{"id":60027,"date":"2025-10-08T16:24:11","date_gmt":"2025-10-08T20:24:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/?p=60027"},"modified":"2025-11-03T14:28:10","modified_gmt":"2025-11-03T19:28:10","slug":"clocktower-pumpkin-book","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/clocktower-pumpkin-book\/","title":{"rendered":"Alum\u2019s Book Pays Tribute to the Legendary Clocktower Pumpkin"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-large-font-size\">In rhyming verse, Wendy Stevens Larson \u201900 immortalizes the mysterious gourd that appeared on McGraw Tower in 1997<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-cornell-red-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-c00edd7e46707b1612c24aa6a1da66b8\"><em>\u201cBear Hugs\u201d celebrates heartwarming stories of Cornellians on the Hill and around the world. Have an idea? Email us at <a href=\"m&#x61;&#105;&#108;&#x74;&#x6f;&#58;&#x63;&#111;r&#x6e;e&#108;&#x6c;&#x69;&#x61;&#x6e;&#115;&#x40;&#99;&#x6f;&#x72;n&#x65;&#108;&#108;&#x2e;&#x65;d&#x75;\"><strong>&#99;&#x6f;r&#x6e;&#101;l&#x6c;i&#97;&#x6e;s&#64;&#99;&#x6f;&#114;&#x6e;&#x65;&#108;&#108;&#46;&#x65;&#x64;u<\/strong><\/a>!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>By <strong>Joe Wilensky<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-drop-cap\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-media-text alignwide has-media-on-the-right is-stacked-on-mobile\"><div class=\"wp-block-media-text__content\">\n<p class=\"has-drop-cap\">\u201cL<em>ean in, my friends, I\u2019ve a story for you \/ It\u2019s simple and fun, and most of all, true,<\/em>\u201d begins a new book by Wendy Stevens Larson \u201900. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201c<em>It\u2019s a tale of mystery, mystique and intrigue \/ And it\u2019s from the best school in the Ivy League.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Titled <em>The Clock Tower Pumpkin:<\/em> <em>A Whimsical Tribute to the Most Epic College Prank of All Time<\/em>, the slim hardcover uses rhyming verse and engaging illustrations to celebrate the famed <a href=\"https:\/\/news.cornell.edu\/stories\/2017\/10\/pumpkin-prank-perpetrator-puzzle-persists-20-years-later\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">gourd that topped McGraw Tower<\/a> nearly three decades ago.<\/p>\n<\/div><figure class=\"wp-block-media-text__media\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"819\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/WL-pic-B-819x1024.jpg\" alt=\"Wendy Stevens Larson \u201900\" class=\"wp-image-59987 size-full\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/WL-pic-B-819x1024.jpg 819w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/WL-pic-B-240x300.jpg 240w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/WL-pic-B-768x960.jpg 768w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/WL-pic-B-1229x1536.jpg 1229w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/WL-pic-B-632x790.jpg 632w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/WL-pic-B-316x395.jpg 316w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/WL-pic-B-280x350.jpg 280w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/WL-pic-B-140x175.jpg 140w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/WL-pic-B-70x87.jpg 70w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/WL-pic-B-400x500.jpg 400w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/WL-pic-B-200x250.jpg 200w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/WL-pic-B-100x125.jpg 100w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/WL-pic-B.jpg 1260w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 819px) 100vw, 819px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>That pumpkin mysteriously appeared on the East Hill landmark in October 1997\u2014remaining there for 158 days, garnering national media attention, and prompting much speculation as to who put it there, and (more to the point) how.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The following March, what was by then a shrunken, frozen husk was finally removed from the spire. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-media-text alignwide is-stacked-on-mobile\"><figure class=\"wp-block-media-text__media\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"500\" height=\"500\" src=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Clock_Tower_Pumpkin_book_cover-A.jpg\" alt=\"book cover of \u201cThe Clock Tower Pumpkin\u201d by Wendy Larson \u201900\" class=\"wp-image-59980 size-full\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Clock_Tower_Pumpkin_book_cover-A.jpg 500w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Clock_Tower_Pumpkin_book_cover-A-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Clock_Tower_Pumpkin_book_cover-A-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Clock_Tower_Pumpkin_book_cover-A-316x316.jpg 316w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Clock_Tower_Pumpkin_book_cover-A-400x400.jpg 400w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Clock_Tower_Pumpkin_book_cover-A-200x200.jpg 200w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Clock_Tower_Pumpkin_book_cover-A-100x100.jpg 100w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/figure><div class=\"wp-block-media-text__content\">\n<p>Tests proved that it was indeed a pumpkin\u2014some had theorized it was fake\u2014and a piece was preserved for posterity, stashed in a jar among the specimens in Cornell\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/brain-collection\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">brain collection<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Although Larson was on campus at the time, she was only vaguely aware of the drama as it was unfolding. