In 1851 a pioneer merchant Alexander Faulkner built a store in the Wayne County community now known as Lineville. Half of the store was in Missouri while half was in Iowa. To adhere to state laws, he Missouri portion of the store sold liquor while the Iowa part of the store sold clothing and groceries. Originally founded as Grand River, the name of Lineville was adapted in 1871.
This modest metal-sided building houses the post office in the Woodbury County community of Bronson. Postal service was first established in January 1902, less than two months after the town was established by the Western Town Lot Company. The town was named for Ira D. Bronson, who had recently moved to the area from Kansas.
In late February 2011, Iowa Backroads published two weekend updates related to the closure and potential closure of up to 18 post offices across the state of Iowa. Since then, post office closings have been in the news on a local and national level, and the number potentially slated for closure in Iowa exceeds 270. View the latest Iowa post office closings list.
While a U.S. Postal Service memo suggests closings may be slowing for the holiday season, plans to close Iowa offices are still moving forward. A recap of related local news follows:
On August 1, 1968, the Muscatine Journal reported the post office in the unincorporated Muscatine County town of Moscow received a “temporary reprieve” from closure. Several weeks prior, postmaster Diane Henderson had received an announcement that the post office would close August 2. The Journal noted citizens did not remain idle:
The fighting citizens of Moscow… were busy gathering signatures on a petition demanding the post office remain open. Over a hundred signatures were gathered and copies were sent to congressmen, senators, the postmaster general and district and regional offices of the post office.
Under the closure plan, Moscow was set to become a rural route of nearby Wilton, causing a delay in service offered daily at the post office. Considered the social center of the rural Iowa town, more than anything residents feared “if the post office closed, Moscow would cease to exist as a town and be a name only.” In the end, the closure was averted – for at least 30 years.
As of July 2011, the post office is again being considered for closure.
Concerns began in early 2004 when a mold contamination was discovered in the McCausland Post Office. Services were quickly relocated to a temporary facility, but in April 2006, the U.S. Postal Service notified residents they were planning to let the temporary lease expire and add McCausland residents to a rural route based in nearby Long Grove. Over half of the town showed up for a town hall meeting, and community members were given additional time to secure and prepare a permanent facility.
A replacement building was purchased, and over the next two years, over $25,000 was raised from local residents via fundraising efforts including bake sales, hog roasts, and soup suppers. Just days before a closure date was set, the American Postal Workers Union stepped in with a $30,000 gift to fund remaining renovation work. On September 11, 2009, the new, permanent McCausland Post Office officially opened its doors. Check out the McCausland website to view photos from the community’s fight to save their Post Office.
Update: Less than two years later, the Post Office in McCausland is again being considered for closure.