Trails to the Past of Iowa
is accepting any donations of genealogy materials that you may have such
as marriage announcements, news articles, old obituaries, births, (you do
not need the birth certificate) just the information, and
biographies. If you have any of these items please contact
me Marie Miller the Iowa State
Administrator.
Although Native Americans in the United States have resided in what is now Iowa for 13,000 years, the written history of Iowa begins with the proto-historic accounts of Native Americans by explorers such as Marquette and Joliet in the 1680s. Until the early 19th century Iowa was occupied exclusively by Indians and a few European traders, with loose political control by France and Spain.
Iowa became part of the United States of America after the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, but uncontested U.S. control over what is now Iowa occurred only after the War of 1812 and after a series of treaties eliminated Indian claims on the state. Beginning in the 1830s Euro-American settlements appeared in the Iowa Territory, U.S. statehood was acquired in 1846, and by 1860 almost the entire state was settled and farmed by Euro-Americans. Subsistence frontier farming was replaced by commodity farming after the construction of railroad networks in the 1850s and 1860s. Iowa contributed a disproportionate amount of young men to fight in the American Civil War. Afterwards they returned to help transform Iowa into an agricultural powerhouse, supplying food to the rest of the nation. The industrialization of agriculture and the emergence of centralized commodities markets in the late 19th and 20th centuries led to a shift towards larger farms and the decline of the small family farm; this was exacerbated during the Great Depression. Industrial production became a larger part of the economy during World War II and the postwar economic boom.
Des Moines is the State Capital of Iowa
located in Polk County.
Horse Thieves ---Regulators of
1857
Name of County |
County Seat |
Date Formed |
Origination of County |
Origination of Name |
Adair |
Greenfield |
January 15, 1851 |
Cass County |
John Adair (1757-1840), sixth Governor of Kentucky |
Adams |
Corning |
January 15, 1851 |
Taylor County |
John Adams, second President of the United States (1797-1801) |
Allamakee |
Waukon |
February 20, 1847 |
Clayton County |
Disputed, possibly named for Allan Makee, an early Indian trader and guide for early settlers |
Appanoose |
Centerville |
February 17, 1843 |
Davis County |
Appanoose, Native American chief who headed peace party in the Black Hawk War |
Audubon |
Audubon |
January 15, 1851 |
Black Hawk County and Cass County |
John James Audubon (1785-1851), ornithologist and artist |
Benton |
Vinton |
December 21, 1837 |
Native American lands and Wisconsin Territory |
Thomas Hart Benton, United States Senator (1821-1851) |
Black Hawk |
Waterloo |
February 17, 1843 |
Delaware County |
Black Hawk (1767-1838), chief of Fox and Sac Indians and leader in the Black Hawk War |
Boone |
Boone |
January 13, 1846 |
Polk County |
Nathan Boone (1781-1863), one of the first to survey Iowa |
Bremer |
Waverly |
January 15, 1851 |
Native American lands and Winnebago County |
Fredrika Bremer (1801-1865), Swedish poet and author |
Buchanan |
Independence |
December 21, 1837 |
Delaware County and Wisconsin Territory |
James Buchanan, fifteenth President of the United States (1857-1861) |
Buena Vista |
Storm Lake |
January 15, 1851 |
Clay County and Sac County |
Battle of Buena Vista, a battle during the Mexican-American War |
Butler |
Allison |
January 15, 1851 |
Black Hawk County and Buchanan County |
William Orlando Butler (1791-1880), War of 1812 hero and unsuccessful candidate for Vice President |
Calhoun |
Rockwell City |
January 15, 1851 |
Fox County (renamed) |
