Guttenberg to kick off festival

Guttenberg is planning a party this weekend.

'Celebrate the Mississippi River & Guttenberg” will be centered on River Park Drive from Friday through Sunday. Folk singers Cathy Barton and Dave Para, who use dulcimers, banjo and guitar and have performed on the Delta Queen and other riverboats, will headline the festival.

Billie Smith's Collection of Native American & River Artifacts will be on display in the Welcome Center, 323 S. River Park Drive. The exhibit will be open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday and noon to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. There also will be an art show at Shepherd Gallery, 214 S. River Park Drive. A farmers market is scheduled for 8 a.m. to noon Saturday, with activities that will include arm wrestling, tug-of-war and volleyball from 1 to 4 p.m.

Guttenberg Mayor Russell Loven said starting the festival after attending a number of conferences for the leaders of cities along the Mississippi River.

Loven said towns of all sizes are encouraged to 'celebrate the river” with art, music and other events. It also was suggested that towns include an educational component to draw attention to the river's importance.

Loven will be host to an informal discussion about the past, present and future of the river with Cathy Lake, Gary Goyette and Jane Regan of the Mississippi River Parkway Commission from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Saturday at River Park Place. Another informal discussion with Loven, Lake and Joe Ihm of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources will be from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. in the South Marina Meeting Room.

French explorers in 1673 called Guttenberg Prairie La Porte, or 'the door to the prairie.” The Guttenberg area also was host to Sac and Fox campgrounds until 1823.

The Louisiana Purchase of 1803 transferred ownership of the area to the united states and the Black Hawk Purchase of 1833 opened the area for legal settlement.

Guttenberg's riverfront location was pivotal in its early commercial development.

The town first served as a focal point for westward settlement and as an early governmental and administrative center. It was the Clayton County seat from 1838 to 1843.

Guttenberg served as a supply center for the general area until the Civil War, when railroads and an interior road system combined to detract from Guttenberg's role as a market center. The influx of hundreds of German immigrants in the 1840s and '50s revived the community, and the town incorporated in 1851, taking the name of Guttenberg.

For a full list of times and events this weekend, check www.guttenbergiowa.net or contact Emily Moser, Guttenberg Development & Tourism Director, at (563) 252-2323.