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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.

Sac County, Iowa

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

County Seat: Sac City
Year Organized: 1851
Square Miles: 576

Court House:

100 NW State Street
County Courthouse
Sac City, IA 50583-1750

Etymology - Origin of County Name

Sac is named for the Sac Native American tribe.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts

County History

Sac County was originally attached to Benton County. In 1851 the Legislature established the current boundaries of Sac and attached it to Wahkaw or Woodbury County. On January 22, 1853 it was attached to Polk County and on July 1, 1855 it was attached to Greene County for administrative reasons. A census was taken later that same year and 251 people were counted, enough to finally establish Sac County as an independent county. It was formally established by law in 1856 and named for the Sac Indian tribe, which was prominent in the area. The name means either "People of the Yellow Earth" or "red bank."

In November 1856 the citizens of Sac County petitioned the District Court to appoint a commission to locate the county seat. Sam H. Riddle, 7th District Judge, appointed two men to "within two months locate the Seat of Justice as near the geographical center as may be, having due regard for the present as well as the future population." Later that same month the county seat was established and named Sac City.

In the summer of 1860 a special election was held to determine the building of a courthouse. The election called for the raising of $10,000 - via 10 percent bonds - to be paid $1,000 annually and asked should a tax be levied. The bond issue passed and construction was begun in the fall by W. N. Neservery of Webster County.

By the end of the decade the citizens realized that they had built a courthouse that was too small to handle the demands of the county. This, coupled with the fact that the county government was changing from judges to supervisors prompted county and township officials to campaign for a new courthouse. Several elections failed to raise the needed support, and finally on September 6, 1869 the Board of Supervisors issued a resolution for the building of a county courthouse at a cost of $30,000 to be completed by October 1, 1873.

This courthouse burned after a prisoner started a fire in the county jail that spread to the courthouse. County offices were held in several buildings in Sac City.

A small battle for the county seat followed the burning of the courthouse. A group of businessmen from Wall Lake approached the Board of Supervisors and offered a "substantial sum of money towards the new courthouse." The citizens of Sac City then went to the Board with 1,745 names in support of Sac City. In the end Sac City won out, and a new courthouse was built at the cost of $30,000, $15,000 coming from insurance. It was completed in January 1890.

In the early 1970s two bond issues went to the voters for the building of a new courthouse. Due to the cost and the love of the old courthouse, both failed. The Board of Supervisors then hired architects to remodel the old courthouse and design a new building to house a courtroom, judges, clerk of court, and sheriff's office. This motion passed, because it was paid from the revenues from selling off the county farm and federal money. The county offices moved into the new addition in 1977.

Neighboring Counties:

North: Buena Vista County
Northeast: Pocahontas County
East: Calhoun County
Southeast: Carroll County
Southwest: Crawford County
West: Ida County
Northwest: Cherokee County

Cities and Towns:

- Auburn	city	Incorporated Area
- Early	city	Incorporated Area
- Lake View	city	Incorporated Area
- Nemaha	city	Incorporated Area
- Odebolt	city	Incorporated Area
- Sac City (County Seat)	city	Incorporated Area
- Schaller	city	Incorporated Area
- Wall Lake	city	Incorporated Area
- Yetter	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."