From its humble beginnings in the small town of Dallas Center in 1881, Brenton Bank grew to be the largest Iowa-based bank chain in the state. By the end of the twentieth century, Brenton Bank operated offices across the state from its original base in Dallas Center to Des Moines to Davenport. Brenton’s large Iowa footprint made it a takeover target, and in 2000, Wells Fargo entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the bank’s 43 offices.
The pictured Woodward office operated as Wells Fargo until May 2010, when three former Brenton Bank locations in Dallas County were closed. Signage was remove, revealing the original Brenton Bank signing in place when the office was constructed.
Local residents were disappointed in August 2000 when the former Commercial Federal Bank chain announced it was closing the branch office in downtown Hanlontown in Worth County, Iowa. The office, which featured an impressive vault and marble teller station inside its two-story lobby, was built in 1920 as Citizens State Bank. It changed hands three times between 1981 and 1998 prior to the 2000 closure. The bank also closed its branch in nearby Kensett.
Fortunately, two charitable foundations purchased the building and donated it to the Worth County Historical Society. It is now home to the Citizens Savings Bank Museum, open Sunday afternoons June through August. Visitors can appreciate the historic interior while perusing a growing collection of Hanlontown cultural and economic artifacts.
Postal service was established in the Wayne County, Iowa, community of Promise City in August 1856. When service was discontinued in the nearby towns of Clio and Millerton in 2006, Promise City became the smallest city in the county with an active post office location. The 2000 census indicated 105 residents, down from a peak population of 274 in 1910.
The single-screen Graind Theatre in Greenfield was constructed in 1927, at a cost of $15,000. Considered state-of-the-art at time of construction, the theatre featured a number of amenities including sloping floors, comfortable seats, and air conditioning. The theatre shows first-run movies daily except Mondays, with matinees on Saturdays and Sundays.
The Rockwell City Public Library vacated its 100-year-old Carnegie Library location in favor of a new shared Library and Community Center building in August 2008. The modern $2.6 million facility provided substantially more square footage for books and technology, handicapped accessibility, increased natural lighting, and more. Fortunately, the former library did not stay vacant long, as local entrepreneurs Randy and Cindy Patterson purchased the building from the city in 2009. They’ve repurposed the space into a seasonal antique and gift shop; for info, call (712) 887-0621.
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