Carnegie Libraries, Churches

Carnegie Library Building (Marion, Iowa)

Carnegie Library Building (Marion, Iowa)

The public library in Marion dates to 1901 when the local Federation of Women’s Clubs first organized a reading room and began soliciting donations for money, books, and furniture from the community. Within two years a tax levy was approved to support the library and nearly $4,000 was raised to purchase a lot for the new facility. Construction costs were covered by a $10,000 grant from Andrew Carnegie; the cornerstone was laid in September 1904, and the new library was dedicated in March 1905.

When a modern library facility was constructed 91 years later, the Carnegie building was sold to the First United Methodist Church in Marion. The historic building now houses church classrooms and offices.

Museums

Old Creamery Museum (Northwood, Iowa)

Old Creamery Museum (Northwood, Iowa)

Dating to 1892, the Old Creamery Museum in Northwood is one of nine sites owned and operated by the Worth County Historical Society. The society purchased the building in 1981, about thirty years after operation ceased at the creamery. The museum includes a number of antiques, including tools, creamery equipment, and a working print shop. It’s open Sunday afternoons from Memorial Day to Labor Day or by appointment by calling (641) 324-1180.

Courthouses

Osceola County Courthouse (Sibley, Iowa)

Osceola County Courthouse (Sibley, Iowa)

The first Osceola County Courthouse shared space with a school and church in a modest, wood-frame building constructed in the county seat of Sibley in November 1872 at a cost of $4,500. Twenty-nine years later, a special election was held and voters passed a $50,000 bond referendum to construct a new courthouse building. Work started in 1902 and the new Osceola County Courthouse was formally dedicated in September 1903. While the building’s original design is mostly in tact, a few changes have been made since construction including the removal of a tall square cupola from the center of the building and the installation of an elevator in 1974. The Osceola County Courthouse was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1981.

Post Offices

Post Office 50470 (Rowan, Iowa)

Post Office 50470 (Rowan, Iowa)

Since postal service was first established in the Wright County community of Rowan in 1884, no one has served as Postmaster longer than Mrs. Nellie Hyde. Hyde was first appointed to the role on July 23, 1920, under the direction of then Postmaster General Albert Burleson. At the time of her appointment, her father Authur Emerson was a rural mail carrier based in Rowan, who started his career carrying mail by mule. Hyde served as Postmaster for nearly 33 years before her retirement on June 30, 1953.

The Wright County Monitor reported on Hyde’s last day of service, a large group of citizens gathered at the closing hour to wish her well. On behalf of the community, they presented her with a “fish pole that she might accompany her husband on his fishing trips and a large can of bait, which proved to be a large amount of money donated by the patrons of the local office as a token of esteem for her service to the public the last 33 years.” Hyde was preceded by Mrs. Loretta M. Steffens who held the Postmaster position at the Rowan Post Office for the next 21 years.

Movie Theatres

Weiting Theatre (Toledo, Iowa)

Wieting Theatre (Toledo, Iowa)

The 600-seat brick Wieting Theatre in Toledo opened its doors September 12, 1912, with a capacity crowd for the Sheehan English Opera Company’s presentation of “Il Travatore.” As with many theatres across the country, focus shifted to movies and by the late 1950s, with the advent of television, the Wieting Theatre cut back to a part-time schedule. By 1958, the doors had temporarily closed.

Two years later, a group a concerned Toledo residents organized the Toledo Community Theatre Guild and took over operations of the historic facility. A reopening ceremony was held in September 1960, and in the spring of 1961, the first live production was presented by the Cornell College Players.

The Wieting Theatre is currently undergoing a substantial renovation project; a grand reopening is planned for January 2012, with new restrooms, new seats, new electrical systems, new heating and cooling, and a state-of-the-art digital sound and digital 3D projection systems.

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