith Bill 2005 09 17 Zippy The Pinhead Scythes Matter zippythepinhead com Archived from the original on 2006 05 06 Retrieved 2020 09 12 1 External links editGallery of Huge Beings Jerri Garretson bio web page Diane A Dollar web page 39 10 49 N 96 34 25 W 39 1802 N 96 5736 W 39 1802 96 5736 Johnny Kaw Statue City of Manhattan Parks and Rec Retrieved July 26 2022 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Johnny Kaw amp oldid 1194847265, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
