Thanks to Dorla Schlitt, daughter of Eileen Stopher, for submitting the story and photos about the Wheatheart Crowning Ceremony.
her Wheatheart outfit)
Article in the New York Times:
"EILEEN STOPHER CHOSEN IN NATION-WIDE CONTEST"
"Three Noted Artists Select Her As Most Beautiful Farm Girl"
"Cinderella's shoe opened the way to a wonderful adventure but Miss Eileen Stopher's photograph brought her a more glorious adventure and nationwide prominence.
Miss Stopher, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. George Stopher, and a very pretty and charming young country Miss of 17 summers, which must have been fair ones indeed, was selected from thousands of other farm girls throughout the Untied States as Harvest Queen of the New York World's Fair, where she reigned supreme Tuesday of this week.
A Fairyland Tale
A thrilling experience of being selected as America's most beautiful farm maiden came with such unexpectedness and so swiftly since, that it has all the intrigue of a fairyland adventure.
A long-distance telephone call from Lee Mack Marshall of New York City to the publisher of the Mount Pulaski Times-News Friday afternoon about 2:00 o'clock, informed him that Eileen was one of four finalists in a nationwide contest of farm girls, one of whom was to be selected as harvest Queen of the World's Fair in a contest staged by the-Continental Baking Co. Mr. Marshall asked for further information that would help them in making their final decision.
This was the first intimation we had that anyone from this community had submitted a photograph upon which the judges were to make their selection. We answered as best we could (for we must admit We were just a little bit dizzy by this time} the questions and gave what other information we thought might prove favorable for the "home team".
The possibility of having a Queen from this community, to rule over the United States ,was to a publisher what. a fire whistle is to a fireman. We grabbed our photographer, Marion Robson, tore rip the countryside getting out to the Stopher home, 7 miles southeast of Mt. Pulaski to be ready for any emergency.
The Story in Brief
When we arrived at the home our young lady was on a shopping trip, but an excited mother told us the. story:
Learning that some farm girl in the United States was to be selected as Harvest Queen of the World's Fair, Eileen, fresh from her rule as May Queen of Mount Pulaski Township High School at the Open House program in June and remembering her early history lessons about Christopher Columbus, she followed, in his footsteps only she used a picture instead of a ship. A lot of good natured raillery in the home surrounded her wrapping and spending postage money on what was a seeming impossibility.
The matter was almost forgotten until that first call at 2 o'clock from New York. Four hours later another call came thru from New York to Mrs. Stopher, who was informed that her daughter had bee~ chosen by three famous artists, James Montgomery Flagg, McClelland Barclay and Peter Arno, to rule as Queen of the Harvest at the Fair. She was to leave on Sunday, meet the Continental Baking Co. representatives in Chicago and would be in New York Monday morning.
After the first heart-bursting thrill and rejoicing in the household over such a great honor which had been suddenly bestowed upon it, came a sudden realization of the fact that this trip would take the young lady more than a thousand miles from home, which was almost like going to the ends of the earth when she had never been more than 10 miles from home. The sponsors of the contest were to call again the next morning for their final instructions and the approval of the young lady's parents. Needless to state, the answer of the parents was favorable.
Miss Stopher left Mount Pulaski early Sunday morning, accompanied by Mr. and Mrs. H. J. Wible and Mr. and Mrs. Roy Carter, for Chicago where she was met by Mr. and Mrs. Werthimer, representatives of the company who were to escort her to New York. The party left on the Commodore Vanderbilt, a through train of 16 Pullmans on which she shared a compartment with her escorts and had her own private bedroom.
Reporters and photographers from Chicago papers met her at the station for interviews and pictures.
Crowned Queen Tuesday
Presiding over the harvesting of a field of wheat on the Fairgrounds. on Tuesday, Miss Stopher was crowned "Wheatheart of the New York World's Fair". Since that momentous event she has been interviewed on various radio programs and has b~en constantly photographed and interviewed by newspapers and magazines. She was first heard here Tuesday night on the Chesterfield program and the quality of her voice and enunciation was exceptionally charming.
Arriving in Chicago early this morning she was heard over WLS at noon on the Dinner Bell program in a specially arranged interview. Prairie Farmer next week will carry a special feature story of miss Stopher.
A long-distance call from New York to her mother Tuesday·afternoon was one of the highlights for both mother and daughter, the sponsors making this possible. She told her mother that she was having a glorious time and that her sponsors were doing everything to make her trip there a pleasant one.
She was met in Chicago by Mrs.. H. J. Wible this morning, and they will return to Mount Pulaski on the Green Diamond this evening."
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