Post Offices

Federal Building and Post Office 52565 (Keosauqua, Iowa)

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With a population of just 1,006, the Van Buren County seat of Keosauqua may be one of the smallest towns in the nation to feature a Federal Building and two-story Post Office. Here’s a clip from the article that was written in the Moravia Union just prior to the building’s dedication in July 1961:

Postmasters and other community leaders by the hundreds will journey to Keosauqua in southeastern Iowa on Saturday, July 29, for the public dedication of the new 80 x 63 foot federal building and post office.

Many towns of a thousand have or soon will have new post offices. But none the size of Keosauqua has a two-story structure costing $298,400. Van Buren county offices of federal agencies will occupy the top floor.

Features of the new government facility include entrances on two streets, a ramp for the convenience of the infirm, 40 tons of air conditioning, automatic oil furnace with 6,000 gallon underground tank, 30 x 15 foot loading dock, refrigerated drinking fountains, hot and cold water in six toilet rooms, 30-foot picture window, venetian blinds on all windows, and a master clock that regulates hourly 16 units all over the building.

Following the dedication, an open house was held; refreshments were served.

Churches

St. Patrick’s Catholic Church (Colesburg, Iowa)

In 1854, land for a Catholic church in the Delaware County town of Colesburg was purchased by Reverend Mathias Loras. St. Patrick’s Catholic Church was constructed in 1862, with a replacement church constructed fifteen years later. That building burned in 1940, with the present church constructed on the same site shortly after. Since 1991, the Colesburg church has been paired with St. Mark’s Catholic Church in nearby Edgewood.

Community Centers, Public Libraries

Public Library (Hanlontown, Iowa)

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In the mid-1930s, Iowa natives Dr. W.D. and Ida Kinney purchased over 4,000 acres of land in Worth and Cerro Gordo counties near the community of Hanlontown. It was one of several land purchases made by the Kinney family after oil was discovered on their retirement property in Texas. After spending nearly 20 years in northern Iowa, Dr. Kinney passed away in February 1957; Mrs. Kinney died the following year.

Dr. and Mrs. Kinney were avid readers and had amassed a collection of over 5,000 books in a 900-square-foot space in their Mason City home. Following their death, the collection and accompanying mahogany shelving were to be donated to the community of Hanlontown, with the condition that the town provided permanent space for housing the books and established a public library.

Two lots were purchased on Main Street, and a former rural school building was relocated to Hanlontown from the Forest City area. A basement was added to the building and by the fall of 1959, the library was open to the public. The former school served as the community library until 1978, when the library relocated to the newly-constructed community center.

The rural school building was relocated to the Kinney Pioneer Museum.

Banks

Former Bank (Stacyville, Iowa)

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The limestone and brick Stacyville Bank building in Stacyville in Mitchell County dates to 1899, one year after the bank was originally established. Ownership and name changed temporarily in the early 1900s before the Stacyville Savings Bank moniker was reestablished in 1925. The building, which included a vault and safety deposit boxes, served the community until 19512, when the Stacyville Savings Bank moved to a new location. The bank building later was home to the Stacyville Post Office and is currently occupied by a local insurance agency.

Banks

State Savings Bank (Bedford, Iowa)

The beginning of the State Savings Bank in the Taylor County seat of Bedford dates to 1915, when a new bank opened in the nearby town of Sharpsburg. From Sharpsburg, the bank grew with new offices added in Gravity in 1931 and Clearfield in 1935, and then Bedford in 1945. At that time, the bank charter was moved from Sharpsburg to Bedford, and in 1966, the pictured bank building was constructed.

State Savings Bank was the only financial institution in Bedford to survive the 1980s farm crisis. The charter moved again in 1998 to Creston, where a new location was established; today, the Creston, Bedford, and Clearfield offices remain open. The State Savings Bank recently announced a merger with Valley Bank & Trust, which has locations in Cherokee and Marcus in northwest Iowa.

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