-Submitted photo
Al Kruse, a local Audubon banker who came up with the idea for Operation T-Bone in 1951, is shown here in 1972, riding a miniature version of the famed Albert the Bull statue for a parade.

AUDUBON — What started decades ago as a small idea to honor the beef industry in Audubon County and create a tourist attraction thrives as the larger-than-life Albert the Bull statue, which is celebrating its 60th birthday this year.

“Albert’s in really great shape for his age,” said Sara Slater, director of Audubon County Development and Tourism. “He continues to be a tourism draw for Audubon and the local area, attracting about 20,000 people a year.”

When local leaders first hatched the idea for Albert, long-time Audubon residents recalled a fair amount of skepticism at first. “Some people thought we were absolutely nuts,” reported one resident who is featured in the YouTube video “The Story of Albert the Bull,” produced in 2018 by Cenex, which featured the Audubon icon in a 2018 Super Bowl commercial.

As more people caught the vision of what Albert could become, however, excitement and support grew. Throughout the spring and summer of 1964, local volunteers gathered (usually several nights a week) to construct Albert and drink some beer.

“They were a fun-loving group,” recalled the local barber featured on the Cenex video. “Albert’s got a lot of beer cans in him.”

-Farm News photo by Darcy Dougherty Maulsby
The iconic Albert the Bull statue in Audubon turns 60 this year. Plans for this larger-than-life Hereford began to take shape in 1963. By the time he was completed in 1964, Albert was a 45-ton statue covered with 65 gallons of paint. He towers 30 feet above the landscape, making him visible day and night from U.S. Highway 71 at the south edge of Audubon.

The locals repurposed other common items, including old metal windmills, to construct the 45-ton concrete statue, which is authentic from top to bottom. Local artist Cam Ross (1921-1998) used 65 gallons of paint to cover Albert with the distinctive red and white colors of the Hereford breed.

When the statue was complete, Iowa Gov. Harold Hughes spoke at the dedication ceremony in the early fall of 1964. “The people who created Albert were not professional statue builders, but Albert has stood the test of time,” Slater said.

T-Bone Express train car tells the story behind Albert

Albert has a horn span of 15 feet and towers 30 feet above the landscape, making him visible day and night from U.S. Highway 71 at the south edge of Audubon.

A few years ago, Slater and other local leaders began brainstorming new ways to help visitors learn more about Albert’s back story and give visitors more reasons to spend more time in Audubon County. This led to the creation of the T-Bone Express Train Car museum, which has been located next to Albert since September 2022.

-Farm News photo by Darcy Dougherty Maulsby
Sara Slater, director of Audubon County Economic Development and Tourism, helped make the T-Bone Express train car “mini museum” a reality in 2022. The exhibit, located near Albert the Bull, is filled with vintage photos that tell the story of Operation T-Bone, which promoted the beef industry and the cattle feeders of Audubon County.

“This is a smaller replica of an actual rail car that local cattle producers used to send their cattle to the Chicago stock yards in years past,” Slater said.

Exhibits on the interior walls of the “mini museum” range from weatherproof copies of vintage photographs and newspaper clippings to interpretive signage. The museum explains how Albert Kruse (1904-1995), vice president of the First State Bank in Audubon, has been called the “Father of Operation T-Bone.”

In 1951, local cattle shippers invited Kruse to ride the train with them to the Union Stock Yards in Chicago. But after hearing tales of how drafty, cold and uncomfortable the train’s caboose could be, Kruse told his colleagues he would only accompany the cattle shippers if they obtained a Pullman passenger car. He took matters into his own hands and discussed the idea with representatives of the North Western Railroad, and they agreed.

Kruse viewed this as a great opportunity to let the nation know that Audubon County raised some of the world’s best beef. He arranged for 30 train cars to transport the Audubon cattle. As interest in Operation T-Bone grew, Kruse had to ask the railroad for 20 more cars to accommodate the 1,050 Audubon-area steers headed to Chicago.

Thirty-two Audubon-area cattle producers participated in this unique event. Kruse’s bank provided food for the group, which included 60 people bound from western Iowa to Chicago.

-Farm News photo by Darcy Dougherty Maulsby
The T-Bone Express train car “mini museum” in Audubon tells the story of Operation T-Bone. This phenomenon started with a special train consisting of 97 carloads filled with 2,000 fat cattle, along with train cars where local cattle feeders and businessmen rode, that arrived Dec. 9, 1951, at the Union Stock Yards in Chicago.

In Chicago, the bank entertained the group at a special banquet featuring an exceptional meal prepared by a chef.

Publicity-wise, the trip was an overwhelming success. Chicago newspapers ran many articles and pictures of the “Beef Special” from Audubon County. Radio stations across the Midwest also gave the unique event plenty of coverage.

The trip was a financial success, too. One load of 21 “Beef Special” Angus steers, owned by Raymond Merk, brought a top price of 38.25 cents a pound paid at the stock yards that day.

From 1951 to 1966, Audubon-area cattle producers continued to ship their cattle to the Chicago stock yards on a train called the T-Bone Special. This train consisted of cattle cars, as well as Pullman passenger cars, to transport the cattle feeders and local businessmen to Chicago.

The cattle were delivered to the stock yards, and the men would stay at the LaSalle Hotel. The First State Bank (now the Audubon State Bank) continued to host an annual banquet as part of the event.

By the late 1960s into the 1970s and beyond, it became more cost effective to ship cattle to market with trucks instead of the train. Packing facilities also developed closer to the rural areas where the cattle were raised. Beginning in 1967, Operation T-Bone made arrangements to ship the cattle to the American Beef Packers plant in Oakland, Iowa, after it became more difficult to secure rail transportation.

In 1971, the T-Bone Special headed to the Union Stock Yards in Omaha for the first time via local trucking companies. Omaha rolled out the red carpet for the cattlemen and local businessmen, knowing that if the best cattle were coming to their stock yard, others would follow suit.

Albert fearlessly faces the future

While the Omaha and Chicago stock yards are long gone, cattle production continues to drive the local economy around Audubon County. Operation T-Bone has evolved into an annual town celebration in Audubon, complete with a parade and other festivities the first Saturday in August.

Albert the Bull has endured, as well. In 2020, a committee formed to oversee his restoration and maintenance. The committee also spearheaded a new fundraising event.

Candidates compete for the title of Sir Albert, which includes representing Albert and the Audubon community. A winner is chosen each year through popular vote/funds donated. The event raised $19,000 its first year.

Funds also come from a hand-cranked “Penny Pincher” machine inside the T-Bone Express Train Car museum, which is open 24/7 year-round. Guests can insert a penny and create their own souvenir of Albert the Bull for a small fee. The money raised from the Penny Pincher machine helps support Albert’s ongoing maintenance.

Albert continues to attract visitors from around the world. Through the years, he has been featured on promotional materials, artwork, videos, countless photographs, a knit sweater and a LEGO toy prototype. He has also been featured on the TV game show “Jeopardy,” plus he has made appearances in the movies “Twilight” and “Beethoven’s 3rd.”

For a lot of locals, Albert reflects a sense of pride in the community and the area’s agricultural economy.

“Albert was built by volunteers, and he’s maintained by volunteers,” said Slater, who noted that Albert was sandblasted in 2019 and is repainted every three to five years. “He represents people coming together for a common cause. He’s so much more than a statue.”

Perhaps the opening stanzas of a poem written by Marjorie Sutcliffe in 1973 best capture the essence of Albert:

Here in the heart of T-Bone country

To build a new future for their hometown.