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It wasn\u2019t until she returned to the Hill for the first time, two decades after graduation, that she was reminded of the infamous gourd.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI was in the campus store and I saw these tiny little wooden clocktowers that have the pumpkin on them,\u201d she recalls. \u201cAnd I thought, \u2018My gosh, I had completely forgotten about that.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Larson immediately began reading up on coverage of the prank; NPR\u2019s \u201cThe Two-Way\u201d had even <a href=\"https:\/\/www.npr.org\/sections\/thetwo-way\/2017\/10\/31\/561217424\/after-20-years-can-cornell-finally-bust-open-its-great-pumpkin-mystery\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">devoted a segment to it<\/a> in October 2017 to mark the 20th anniversary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote alignwide is-style-solid-color\"><blockquote><p>It wasn\u2019t until she returned to the Hill for the first time, two decades after graduation, that she was reminded of the infamous gourd.<\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Struck by the fact that no perpetrator had ever definitively come forward\u2014despite yearslong rumors and a few supposed accounts of how it had been done\u2014Larson was inspired to share the tale for a new generation of Cornellians.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A trademark attorney who\u2019s married with two kids, she found time to start writing the book on a legal pad while she was waiting for jury deliberations during a trial\u2014and, per courthouse rules, unable to use her phone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignwide size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"478\" src=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Page-2-A-1024x478.jpg\" alt=\"two pages of Wendy Larson\u2019s book \u201cThe Clock Tower Pumpkin\u201d with verses that read \u201c\u2019Twas a morning like others in the Ithaca fall \/ Beebe Lake flaunted the foliage for all,\u201d she sets the scene in the opening pages. \u201cWaterfalls roared \u2019neath pedestrians\u2019 feet \/ And the crisp, clean air made the setting complete.\u201d\" class=\"wp-image-59983\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Page-2-A-1024x478.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Page-2-A-300x140.jpg 300w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Page-2-A-768x359.jpg 768w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Page-2-A-1536x717.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Page-2-A-1264x590.jpg 1264w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Page-2-A-632x295.jpg 632w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Page-2-A-316x148.jpg 316w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Page-2-A-400x187.jpg 400w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Page-2-A-200x93.jpg 200w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Page-2-A-100x47.jpg 100w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Page-2-A.jpg 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A page spread from the book.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI was very excited,\u201d she recalls of the creative process, \u201cto find a word that rhymed with \u2018Taughannock.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Larson had previously self-published <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Hutto-Hippo-Wendy-Larson\/dp\/B0BBY79QS2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em>The Hutto Hippo<\/em><\/a>. Also in rhyming verse, the 2019 book shares the legend of how her Texas city got its mascot: when a circus train stopped there in 1915, an escaped hippo wandered the streets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>I was very excited to find a word that rhymed with \u2018Taughannock.\u2019<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI had become intrigued by the idea of rediscovering local lore in a way that\u2019s personal to a group of people in a specific time and place\u2014almost like an inside joke among friends,\u201d she says. \u201cThe pumpkin on the clocktower seemed to be one of those.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery alignwide has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"820\" height=\"1024\" data-id=\"59981\" src=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Cornell_Store_clock_towers-820x1024.jpg\" alt=\"wooden clocks for sale in the Cornell Store shaped like the clock tower and with miniature wooden pumpkins atop them\" class=\"wp-image-59981\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Cornell_Store_clock_towers-820x1024.jpg 820w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Cornell_Store_clock_towers-240x300.jpg 240w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Cornell_Store_clock_towers-768x959.jpg 768w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Cornell_Store_clock_towers-1230x1536.jpg 1230w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Cornell_Store_clock_towers-1264x1580.jpg 1264w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Cornell_Store_clock_towers-632x790.jpg 632w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Cornell_Store_clock_towers-316x395.jpg 