116 3rd St SE
Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52401
Recreating history
Czech, Slovak presidents visit Cedar Rapids to dedicate renovated clock tower, meet with state and local officials, recreate famous 1995 photo
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CEDAR RAPIDS — History will repeat itself — or attempt to — today in Cedar Rapids’ Czech Village.
A celebration is planned to dedicate a renovation of the National Czech and Slovak Museum & Library Clock Tower. It will include Czech President Petr Pavel and Slovak President Peter Pellegrini, with several other Czech, Slovak and U.S. dignitaries also in attendance.
Part of the event will be a recreation of a now-famous photo from the 1995 dedication ceremony for the museum and library in Cedar Rapids. That photo featured President Bill Clinton, flanked by Slovak President Michal Kovac and Czech President Václav Havel.
Today, the photo will be recreated on the museum’s terrace at 11:45, but it will feature Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, Czech President Petr Pavel and Slovak President Peter Pellegrini.
That’s one of several events planned today to celebrate the two presidents’ visit to Cedar Rapids and the dedication of the Buresh Immigration Clock Tower.
The public dedication of the newly renovated Clock Tower will begin at noon. The ceremony will include music by the DTKK German Band and Amana Band, and national anthems sung by Thaddeus Ennen of CR Opera with piano accompaniment by Katelyn Bouska.
Speeches will be delivered by National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library President and CEO Dr. Cecilia Rokusek, Vice President and COO Dr. Dalibor Mikulas, Gov. Reynolds and Cedar Rapids Mayor Tiffany O’Donnell. Presidents Pavel and Pellegrini also will be introduced.
Renovations of the Buresh Immigration Clock Tower, which was damaged by floods and the derecho, were announced in March. The $1.6 million project will reactivate the clock and turn it into the only Prague-style astronomical clock — known as an orloj — in the United States.
The work has included the addition of 12 figurines on two carousels that come to live each hour and rotate to the music of Czech composers Antonin Dvorak and Bedrich Smetana. Each figurine tells the story of an immigrant who came to the United States from Czech, Slovak and Moravian lands.
The presidents’ visit and the clock tower dedication will close several streets in Czech Village and the surrounding area. The following streets will be closed until 3 p.m. today:
- Inspiration Place SW, from 16th Avenue SW to 15th Avenue SW
- 15th Avenue SW, from Inspiration Place SW to the parking lot entrance to the National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library
Additionally, at the discretion of the Cedar Rapids Police Department, 16th Avenue SW from Second Street SE to C Street SW may close at any time during the event.
The presidents’ visit to Iowa also has included the dedication of a library exhibit, a Czech business delegation visit to Collins Aerospace and a private discussion about “trans-Atlantic Collaboration, Iowa Connection” that included President Pellegrini, Iowa Secretary of Agriulture Mike Naig, state legislators, Cedar Rapids city officials, the Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance, and Sukup Manufacturing Co. President and CEO Steve Sukup.
Find additional information about the visit at ncsml.org/event/ncsml-orloj-clocktower-unveiling/.
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