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Iowa Counties

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Iowa Counties

There are 99 Counties in Iowa. The first two counties, Des Moines County and Dubuque County, were created in 1834 when Iowa was still part of the Michigan Territory. In preparation for Michigan's statehood, part of Michigan Territory was formed into Wisconsin Territory in 1836]. Two years later, the western portion was split off to become Iowa Territory. The south-eastern part of Iowa Territory became Iowa, the 29th state in the union, on 28 December 1846, by which point 44 Counties had been created. Counties continued to be created by the state government until 1857, when the last county, Humboldt County, was created.

Mills County, Iowa

Mills County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education

County Seat: Glenwood
Year Organized: 1851
Square Miles: 437

Court House:

418 Sharp Street
County Courthouse
Glenwood, IA 51534-1774

Etymology - Origin of County Name

Mills is named for Frederick Mills, a major from Iowa killed in the Mexican-American War.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts

County History

Mills County, organized and established in 1851 and was named for a young officer from Burlington, Iowa. Frederick Mills, a Yale graduate and lawyer, was enlisted and commissioned as an officer during the Mexican War from 1846-1848. He was killed August 20, 1847, leading a charge after General Santa Ana in the Battle of Cherubusco. In 1851, Mills County was named in memory of this hero.

The first settlement was called Rushville by the Mormons who arrived in 1846. Coonsville, named after Dr. Liberius Coons, a Mormon, first doctor and founder of the community, was changed to present-day Glenwood in 1853.

The first courthouse was a small 12' x 20' frame building which was replaced in 1857 by a two-story Georgian Colonial style building. An addition was made sometime after 1900 followed by the addition of a clock tower in 1910. This first courthouse served as home to the first newspaper in Mills County as well as a temporary barracks for Civil War troops in 1861. In 1898, an Iowa company was organized in the courthouse to serve in the war with Spain. This courthouse continued to serve its community well for the next 100 years. In 1959, it was replaced with the current, more modern building. The building was dedicated on August 29, 1959, amidst much fanfare.

Geographically, Mills County is located very near to the extreme southwest corner of Iowa. It is bordered on the North by Pottawattamie County, on the East by Montgomery County, on the South by Fremont County, and on the West by the Missouri River. It is primarily an agricultural area. Many residents, however, work in industries in nearby Council Bluffs, Iowa and Omaha, Nebraska. Mills County boasts a variety of historical sites including a museum located in Glenwood which showcases many tools, implements, and household items of early life in the county as well as many Indian artifacts. The community of Tabor, which lies partly in Mills County, is the location of a once important station on the Underground Railroad, as well as the home of Rev. John Todd who harbored the abolitionist, John Brown. The Todd house is preserved and now serves as a museum. Pacific Junction in the Western part of the county is the Junction for the Burlington Railroad lines from Denver to Chicago and Kansas City to Council Bluffs.

In addition, Glenwood is the site of the Glenwood State Hospital- School, the state operated home and school for the mentally handicapped. Started as a Soldier's Orphan's Home in 1866, it was closed in 1876 and the General Assembly converted the orphanage into the Asylum for Feeble Minded Children. Later renamed the Glenwood State Hospital-School, this became an important part of the lives of the inhabitants.

The 2000 census shows Mills county with an area of 439.67 square miles (3.13 of which is water) and a population of 14,547.

Sources: Beth Sylvester, Mills County Auditor, 2002

Neighboring Counties:

North: Pottawattamie County
East: Montgomery County
Southeast: Page County
South: Fremont County
Southwest: Cass County, Neb.
West: Sarpy County, Neb.

Cities and Towns:

- Emerson	city	Incorporated Area
- Glenwood (County Seat)	city	Incorporated Area
- Hastings	city	Incorporated Area
- Henderson	city	Incorporated Area
- Malvern	city	Incorporated Area
- Pacific Junction	city	Incorporated Area
- Silver City	city	Incorporated Area

County Resources:

Enter County Resources and Information Here

County Resources

The history of our nation was a prolonged struggle to define the relative roles and powers of our governments: federal, state, and local. And the names given the counties, our most locally based jurisdictions, reflects the "characteristic features of this country!"

But age, size and colorful names of our counties isn't the only reason to explore counties' role in American history, or the history of county government itself. In fact, the story of county government reflects the larger meanings of American history.

Today's counties are the most flexible, locally responsive and creative governments in the US. They are the most diverse, varying in size, population, geography, and governmental structure. In their politics and policies, they express a 1990's political slogan "Think globally, act locally."