Let me just say this, we are NOT obsessed with black squirrels. Maybe a little, but does your town have black squirrel statues? No, I didn’t think so. So, just hear me out. Just south of the Nebraska border, located in the Flint Hills, lies Marysville, Kansas. A pretty unique little town with our brick streets, the river that borders our town and let’s not forget the black squirrels.

We have always been known as the Black Squirrel City but we have never really branded our town mascot. There are many stories that circulate through Marysville of how we ended up with black squirrels.

It is said that in 1920 a circus had stopped in town and had a cage full of black squirrels. One night a child had opened the cage and that is when the squirrels made their debut in Marysville.

In 2016, Marysville held its 44th annual Black Squirrel Night. Black Squirrel Night is not a night to praise black squirrels. It is our towns Halloween celebration that is sponsored by the Marysville Chamber of Commerce Retail Committee with the cooperation of the City of Marysville and Marysville Main Street. There are booths set up by local businesses, trick or treating, costume contests, hayrack rides and a dance performance by Footloose dancers.

This year was special because Marysville Convention and Tourism were unveiling 21 black squirrel statues. These statues stand at 5 feet and 9 inches and are made out of fiberglass.

They were decorated by local and regional artists. These statues now are proudly displayed all over Marysville. There are maps to find all of them and many tourists spend their days looking for the black squirrels.

From a sudsy squirrel at the carwash named Sudsy, to a squirrel supporting our high school bulldogs with red and black pride named Homer; there are many different styles of the squirrels around town. They all reflect the business or person that they represent and all have names to go with them!

Recently we had the solar eclipse that went right through Marysville, and guess how we marketed it? With black squirrels, of course! We were able to take something that we were known for and make it bigger for our town. Landoll’s Corporation made 21 full-size eclipse glasses for the squirrels to wear during the eclipse.

I have brought friends home to Marysville and they are always so fascinated with the black squirrels. They look out the windows of my car searching for them. I did not realize that they were not a common thing in other towns. Until I brought people home.

People’s first reaction when I tell them that I am from Marysville is, “Oh, so you have black squirrels and those tall statues, right?” Yes and yes. And I take great pride in our little creatures. They are a big hit with everyone that comes through Marysville and bring lots of joy to our small town!

Visit this link to see a map of the black squirrel statues and the statues themselves! Or take a visit to Marysville, Kansas! You’ll go #nuts4Marysville!