Beneath a veneer of “niceness,” the Midwest is among the very worst places to live in the United States if you’re a person of color. That’s what historian and University of Iowa history professor Colin Gordon discovered while completing a report for the Iowa Policy Project titled “Race in the Heartland: Equity, Opportunity, and Public […]
Iowa City history
Best of the CRANDIC Spotlight: KRUI 89.7 FM

KRUI 89.7 FM was voted Best Radio Station in Little Village’s 2020 Best of the CRANDIC awards. Things are constantly changing in Iowa City as students move in and move on and familiar parts of the landscape disappear, replaced by new apartment buildings. Sometimes nothing seems permanent except the flocked wallpaper at George’s. But at […]
Two grassroots groups are fighting against the odds to save The Mill, Iowa City’s ‘cultural crossroads’

If three months into Iowa’s COVID-19 pandemic there were some locals who still hoped life might return to normal someday, the announcement that The Mill restaurant and music venue was being sold off was likely a wake-up call. The Mill, 120 E Burlington St, was a stomping ground for generations of townies and a destination […]
Iowa City’s first LGBTQ safe space

On May 1, 2009, a charter bus rolled into downtown Iowa City, packed with lesbian and gay couples from Missouri (and a rabbi or two). A few weeks earlier, Iowa had become the first state in the Midwest to recognize same-sex marriage. The busload of couples had come to the Hawkeye State to get hitched. […]
The Bowery Street Grocery Store and Iowa City’s omitted history of segregation

In 2014, a small building on the block between South Johnson and South Van Buren streets in Iowa City was added to the National Register for Historic Places. Its inclusion was well-warranted; it had served as a small grocery store for nearly a century, beginning in the late 1800s. The store at 518 E Bowery […]
Your Village: The story of Emma Harvat, Iowa City’s history-making mayor

Have a question about what’s going on in your community? Ask Little Village. Submit your questions through the Your Village feature on our homepage, or email us at editor@littlevillagemag.com. I’d like to know more about Emma Harvat, the first woman mayor of Iowa City. —Rebecca, Iowa City Her name does live on in Iowa City […]
Two houses represent a forgotten period of segregation in Iowa City, University of Iowa history

The houses at 942 Iowa Ave and 914 S Dubuque St in Iowa City may seem nondescript — just another couple of old, off-campus rental properties for college students — save for the rust-brown metal signs out front. These signs, funded by a grant from the National Park Service, detail the background of the Iowa Federation Home and Tate Arms house, which have had quiet but important roles in the history of Iowa City and the University of Iowa. […]
Your Village: Is it Lake Macbride or McBride?

According to the maps I find online, the lake in Lake Macbride State Park is Lake McBride. Are they named after the same person? Or did Macbride get the park and Macbride Hall at UI named after him, and McBride basically didn’t get anything other than me, years later, doubting his existence? —Matt, Iowa City […]
Cosmic cowboys, quarter beers and nightmarish bathrooms: The history of Gabe’s

In the beginning there was the Pub, opening inside a nondescript two-story brick building on East Washington Street in Iowa City, which previously housed ACT, Inc.’s offices, in 1970. The restrooms have been on a steep decline since then, but there have also been many highs, both musical and chemical. […]
House built more than 150 years ago on Iowa City’s north side to be torn down
‘Bright Radical Star’: When John Brown came to Iowa

Halfway to Springdale, Iowa — a town about 15 miles east of Iowa City — on a snow-laden December evening in 1857, Owen Brown decided to journal. “Very cold night,” he wrote, “prairie wolves howl nobly.” He recounted the “hot discussion” had on the road that day: about the Bible, war, racial prejudice and abolition […]
Iowa City’s oldest douchebag

Douchebags. Some might say Iowa City is full of them. Others might argue they’re a rare find. While locals eligible for this title might be thought of as callous, the oldest douchebag in town is actually quite fragile. So fragile, in fact, University of Iowa project archeologist Angela Collins said, “By just touching it, I could tell it wanted to crumble.” Collins is referring not to an aged alumnus, but rather to Dr. F. Wilhoft’s (Original) Lady’s Syringe, meant for vaginal cleanliness. A literal douchebag. […]