Coffee Pot and Cup Water Towers
Stanton, Iowa
One of the few Big Coffee Pot towns with a semi-legitimate coffee claim-to-fame, Stanton is the home of "Mrs. Olson." Or, at least, was the home of an actress -- stage name Virginia Christine -- made famous as Folgers' Mrs. Olson, hawking their "mountain grown" coffee in TV commercials and on the sides of coffee cans. She'd long since departed the Iowa, but returned for the town's Centennial celebration in 1970 as parade Grand Marshal. Stanton celebrated the connection, along with its own Scandinavian coffee roots, with a 120-ft. Coffee Pot Water Tower erected in 1971.
The "Swedish-style" pot, painted with decorative hearts and flowers, holds 40,000 gallons, on top of a 90-ft. tower, pot is 35-ft. high, 20-ft. wide, spout is 10-ft. high, 6-ft. deep, the handle is 15-ft. high. If you really care.
In 2000, a 96-ft. tall coffee cup water tower was erected to complement the coffee pot. Its capacity dwarfs the old pot, holding 150,000 gallons of water ready for percolation. It won the 2000 "Tank of the Year" award from the Steel Plate Manufacturer's Association!
