Postal service was established in the Benton County community of Van Horne in April 1882, several months before the town was officially incorporated. Van Horne was named for William C. Van Horne, a former officer of the Chicago and Alton Railroad. Until December 1, 1924, the U.S. Postal Service’s official name for the office was Van Horn, without the final e.
Postal service in the Worth County town of Hanlontown dates to 1899, when a post office was established in a local general store. It’s moved several times in its 110-year history, sharing space with a barber shop in the 1920s and moving to a brick building adjacent to its current space in 1952. The current facility was built in 1960 to lease to the Post Office as part of the U.S. Postal Service’s leasing program. The building is still in use today. Though the future of the Hanlontown office was uncertain, earlier this month the Postal Service announced the location would not be closed.
The community of Humboldt celebrated when a new Post Office building opened its doors to the public in March 1956. The yellow brick building saw several changes over its years of operation, including a large addition in the mid-1960s and the addition of a lift for the inside steps in the late-1990s. The building’s owners leased the basement to a variety of businesses and organizations, including a local law firm from 1990 to 1995; the space has remained vacant since.
Air quality tests revealed mold problems in the building in April 2003, forcing the post office to relocate. The Humboldt Independent notes the tests were conducted following reports of employees getting sick in the building. The Post Office quickly moved to a “temporary” location in a former drugstore a few blocks southeast in downtown Humboldt. A 2004 plan to construct a new, permanent location for the Humboldt Post Office was scrapped due to U.S. Postal Service budget concerns. The once-temporary location remains home to the Post Office today. Continue reading Former Post Office 50548 (Humboldt, Iowa)
In November 1965, a contract was awarded to resident Harold D. Burkholder to build a new post office in the Iowa County community of Parnell. With an interior space of nearly 1,200 square feet, the new post office had air conditioning along with a separate parking area. The new Parnell Post Office building was officially dedicated in September 1966.
The Williamsburg Journal-Tribune reported the dedication brought 700 people from Parnell and the surrounding area. The dedication included a flag-raising ceremony from the local American Legion group, a benediction from a local Mennonite pastor, and a ribbon-cutting ceremony performed by Parnell’s mayor. The dedication was followed by an open house.
Postal service originated in Parnell in November 1884 under the Callan moniker, in recognition of the large property ownership by the Callan family at the time. The name was changed following the official establishment of Parnell when the Milwaukee Railroad line was connected to the community. The Post Office had a variety of locations, including local grocery and hardware stores.
The Austinville State Savings Bank was established in the unincorporated Butler County town of Austinville in 1911. In addition to surviving the Great Depression, the bank survived a number of robberies and attempted robberies. In 1922, over $2,000 was stolen from the safe while nitroglycerin was used in a similar robbery attempt in 1930. Another robbery occurred on February 17, 1940, when burglars cut through the bank’s 3,000-pound safe to steal $1,000. The last robbery was October 4, 1985, as a new security system was installed shortly after the incident.
After a series of acquisitions, the bank was converted to a branch of the Lincoln Savings Bank. When the Lincoln Savings Bank decided to close the Austinville office, community members met to discuss ways to preserve the historic building, related memorabilia, and the contract post office which shared space with the bank. The Austinville Historical Society was quickly formed and took control of the building. The post office branch continued to operate for more than a decade before its closure on June 2, 2011.