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Iowa State...
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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.
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Montgomery County, Iowa
Montgomery County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education
County Seat: Red Oak
Year Organized: 1851
Square Miles: 424
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Court House: P.O. Box 469
County Courthouse
Red Oak, IA 51566-0469
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Etymology - Origin of County Name
Montgomery is named for Richard Montgomery, an U.S. general killed in the American Revolutionary War.
Demographics:
County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick
Facts
History
The territory that is now Montgomery
County was originally part of the Pottawattamie- Purchase in 1846 and was
included in a large county called Pottawattamie in 1847. The General Assembly
established the county on January 15, 1851. The county is named in honor of
General Richard Montgomery who died at the assault of Quebec in the
Revolutionary War.
The first county elections were held in April 1853, and around 18 votes were
cast. Prior to this the county was attached to Adams County for judicial and
financial reasons. These elections were held at the home of Amos G. Lowe, the
first county judge.
A judge of the Sixth Judicial District appointed commissioners to select the
county seat of Montgomery County. They selected a site nearest to the center of
the county and named it Frankfort, in honor of Frankfort, Kentucky, the judge's
hometown.
The first county courthouse was built in Frankfort in 1857. It was a simple
wooden-frame structure that covered an area 20-foot x 40-foot and was built at a
cost of $1,141.50 to the county. After a contest between Frankfort and Red Oak
for the county seat, in which Frankfort lost by only six votes, this courthouse
was moved. It was hitched to a team of oxen and towed to Red Oak in the winter
of 1865. A blizzard came up, and the men had to abandon the building in favor of
shelter. When they returned they had "lost" the courthouse in the snow. It was
eventually found, but the "lost courthouse" was a great joke in Montgomery
County for many years.
Even after a second story was added to the old courthouse, it was still not
large enough for the growing county needs. Two attempts to build a new
courthouse failed. The first one was in 1873, and the second was in 1883.
Finally, on the third try, the people approved the building of a new courthouse
by a narrow margin in the summer of 1889.
The second, and current, courthouse was built in 1890. The contractor failed to
complete the building, and after much litigation, the county was found not
responsible for the cost of completing the courthouse. When the building was
finished, it only cost the county $69,000. At the dedication on the Fourth of
July, conservative estimates put the number of visitors present at 10,000.
The nearly fireproof structure is made of sandstone and red brick. It is 91-foot
x 72-foot and is 60 feet high, the clock tower extends another 40 feet. This
clock tower was a gift of the Red Oak Monday Club. Since 1890 the courthouse has
become the centerpiece of Red Oak and Montgomery County.
On July 2, 1981, the Montgomery County Courthouse was entered in the National
Register of Historic Places. A brief ceremony and an open house were held.
1984 saw the completion of the elevator to assist the handicapped and elderly
with access to all levels of the courthouse. The elevator reduced the double
stairway leading to the second and third floors and the basement to a single
stairway. The project also included a new entrance on the south side of the
building.
Sources:
Inventory of the County Archives of Iowa, Montgomery County, Historical Records
Survey, W.P.A., 1941.
Carleen Bruning, Montgomery County Assistant Recorder, 2002
Neighboring Counties:
- Northeast: Cass County
- East: Adams County
- Southeast: Taylor County
- South: Page County
- Southwest: Fremont County
- West: Mills County
- Northwest: Pottawattamie County
Cities and Towns:
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- Coburg |
city |
Incorporated Area |
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- Elliott |
city |
Incorporated Area |
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- Grant |
city |
Incorporated Area |
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- Red Oak
(County Seat) |
city |
Incorporated Area |
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- Stanton |
city |
Incorporated Area |
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- Villisca |
city |
Incorporated Area |
County Resources:
Enter County Resources and Information Here
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County Resource Guide
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The history of our nation can be seen as a prolonged struggle to define the relative roles and powers of our governments: federal, state, and local. And the names we've given our counties, our most locally based jurisdictions, reflects the "characteristic
features of our 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." |
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