Oscar Mayer

This windmill is about 133 Hot Dogs high!

As Hotdoggers, we drive a lot. It is always nice to take a break every once in a while and check out some local sights. One roadside find is this: the Danish Windmill of Elk Horn, Iowa. Windmills are generally used for harnessing the power of the wind to use as a grinding mill. Perhaps this windmill was lucky enough to grind grains for some hot dog buns. Elk Horn and the surrounding area are home to a large Danish settlement.

Built in 1848, this windmill was shipped to the United States in 1976 for the US Bicententennial. Interestingly, Denmark passed a law after this windmill was sent to the US that forbids any export of Danish windmills. So there you have it, the ONLY working Danish windmill in the United States!