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www.driftlessjournal.com | news@driftlessjournal.com | 563-382-4221 | Tuesday, August 15, 2023 | Vol. 5 Issue 33
Summer means more learning opportunities for local teachers
MABE’S TURNS 70 Where square slices earn distinction at one of Decorah’s most treasured family eateries
Mabel White’s grandson, Steve, and his wife Connie, and her great-grandson, Collin, and his wife, Jenny, (pictured here with two-year-old Mabel) are at the helm at Mabe’s Pizza. Mabe’s is celebrating 70 years in business this year. By Roz Weis
S
eventy years ago, Mabel White brought a fairly-new concept to the Decorah restaurant scene – pizza. Little did she know, those first pizzas baked on cookie sheets and pulled from her small oven on Decorah’s West Side would become a staple in the area. Mabe’s, the iconic pizzeria in downtown Decorah, celebrates a big milestone this year - its 70th year in business. A year-long anniversary party is in full-swing, with new menu items, giveaways, coupons, a box-folding contest, a recent Lawn Chair Night Concert sponsorship and more. Serving up a tempting, thin crust, tavern-style pizza, Mabe’s and the signature “square slices” continues to be an institution in the Driftless Region and beyond. Now at the helm are Mabe’s grandson Steve and his wife Connie, and her great-grandson Collin and his wife Jenny. Savory history The history of Mabe’s dates back to 1953, when 49-year-old Mabel “Mabe” White opened the small café on Decorah’s “West Side” and called it Mabel’s Lunchroom. Situated at the corner of College Drive and Leif Erickson Drive, the small lunch spot served up sandwiches to students at nearby Luther
College. Historians recall Mabel was asked by a Luther student if he could make her a pizza. She wasn’t familiar with the concept, as pizzas were virtually unheard of in Iowa back in those days. The restaurant owner decided to branch out into the pizza business, thanks to a growing Luther population from the Chicago area and their love for the Italian favorite. The restaurant was rebranded “Mabe’s Pizza” in 1968. Mabe baked the early pizzas on cookie sheets in her small oven, and it was easier to cut the pies into squares. Embracing round pizza pans after purchasing a large pizza oven didn’t mean changing the slices – she left them square and those square slices remain today. Having outgrown the original small restaurant location, the pizzeria moved to a larger building, eventually moving to the downtown area in the early 1970s. On New Year’s Eve in 1976, a fire destroyed the restaurant, which was then located in the 500 block of West Water Street.
Many from the Decorah area have vivid memories of the big fire engulfing the popular downtown restaurant on that cold day in
A common misexplore Women in conception held by American History. many is that sumA day was spent in mertime is “timePhiladelphia studyoff” for area educaing women’s right to tors. While teachers vote and their contriare looking forward butions to the Amerto a relaxing slower ican Revolution and paced summer, many to the sciences. Later spend time attending in the week, guest professional develspeakers, including opments. Michelle Mrs. Mae Krier, a Nystel, Jason Rude “Rosie the Rivetand Sean Singewald er” who worked for are just a few local Boeing during World educators who spent War II, spoke to the their summer travteachers about womeling throughout the en’s experiences in country to continue the 20th century and their education and to WWII. The highlight bring back the newof this trip for Nystel est and best practices was spending one of to their classrooms. Postville High School Science Teacher Sean her “free” evenings Nystel, a so- Singewald getting up close and personal with a refreshing the Iowa cial studies teach- stingray during his trip at the Bimini Shark Lab in Medal of Honor Meer at Turkey Valley Bimini, Bahamas. (submitted photo) morial in the Medal School, has made it of Honor Grove on her goal as an eduFreedom Foundacator to continue her own edu- several days exploring the his- tion’s campus. Each state has cation and continue to improve tory of early colonial America, a memorial with a placard for her teaching to be more inclu- which took her to Jamestown, each Medal of Honor recipient. sive and engaging. She first Yorktown, Fort Monroe and of Last summer when Nystel attended a summer institute in course, Colonial Williamsburg. visited, the Iowa memorial 2016, and since has attended Her time there was focused looked a little worse for wear. half a dozen around the country, on using historical documents Each state is responsible for not including local professional to tell the stories of all people maintaining their memoridevelopments. To attend pro- (men, women, enslaved people, al with help from the Friends grams, there is an application indentured servants and Native of the Medal of Honor Grove process that includes references Americans) in the 17th centu- group, so she decided that if and essays. To be one of 30 or ry. To experience places where she was able to visit again, so educators to be selected out people like Thomas Jefferson, she would do her duty to help of 100 or more applicants is Patrick Henry and George maintain the memorial. Packing Washington worked and lived cleaning supplies and a scrubquite an honor. bing brush, she spent an hour In June, Nystel traveled was awe inspiring. At the end of July, she made scrubbing each placard and to Colonial Williamsburg to attend the Bob and Marion her way to Philadelphia to Wilson Teacher Institute in spend a week at the Freedoms continued on page 3 Williamsburg, Va. She spent Foundation at Valley Forge to
Teachers
Players and fans flock to Canton Thursday nights for league play t h e winter of ‘76. The Decorah Newspaper featured front page pictures of an estimated 33 local firemen feverously fighting the blaze for more than six hours. Estimated damages to the pizza parlor and the two upstairs apartments were estimated at $300,000. Mabel was in her 70s at the time of the fire and could have easily made the decision to close-up shop, but she had the resolve to rebuild. The restaurant reopened on East Water Street in 1978, and it stands proudly at the same Water Street location today. In
Mabe’s
continued on page 4
The team sponsored by Richard Larson Well Drilling of Mabel won the regular season championship with a 7-1 record. (Driftless Multimedia photo by Charlie Warner) By Charlie Warner Twenty years ago, Canton was a hotbed for slow-pitch softball. The Fillmore County community had a league that included 10 teams that competed every Tuesday evening. Games began at 6 p.m., with the last game concluding around mid-
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night. Not only was the ballpark filled with players, but it wasn’t uncommon to have several hundred fans taking in the action as well. Canton had one of the top ball fields in the area, with new lights, a homerun fence, new dugouts and stadium seating. Interest in slow-pitch waned a number of years ago, and the
league folded in 2015 when there were just and handful of teams competing. Members of the Canton American Legion didn’t want to see the once very active
League play continued on page 6
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Center Street Bar ‘N Grill
Big Buoys Tiki Bar
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101 Front St., McGregor, IA
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St. Olaf Tavern
106 S Main St., St. Olaf, IA (50 POINT DESTINATION)