A 24-year-old Iowa native is about to become the Hawkeye State's latest connection to the ABC reality series 'The Bachelor'.

Mercedes Northrup, originally from Bloomfield, will be among the 30 contestants vying for the affection of bachelor Zach Shallcross during season 27th of the franchise.

It premiers Monday, January 23 at 7:00 PM Central on ABC.

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Mercedes made it official on social media this week.

On the show's website, Mercedes, who now calls Nashville home, is listed as a Non-Profit Case Manager who 'has four jobs and works extremely hard to support herself'.

It also lists her hobby as 'showing pigs at the Iowa State Fair'.

She is the fourth Iowa native to appear in 'The Bachelor' franchise over the years.

Season 19 (2015) featured Arlington's Chris Soules as the bachelor.

In Season 24 (2020), former Miss Iowa Kelsey Weier, from West Des Moines, was a contestant.

In 2014, Waverly native Derek Peth won Season 4 of the spin-off 'Bachelor in Paradise'.

The Sunken Iowa Steamboat

Have You Ever Explored the 'War Eagle Monument' on the South Dakota/Iowa Border?

Originally being from the Sioux City area, I grew up knowing about the War Eagle Monument perched on a bluff along I-29. There was at least one field trip for every kid in the area to the monument.

However, speaking with folks from Sioux Falls, they didn't seem to know what I was talking about. All they know about I-29 in Sioux City was that it was usually under construction.

When crossing into Iowa from South Dakota on I-29, look up!


Iowa Palmer Company's Twin Bing Products

Can you even really claim to live in this part of the country if you've never had a Twin Bing?

WHAT IS A TWIN BING?

"It consists of two round, chewy, cherry-flavored nougats coated with a mixture of chopped peanuts and chocolate. The Twin Bing was introduced in the 1960s," -Wikipedia

Not only has the TB been a staple of the Sioux Empire for over half a decade, but the makers of the classic candy have also infused the unique cherry and chocolate flavor into lots of other things.

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