The Stuart People Active for Library Service are hosting an event this weekend with a familiar face.

PALS member Carolyn Brewer says that the group last had Dexter Native Rod Stanley to the library for his program on the Dexfield Amusement Park, and how many people would come to enjoy the attraction while it was open, but that this time he has a completely different program and information to share. Stuart PALS member Kathy Johnson tells Raccoon Valley Radio that in this program, Stanley will talk about how President Harry Truman came through Dexter on his Whistle Stop Campaign.

“Back when it was going on, when he came to Dexter, it wasn’t as common for everybody to meet every presidential candidate a couple of times. And so now we are inundated here in Iowa with all the presidential candidates, so this is a look back at how it used to be, maybe before we were first in the nation.”

Brewer and Johnson mention President Truman’s stop in Dexter during the 1948 National Plowing Match was a real turning point in the 1948 election, as he had been trailing his opponent at the time, but after stopping and interacting with the people and asking the farmers about their knowledge and what they were doing in the fields at the time, his numbers climbed and he was able to win the election. Stanley will be at the Stuart Public Library on Saturday at 10am.