John Caldwell Calhoun, Vice President of the United States (1825-1832) |
Carroll |
Carroll |
January 15, 1851 |
Guthrie County |
Charles Carroll (1737-1832), longest lived signatory of the Declaration of Independence |
Cass |
Atlantic |
January 15, 1851 |
Pottawattamie County |
Lewis Cass, United States Senator from Michigan and unsuccessful candidate for President (1848) |
Cedar |
Tipton |
December 21, 1837 |
Wisconsin Territory |
Red Cedar River which runs through the county |
Cerro Gordo |
Mason City |
January 15, 1851 |
Floyd County |
Battle of Cerro Gordo, battle during the Mexican-American War |
Cherokee |
Cherokee |
January 15, 1851 |
Crawford County |
Cherokee Native American tribe |
Chickasaw |
New Hampton |
January 15, 1851 |
Fayette County |
Chickasaw Native American tribe |
Clarke |
Osceola |
January 13, 1846 |
Lucas County |
James Clarke, third Governor of Iowa Territory (1845-1846) |
Clay |
Spencer |
January 15, 1851 |
Native American Lands |
Henry Clay, Jr. (1807-1847), officer in the Mexican-American War |
Clayton |
Elkader |
December 21, 1837 |
Dubuque County and Wisconsin Territory |
John M. Clayton (1796-1856), United States Senator from Delaware |
Clinton |
Clinton |
December 21, 1837 |
Dubuque County and Wisconsin Territory |
DeWitt Clinton (1769-1828), Governor of New York |
Crawford |
Denison |
January 15, 1851 |
Shelby County |
William Harris Crawford (1772-1834), United States Senator from Georgia |
Dallas |
Adel |
January 13, 1846 |
Polk County |
George Mifflin Dallas (1792-1864), eleventh Vice President of the United States |
Davis |
Bloomfield |
February 17, 1843 |
Van Buren County |
Garrett Davis (1801-1872), congressman |
Decatur |
Leon |
January 13, 1846 |
Appanoose County |
Stephen Decatur (1779-1820), naval officer in the War of 1812 |
Delaware |
Manchester |
December 21, 1837 |
Dubuque County and Wisconsin Territory |
State of Delaware, home of Iowa statehood advocate U.S. Senator John M. Clayton |
Des Moines |
Burlington |
September 6, 1834 |
Michigan Territory and Wisconsin Territory |
Des Moines River that once ran through the county |
Dickinson |
Spirit Lake |
January 15, 1851 |
Kossuth County |
Daniel Stevens Dickinson (1800-1866), United States Senator from New York |
Dubuque |
Dubuque |
September 6, 1834 |
Michigan Territory and Wisconsin Territory |
Julien Dubuque (1762-1810), first permanent white settler in Iowa |
Emmet |
Esterville |
January 15, 1851 |
Kossuth County and Dickinson County |
Robert Emmet (1778-1803), Irish revolutionary and American republican sympathizer |
Fayette |
West Union |
December 21, 1837 |
Clayton County and Wisconsin Territory |
Marquis de Lafayette (1757-1834), Frenchman who aided colonial forces during the American Revolutionary War |
Floyd |
Charles City |
January 15, 1851 |
Chickasaw County |
Charles Floyd (1782-1804), member of the Lewis and Clark Expedition who died in Iowa |
Franklin |
Hampton |
January 15, 1851 |
Chickasaw County |
Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790), statesman and U.S. founding father |
Fremont
|
Sidney |
February 24, 1847 |
Pottawattamie County |
John Charles Fremont (1813-1890), officer in Mexican-American War |
Greene |
Jefferson |
January 15, 1851 |
Dallas County |
Nathanael Greene (1742-1786), American Revolutionary War general |
Grundy |
Grundy Center |
January 15, 1851 |
Black Hawk County |
Felix Grundy (1777-1840), United States Senator |
Guthrie |
Guthrie Center |
July 8, 1851 |
Jackson County |
Edwin B. Guthrie, officer in Mexican-American War |
Hamilton |
Webster City |
December 22, 1856 |
Webster County |
William W. Hamilton, President of the Iowa Senate (1856-1857) |
Hancock |
Garner |
January 15, 1851 |
Wright County |
John Hancock (1737-1793), President of the First Continental Congress |
Hardin |
Eldora |
January 15, 1851 |
Black Hawk County |
