January 20, 2024
On Saturday, I fought the blistering cold and walked around downtown Ottumwa to snap some pictures of buildings that I think are cool.
City History
Founded in 1843 (then, as Louis Ville), Ottumwa is the county seat of Wapello County in southeastern Iowa. The town was supported early on by several coal mines located nearby, then development was further supported when John Morrell & Company built a meat packing complex in 1877.
In 1859, the Burlington and Missouri River Railroad built a rail line parallel to the Des Moines River channel.
The city is divided into a north and a south side by the river. Development of the city began on the north side and continued on this way for several years, as access to the south side was limited to a ferry that ran from the foot of Green Street. Eventually, the ferry was replaced by a bridge and development on the south side progressed. South Ottumwa, however, was not brought into the city limits until the 1880s.
As most of the history of the town is on the north side of the river, that’s where many of the city’s historic buildings reside, in the city’s downtown district.
Main Street Ottumwa
Since 2006, Main Steet Ottumwa has been working to revitalize the once-struggling downtown area of Ottumwa. Based on four basic tenets, MSO’s purpose is to strengthen the Design, Economic Vitality, Organization and Promotion of the downtown area. Within the Design principle is the organization’s goal to encourage new construction while preserving the existing historic buildings in the area.
Among the construction going on in the downtown area, the Wapello County Courthouse is currently getting new windows and doors. As you pass the glorious historic building, topped with a visage of the city’s namesake, it looks like something from a post-apocalyptic war story, with every window in the building removed and boarded up with plywood, and a chain link fence surrounding the property.
Aside from that building’s current state of disrepair, the rest of the historic buildings in Downtown Ottumwa are in fine condition, and pictures are ready to be viewed in my Photo Diary.
Also
Brandy and I finalized the last of our plans for our upcoming Colorado trip. The purchases made and the research done last night are getting me quite eager to take this trip. It’s going to be a great one, and I can’t wait to post about it!
As of right now, I don’t think we will have anything of note between now and then, so this may be the last post I’ll make here until early March, unless I make it out for a hike in just-above-freezing temperatures (which actually sounds wonderful, if I’m honest), but if I don’t post again until then, I will see you in March!
-Phil