by Kira Ryan | Aug 24, 2023 | Story
Everything comes back to corn, doesn’t it? (Corn-related Altoona history, to be specific.) It certainly seems that way, especially with our recent “Treasures of Altoona” feature highlighting a groundbreaking agricultural innovation that came to fruition here 100 years...
by Kira Ryan | Feb 15, 2023 | Story
Every Iowan knows that corn isn’t just a crop. As a key part of our state’s economy, adjacent agricultural industries, and history—it’s more like a way of life. But did you know that 100 years ago, Altoona helped irrevocably change the world of corn farming? That’s...
by Bill | Nov 14, 2022 | Story
With a legacy that spans roughly 150 years, the Altoona Area Historical Museum is a living piece of our city’s history. You can see why it’s the perfect home for the Altoona Area Historical Society. If you make your way to 104 2nd Street SE in Olde Town Altoona,...
by Bill | May 11, 2022 | Story
They were no Ritz-Carlton or Caesars Palace but they charmed visitors immensely, nonetheless. At the turn of the 19th century in Altoona, two hotels helped support the town as it grew in popularity. The Macklin House—named after a popular racehorse in the area—came...
by Bill | Oct 26, 2021 | Story
It was 1857, and a stagecoach carrying Iowa’s greatest treasures had run into trouble… One winter evening in 1857, as a snowstorm pummeled Iowa, a lone stagecoach crossed the Little Four Mile Creek in Altoona—the same sometimes-troublesome waterway that, 20...
by Bill | Oct 26, 2021 | Story
Twisted metal, shattered wood, and circus tickets blowing in the breeze… On the afternoon of August 29th, 1877, thousands descended on Altoona to see the aftermath of that morning’s train wreck. Word had traveled lightning-fast across the Des Moines Metro;...