John J. Hardin (1810-1847), prominent soldier in the Black Hawk War |
Harrison |
Logan |
January 15, 1851 |
Pottawattamie County |
William Henry Harrison (1773-1841), ninth President of the United States |
Henry |
Mount Pleasant |
December 7, 1836 |
Wisconsin Territory |
either Henry Dodge (1782-1867), governor of Wisconsin Territory; or James Dougherty Henry, general in the Black Hawk War |
Howard |
Cresco |
January 15, 1851 |
Chickasaw County |
Tilghman Ashurst Howard (1797-1844), congressman |
Humboldt |
Dakota City |
February 26, 1857 |
Webster County |
Alexander von Humboldt (1769-1859), German scientist |
Ida |
Ida Grove |
January 15, 1851 |
Cherokee County
|
Mount Ida in Greece |
Iowa |
Marengo |
February 17, 1843 |
Washington County |
Iowa River, river that flows through the county, and which is itself named for the Ioway Native American tribe |
Jackson |
Maquoketa |
December 21, 1837 |
Wisconsin Territory |
Andrew Jackson (1767-1845), seventh President of the United States |
Jasper |
Newton |
January 13, 1846 |
Mahaska County |
William Jasper (1750-1779), sergeant in the American Revolutionary War |
Jefferson |
Fairfield |
January 21, 1839 |
Native American Lands |
Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), third President of the United States |
Johnson |
Iowa City |
December 21, 1837 |
Des Moines County, Iowa and Wisconsin Territories |
Richard Mentor Johnson (1780-1850), Vice President of the United States 1837-1841 |
Jones |
Anamosa |
December 21, 1837 |
Wisconsin Territory
|
George Wallace Jones (1804-1896), United States Senator from Iowa |
Keokuk |
Sigourney |
December 21, 1837 |
Washington County |
Keokuk (1767-1848), chief of the Sac Native American tribe |
Kossuth |
Algona |
January 15, 1851 |
Webster County |
Lajos Kossuth (1802-1894), Hungarian revolutionary who was inspired by American democratic ideals |
Lee |
Fort Madison and Keokuk
|
December 7, 1836 |
Des Moines County |
William Elliott Lee, businessman from the New York Land Company, which sold the county's first tracts of land |
Linn |
Cedar Rapids |
December 21, 1837 |
Wisconsin Territory |
Lewis Fields Linn (1795-1843), doctor and United States Senator from Missouri |
Louisa |
Wapello |
December 7, 1836 |
Des Moines County |
either Louisa Massey, a woman then famous for avenging the death of her brother; or Louisa County, Virginia |
Lucas |
Chariton |
January 13, 1846 |
Monroe County |
Robert Lucas (1781-1853), first Governor of Iowa Territory |
Lyon |
Rock Rapids |
January 15, 1851 |
Woodbury County, Iowa |
Nathaniel Lyon (1818-1861), first Union general to be killed in the American Civil War, (formerly named Buncombe County) |
Madison |
Winterset |
January 13, 1846 |
Polk County |
James Madison (1751-1836), fourth President of the United States |
Mahaska |
Okaloosa |
February 17, 1843 |
Fox and Sac Indian Lands |
Mahaska (1784-1834), chief of the Ioway Native American tribe |
Marion |
Knoxville |
June 10, 1845 |
Washington County |
Francis Marion (1732-1795), general in the American Revolutionary War |
Marshall |
Marshalltown |
January 13, 1846 |
Jasper County |
John Marshall (1755-1835), fourth Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court |
Mills |
Glenwood |
January 15, 1851 |
Pottawattamie County |
Frederick Mills, major killed during the Battle of Churubusco in the Mexican-American War |
Mitchell |
Osage |
January 15, 1851 |
Chickasaw Counnty |
John Mitchel (1815-1875), Irish revolutionary who for a time operated out of the United States |
Monona |
Onawa |
January 15, 1851 |
Harrison County |
Word of Native American origin that perhaps translates to "peaceful valley" |
Monroe |
Albia |
February 17, 1843 |
Wapello County |
James Monroe (1758-1831), fifth President of the United States |
Montgomery |
Red Oak |
January 15, 1851 |
Polk County |
Richard Montgomery (1738-1775), general in the American Revolutionary War |