316w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Cornell_Store_clock_towers-280x350.jpg 280w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Cornell_Store_clock_towers-140x175.jpg 140w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Cornell_Store_clock_towers-70x87.jpg 70w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Cornell_Store_clock_towers-400x500.jpg 400w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Cornell_Store_clock_towers-200x250.jpg 200w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Cornell_Store_clock_towers-100x125.jpg 100w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Cornell_Store_clock_towers.jpg 1281w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"819\" height=\"1024\" data-id=\"59985\" src=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/with_tower_graduation_weekend-A-819x1024.jpg\" alt=\"Wendy Stevens Larson \u201900 on campus in 2000 with McGraw Tower in the background\" class=\"wp-image-59985\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/with_tower_graduation_weekend-A-819x1024.jpg 819w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/with_tower_graduation_weekend-A-240x300.jpg 240w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/with_tower_graduation_weekend-A-768x960.jpg 768w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/with_tower_graduation_weekend-A-1229x1536.jpg 1229w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/with_tower_graduation_weekend-A-632x790.jpg 632w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/with_tower_graduation_weekend-A-316x395.jpg 316w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/with_tower_graduation_weekend-A-280x350.jpg 280w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/with_tower_graduation_weekend-A-140x175.jpg 140w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/with_tower_graduation_weekend-A-70x87.jpg 70w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/with_tower_graduation_weekend-A-400x500.jpg 400w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/with_tower_graduation_weekend-A-200x250.jpg 200w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/with_tower_graduation_weekend-A-100x125.jpg 100w, https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/with_tower_graduation_weekend-A.jpg 1260w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 819px) 100vw, 819px\" \/><\/figure>\n<figcaption class=\"blocks-gallery-caption wp-element-caption\">The Cornell Store merch that prompted the project, and the author as a senior.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The book\u2014with illustrations by British artist Julia Gash, whose playful designs grace numerous items of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cornellstore.com\/brand\/Julia-Gash?order=relevance:asc&amp;show=48&amp;page=1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Big Red merchandise<\/a>\u2014is available at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cornellstore.com\/Larson-The-Clock-Tower-Pumpkin-HC\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">the Cornell Store<\/a> as well on Amazon and via other online retailers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As Larson points out, she aimed for it to be appreciated by Cornellians of all ages\u2014which is why she employed some more sophisticated vocabulary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201c<em>The ag school kids worked on quick calculations \/ To bet on the length of the pumpkin\u2019s duration<\/em>,\u201d Larson writes. \u201c<em>With the chilliest of winds and confounders at play \/ They projected the most likely rate of decay<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>(Cornell Store photo by Joe Wilensky \/ Cornell University; all other images provided.)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">Published October 8, 2025<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator aligncenter has-alpha-channel-opacity\" \/>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In rhyming verse, Wendy Stevens Larson \u201900 immortalizes the mysterious gourd that appeared on McGraw Tower in 1997<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":67,"featured_media":59982,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"alumni_hub_syml_posts":[59777,42499,28337],"footnotes":""},"categories":[652],"tags":[],"cornell_year_post":[],"post_folder":[],"class_list":["post-60027","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bear-hugs"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Alum\u2019s Book Pays Tribute to the Legendary Clocktower Pumpkin - Cornellians | Cornell University<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"In rhyming verse, Wendy Stevens Larson \u201900 immortalizes the mysterious gourd that appeared on McGraw Tower in 1997\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/clocktower-pumpkin-book\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Alum\u2019s Book Pays Tribute to the Legendary Clocktower Pumpkin - Cornellians | Cornell University\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"In rhyming verse, Wendy Stevens Larson \u201900 immortalizes the mysterious gourd that appeared on McGraw Tower in 1997\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/clocktower-pumpkin-book\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Cornellians | Cornell University\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Cornellians\" \/>\n<meta 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