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.
Iowa City history
Posted inCommunity/News
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
Posted inArts & Entertainment
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.
Posted inCommunity/News
House built more than 150 years ago on Iowa City’s north side to be torn down
A demolition permit has been issued for the house that has stood at the corner for E Market and N Johnson Streets in Iowa City for more than 150 years. The house is still in good shape, but Mercy Iowa City, which bought the property for $240,000 in November, has no use for the structure. […]
Posted inCommunity/News
‘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 […]
Posted inCommunity/News
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.
Posted inCommunity/News
Hard-cider, tetanus deaths and poisoned ice cream: ICPL launches an online archive of historic Iowa City newspapers
On Tuesday, decades of Iowa City history suddenly became much more accessible, when the Iowa City Public Library launched an online archive of newspapers covering the years 1841 to 1925. The searchable archive features editions from seven different Iowa City newspapers previously available only on microfilm at the library. “Having a primary resource is an […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Iowa City Municipal Airport celebrates 100 years of history
About 15 years after Wilbur and Orville Wright made the first flight in a powered aircraft, the Iowa City Municipal Airport opened on local farmland, where it remains today. Though its role and services have evolved since 1918 — as has flight itself — the airport continues to grow, and this weekend it’s celebrating a century of history.
Posted inCommunity/News
Your Village: Who are the streets in downtown Iowa City named for?
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.
Posted inCommunity/News
Keeping the faith: Iowa City’s Bethel AME Church celebrates 150 years
In a city with few remaining historic buildings and a population constantly in flux, Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church is a rarity. Bethel, Iowa City’s only historically black church, is celebrating its 150th anniversary this year. The church still stands on the same Governor Street lot its founders bought for $50 in 1868, just three years after the end of the Civil War.
Posted inCommunity/News
Gardens, bikes and pony rides this weekend at Lucas Farms
Plum Grove, the 1844 home of the first territorial governor of Iowa Robert Lucas and his wife Friendly, still anchors the neighborhood of Lucas Farms in Iowa City. The Lucas Farms Neighborhood Association invites the community in to explore the neighborhood’s past and present at the third annual Lucas Farms History Days.
Posted inCommunity/News
Hans Breder, distinguished artist and educator, dies aged 81
Hans Breder, pioneering media artist and educator, died unexpectedly on Sunday in Iowa City. He was 81.
