Amy Robertson - Promise City

Amy Robertson was an educator, musician, farmer, and entrepreneur who gave tremendous support to Promise City and the citizens of Wayne County.

Location: south side of Promise City Community Center, 102 N Center Street, Promise City, IA 52583

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Amy Robertson

Amy Robertson was born in 1897, as the only child of Greenleaf and Iona Robertson. Her father and uncle owned the Robertson Bros General Store from 1892-1942, on the site of the current Promise City Community Center.

Amy studied music at Simpson College and earned a masters in music from DePaul University; she later earned an honorary doctorate from Simpson College. She taught music in Audubon, Iowa, from 1921 - 1943.

In the 1940s, Amy and her partner, Tilda Schmidt, started a toy factory in the old brick bank building that still stands on Main Street in Promise City. At their height, they made 2000 wooden toys daily, selling them in stores like Sears, Younkers, and Marshall Fields. They eventually closed the toy factory after plastic toys came on the market and rendered wooden toys obsolete.

The Smit-Rob Toy Company in the 1940s, with Amy Robertson in center.

Amy was deeply involved in Wayne County organizations. She helped raise money for the Wayne County Hospital in 1955, and was president of the Wayne County Historical Society from 1955 to 1992, which helped our historical society’s membership to become the largest in the state of Iowa at the time. She oversaw the construction of the original brick museum building in 1966, the addition on the east side in 1971, the addition on the west side in 1976, and another addition to the west wing in the 1980s, which includes furniture and memorabilia from her home and toy factory.

Amy also donated the lot where her father’s general store once stood to create the Promise City Community Center. She contributed substantial funds to build the center. She also gave generously to many other local causes and established a scholarship for local students at Simpson College.

Amy Robertson

The Prairie Trails Museum of Wayne County in Corydon, Iowa, has significant collections related to Amy as well as to her toy company and other ventures. This includes a replica of Amy’s house filled with artifacts from her life.

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about the art

This mural was painted during the Walldog Mural Festival in Wayne County, Iowa, from August 30 - September 3, 2023.

The lead designer was Noel Weber. Noel was a founding member of the Letterheads — a group of sign makers and decorative artists dedicated to passing down traditional sign making skills. The Letterheads were a springboard to the Walldog Movement. Noel is one of the best lettering designers in the world and has been teaching sign techniques and painting murals for decades. He currently lives in Boise, Idaho. You can find more about him at https://noelbweber.com/.

FAQs

  • The Walldogs are an international group of muralists and sign-painters who volunteer their time to create community art. They have painted throughout the US and around the world.

    The Walldog movement started in Allerton, Iowa, in 1993. Local artist Nancy Bennett invited dozens of signpainters to Allerton to paint murals in Allerton’s downtown, and the local community opened their homes to host these artists. Since that first gathering, the Walldog movement has grown tremendously.

    The Walldogs celebrated their 30th anniversary in 2023 by returning to Wayne County, Iowa. They have meets planned for the next several years to continue this community art tradition. You can learn more at thewalldogs.org.

  • In 2023, the Walldogs painted 16 murals. They also painted new signage at the Wayne County Fairgrounds.

    These murals included 12 new designs, as well as 4 restorations of the original 1993 Walldog murals in Allerton.

  • We recommend starting at Prairie Trails Museum in Corydon, Iowa. The “Come, Come Ye Saints” mural recognizes the passage of the Mormon Trail through Wayne County.

    From there, you can drive in an approximate circle to Promise City, Seymour, Allerton, Clio, Lineville, Humeston, and Millerton, before returning to Corydon to see the rest of the murals there.

    Alternatively, you can start at any mural that works for your route.

    The entire route takes approximately 2 hours to drive.

  • Check our main FAQ page for more details and contact info.

Next stop

Visit Seymour to see the “Inez Voyce” mural.

Inez Voyce was a star women’s baseball player in the 1940s. She played in the women’s league that inspired A League of Their Own.

You can find the Inez Voyce mural at 200 N 4th St, Seymour, IA 52590.

Seymour is 6 miles southeast of Promise City.

For the full list of murals and locations, visit this page or download the map.