Tall tales told at Sugar Creek: Zorro, Calamity Jane, Johnny Appleseed, Slue-foot Sue all show up

By David Kronke, Tribune-Star   February 28, 2025
It’s no exaggeration to say that fifth graders at Sugar Creek Consolidated Elementary School immersed themselves in hyperbole Friday afternoon. They presented their program “Tall Tales Wax Museum” for parents and visitors.
Students lined the walls of the gymnasium in costumes, a plethora of Zorros, Calamity Janes, Johnny Appleseeds, John Henrys and Slue-Foot Sues (a character from the 1948 film “Melody Time” who rode a giant catfish on land and married Pecos Bill).
While many presenters had props, fifth-grader Jilly Bosley had her own, too: a tornado in a bottle for her Tall Tales Wax Museum presentation Friday on Pecos Bill at Sugar Creek Consolidated Elementary School in West Terre Haute.
The tellers of tales stood before posters they had made of their flamboyant characters.When a visitor would press a red button on their posters, the kids would recite a 45-second speech about the larger-than-life personae they portrayed.
Students selected the characters they would depict for a variety of reasons. Rylan Hunter, 12, chose keel boatman/brawler Mike Fink because he wrestled alligators, which is something Hunter would like to do (his prop was a large stuffed alligator).
Molly Stahly, 10, chose the Unsinkable Molly Brown not because she loved the move “Titanic” (she hasn’t even seen it), but because they shared the same first name.
Wyatt Stevens, 11, chose to be a plastic-sword-wielding Zorro, he said, because “I originally was going to pick John Henry, but he already got picked (a lot) so I got Zorro. He seemed really cool.”
Landen Guiton, 11, chose the prolific gardener Johnny Appleseed — who as a child would weep if he hadn’t munched on an apple for several hours — because, he said, “I think I can really relate to him. I really like apples myself. He just kind of fit my personality.”
Fifth-grader Samuel Parsons talks about the life of Hiawatha during his presentation for the Tall Tales Wax Museum on Friday at Sugar Creek Consolidated Elementary School in West Terre Haute
Karen Adkins, 12, opted for Calamity Jane because “She just seemed really nice and I liked her.”
Cole Dillard, 11, seemed determined to bring his performance of John Henry to life. While most participants simply recited their lines, Dillard spoke in a deeper register as John Henry, enthusiastically interpreting lines like “The pants I put on in the morning were too small by night.” His poster was vividly colorful, and he had created a giant black prop hammer for his steel-driving man.
“I like how he works hard, and I like the prop that he uses, and I also like to wear jeans,” Dillard explained.
“Tall Tales Wax Museum” was made possible through a grant from the Vigo County Education Foundation that paid for art supplies, poster boards and the materials to make props.
Foundation Executive Director Jane Nichols said that tall tales were standard in the school’s language arts curriculum.
“And how much more fun to actually become Mike Fink or Annie Oakley or some of these characters and learn about them and be able to present facts?” she said. “They are talking to adults. They are expressing their creativity through their illustrations and how they dress up and have their props as their characters. You can tell the kids are having a ball.”
Nichols acknowledges that Sugar Creek fifth-graders seem to get a lot of grants — another paid for a Colonial Days event in November.
“They have amazing teachers and this is for the whole grade level so it means that the teachers work together and they plan what activities will enhance the curriculum and bring it to life for the kids,” she said. “They do a great job. They really are [good grant applicants]. They work hard to get the most bang for the buck.”
The foundation in August 2024 distributed 139 mini-grants ($750 or less) totaling more than $86,206 for classroom enrichment opportunities benefiting all Vigo County School Corp. schools.
Nichols called the role-playing exercise “a good family activity — I know a lot of people have taken off work to see their kids’ characters come to life.”
One of those was Austin Wolfe, parent of Abigail, who portrayed Hiawatha, the cofounder of the Iroquois Confederacy.
“She makes a great Hiawatha even though she’s a female and Hiawatha was a male,” Wolfe enthused. “She’s really worked hard and has been preparing for weeks now. She’s studied and learned a lot about Hiawatha and she’s done a good job.”
But Abigail wasn’t the only student who Wolfe thought performed admirably.
“We’ve listened to a few of them — they’ve done really well,” he said. “You do learn a little bit about history from these kids and they’ve worked so hard and done really well with their outfits. It’s great. I’m really proud of them.”
David Kronke can be reached at 812-231-4232 or at [email protected].