A Little Bit of Heaven...in Davenport, Iowa

February 24, 2008 kellyludwig

(Photo at the entrance of the now dismantled garden)

A Little Bit of Heaven—Bartlett Joshua "B.J." Palmer

1881-1964

Folk art environment and rock garden

Davenport, Iowa | dismantled in 1981, traces remain

While running the risk of sounding like a broken record - I have to say it was yet another cold cold cold weekend in the Midwest (1 degree on Saturday morning). Cabin fever is getting to me - so once again, I jumped in my car on Friday and this time headed to northeast Iowa, namely the Quad Cities. (Davenport, IA, Moline, IL, Bettendorf, IA, and Rock Island, IL...in case you were wondering)

(Wishing Buddha, 10 ft high, and 3 tons makes it one of the largest buddhas in the US. Purchased in 1927, the Japanese government attempted to block its removal. It took B.J. over 7 years to persuade the officials by promising that the sculpture would be given the proper respect. It is said that up until the dismantling of the garden, incense was burned 24 hours a day. "Wishing is often the father and the mother to the birth of a deed." —B.J. Palmer)

Visions of ice and snow packed roads deterred heading up to visit Dan Slaughter, so I decided to see if I could find any "remains" of the legendary Little Bit of Heaven, built by the father of Chiropractic, B. J. Palmer. Not only was B.J. the creator of modern chiropractic medicine, he also was a "charismatic visionary and self-promoter" as well as an art collector.

After suffering a nervous breakdown n 1922, he began the construction of a garden to showcase his sculpture collection gathered from worldwide travels. For years, A Little Bit of Heaven was a popular Davenport tourist attraction. Sadly, not much is left of the original site, except a few of the objects d' arte that he collected, totem poles from Alaska, a few Chinese bronzes in hand-built creches/grottos, and the suggestions of a rock pond that once was the home to real alligators.

(Top of the Wishing Buddha grotto)

During it's heyday, A Little bit of Heaven was meant to recreate "Heaven on Earth" offered visitors a chance to ponder the ways the chiropractic medicine tapped into "deeper beliefs that simplistic notions of mechanistic modern medicine" while enjoying art from a corners of the world...and a few alligators in the pond.

(Alaskan Totem Poles)

Today, a stroll through the campus, the remains of A Little Bit of Heaven, and its buildings, you can stop and ponder Palmer's insights inscribed on the walls...

"Is life worth living? That depends on the liver."

"Who can anchor to an unanchored mind?"

"Unassuming simplicity is an emblem of nobility."

"To know is to disbelieve. When we disbelieve, we know."

"They will talk anyway."

and my very favorite:

"Is it better for us to eat together than each other?"

(information on A Little Bit of Heaven was gathered from Country Music Showcase International website)

(the following images are from the Minnesota Museum of the Mississippi)