Muscatine |
December 7, 1836 |
Des Moines County |
Muscatine Native American tribe |
O'Brien |
Primghar |
January 15, 1851 |
Cherokee County |
William Smith O'Brien (1803-1864), Irish revolutionary who was inspired by American democratic ideals |
Osceola |
Sibley |
January 15, 1851 |
Woodbury County |
Osceola (1804-1838), Native American leader |
Page |
Clarinda |
February 24, 1847 |
Pottawattamie County |
John Page, officer killed in Battle of Palo Alto in the Mexican-American War |
Palo Alto |
Emmetsburg |
January 15, 1851 |
Kossuth County |
Battle of Palo Alto in the Mexican-American War |
Plymouth |
Le Mars |
January 15, 1851 |
Woodbury County |
Landing place of the Pilgrims who came to America on the Mayflower |
Pocahontas |
Pocahontas |
January 15, 1851 |
Greene County and Humboldt County |
Pocahantas (1595-1618), famous Native American woman |
Polk |
Des Moines |
January 13, 1846 |
Native American Lands |
James K. Polk (1795-1849), eleventh President of the United States |
Pottawattamie |
Council Bluffs |
February 24, 1847 |
Native American Lands |
Pottawattamie Native American tribe |
Poweshiek |
Montezuma |
February 17, 1843 |
Mesquakie Indian lands |
Poweshiek, chief of the Fox tribe |
Ringgold |
Mount Ayr |
February 24, 1847 |
Taylor County |
Samuel Ringgold (1796-1846), major killed in the Mexican-American War |
Sac |
Sac City |
January 15, 1851 |
Greene County |
Sac Native American tribe |
Scott |
Davenport |
December 21, 1837 |
Wisconsin Territory |
Winfield Scott (1786-1866), U.S. Army General during the War of 1812 |
Shelby |
Harlan |
January 15, 1851 |
Cass County |
Isaac Shelby (1750-1826), general in the American Revolutionary War and the War of 1812 |
Sioux |
Orange City |
January 15, 1851 |
Plymouth County |
Sioux Native American tribe |
Story |
Nevada |
January 13, 1846 |
Boone County, Jasper County, and Polk County |
Joseph Story (1779-1845), United States Supreme Court justice |
Tama |
Toledo |
February 17, 1843 |
Benton County and Boone County |
either Taimah, Fox chief; or Taomah, wife of Poweshiek |
Taylor |
Bedford |
February 24, 1847 |
Page County |
Zachary Taylor (1784-1850), twelfth President of the United States |
Union |
Creston |
January 15, 1851 |
Clarke County |
The union of the states |
Van Buren |
Keosauqua |
December 7, 1836 |
Des Moines County |
Martin Van Buren (1782-1862), eighth President of the United States |
Wapello |
Ottumwa |
February 17, 1843 |
Native American Lands |
Wapello, chief of the Fox Native American tribe |
Warren |
Indianola |
January 13, 1846 |
Polk County |
Joseph Warren (1741-1775), General in the American Revolutionary War |
Washington |
Washington |
January 25, 1839 |
Wisconsin Territory |
George Washington (1732-1799), first President of the United States |
Wayne |
Corydon |
January 13, 1846 |
Appanoose County |
Anthony Wayne (1745-1796), General in the American Revolutionary War |
Webster |
Fort Dodge |
January 12, 1853 |
Risley County and Yell County (defunct counties) |
Daniel Webster (1782-1852), U.S. Senator from Massachusetts |
Winnebago |
Forrest City |
January 15, 1851 |
Kossuth County |
Winnebago Native American tribe |
Winneshiek |
Decorah |
February 20, 1847 |
Native American Lands |
Winneshiek, chief of the Winnebago Native American tribe |
Woodbury |
Souix City |
January 12, 1853 |
Polk County |
Levi Woodbury (1789-1851), Governor of New Hampshire, (formerly named Wahkaw County) |
Worth |
Northwood |
January 15, 1851 |
Mitchell County |
William Jenkins Worth (1794-1849), officer in the Black Hawk War and the Mexican-American War |
Wright |
Clarion |
January 15, 1851 |
Webster County and Kossuth County |
Silas Wright (1795-1847), Governor of New York, and Joseph Albert Wright (1810-1867), Governor of Indiana, brothers |
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