Where is keokuk ia

Click here to contact us This official website for Keokuk County is designed to help current and future residents find information about the county. County Conservation Parks information. Keokuk County Jobs Current Listings. Board of Supervisors Members, Agendas and Minutes.

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Agree Disagree Extremely low cost of living and housing 2. Affordable place to live Cons: 1. High crime rate 2. Very poor school system 3. Not much to do 4. It's too When i went back to keokuk i was shocked at how misstreated it You can also use our New Interactive Map to explore places. Try Now. All rights reserved. BestPlaces Mobile App. A heavy tide of immigration was going through Keokuk, and its population was largely transient. The first public sale of town lots occurred in June, and was largely attended.

A steamboat came up from St. Louis with a full passenger list, and excitement ran high. For several years the business of the town was confined to the levee and mostly to the four corners of the intersection of 1st and Johnson Streets.

Keokuk scarcely grew until The timber bluff, which now constitutes the city proper, remained virginal. It was 26 x 44 feet and made of split lumber and clapboards. It was the first frame house built in Keokuk. In , an additional 60 x 44 feet was erected and in , Prince DeJoinville and his party stayed overnight in this hotel. They had been to Green Bay to see the Rev. Williams, who, it was claimed, was the lost Bourbon.

The Prince disallowed the claim. The first Keokuk postmaster was John Gains but he had no commission from the Federal Government and merely handled the mail, which was brought in from Warsaw, IL and St. Francisville, MO.

Fleak was the first duly-authorized Postmaster and was appointed June 24, In July, the population of Keokuk was estimated at and in at The U. Census placed Keokuk with a population of 2,, which grew to 5, by the State Census of In , Lyman E.

Johnson built the first brick house. The City of Keokuk was incorporated under an act approved Feb. The first election for city offices was held on Monday, Jan. Three wards were established. The First Ward included all that part of the city lying between the Mississippi River and 2nd Street and was bounded on the southwest by a line drawn from the river to the center of 2nd Street, between the parallel with and at equal distance from Main and Johnson Streets.

The Second ward included that part of the city lying between the river and the center of 2nd Street, and was bounded on the northeast by the line aforesaid. The Third ward included all the remainder of the city between the center of 2nd Street and the northwestern boundary of the city. Candidates for city officers were plentiful. The name of Capt. Clark was presented and there being no opposition, he was declared to be the choice of the people for Mayor.

Foster and John W. Ogden were nominated for Aldermen in the Third Ward, and Capt. The following was the result of the election:. For Mayor, Capt. Clark, Whig, received votes; and E. Clark James Mackley and Wm. Holliday from the Second Ward, and John W. Ogden and John M. Houston from the Third Ward. The first meeting of the City Council was held Jan. John W. Ogden was appointed Clerk Pro-tem. The mayor read his address after which the council proceeded to elect A.

Putnam, Clerk; L. Houghton, Assessor; and D. Murray Marshall, Collector and Treasurer. Ogden, Holliday, Houston and Reed were appointed to a committee to report resolutions for the government of the council, after which the council adjourned to meet the following Monday. The first ordinance passed by the Council was at the meeting on Monday, Jan. Monday was occupied in getting the city machinery in motion; Tuesday, S.

Haight and Co. The first tax levy for city purposes was three eighths of one percent. The City secured the M. In February the Council employ Wm. Telford as City Attorney.

A room was rented from L. The width of pavements was established at fifteen feet on Main Street and twelve feet on the other streets. In February Mr. Taylor received 3 votes and Pattee 1. Measures were inaugurated for grading and improving the streets; roadways and streetways were cut through the hills and bluffs from the river.

Improvement succeeded improvement, and building followed building to the top of the bluffs, along the streets and then began to scatter out along the cross streets. In , the population was 1, and in it was 2, In , A.

Walcott came to Keokuk to engage in the business of packing pork and Main and 3rd Streets. In March, there were 15 dry goods stores, three iron stores, three boat and shoe establishments, three saddle and harness shops, three clothing houses, six blacksmith shops, four wagon makers, two gunsmiths, one hat manufacturer, four hotels, one surgeon dentist, 17 physicians, 22 lawyers and two printing offices.

One cooperage establishment employed from 30 to 40 men. There were five religious societies worshiping each Sunday; 1 Methodist, 2 Presbyterian, 1 Baptist and 1 Catholic.

A Lodge of I. In , a Mr. Dowling formed a brass band and in furnished music for all public occasions. The State Legislature recognized that which the people of Keokuk had already accomplished and sanctioned all that had been done. This original charter was amended from time to time by the legislature, the last amendment being an act of the 5th General Assembly of the State of Iowa enacted July 25, The cooper shop was owned by R.

Hughes, father of Kate Hughes, the dashing belle of the village. His shop stood at 2nd and Johnson Streets, and was the largest west of Cincinnati at that time. It burned Jan. The new shop, built on the site of the old, was dedicated by a grand ball on the night of Monday, Jan. George H. Williams, wife of the U. In , the bulk if the business had been transferred from the levee and Water Street, to 2nd Street between Main and Johnson Streets, and to Main Street between 2nd and 3rd.

At the corner of 6th and Main there was a deep ravine. Up to this ravine was impassable with only a footbridge extending across the gully. A contract was given to Mitchell Marshall for grading and improving Main Street was well as some of the other Keokuk streets.

Marshall was able to hire many of the Mormons from a immigrant Mormon camp northeast of Keokuk. These hard-working men soon had Main Street leveled and graded into a straight unbroken avenue. It is said by Israel Anderson, H. Barlett and others, that the Mormons were very liberal in such undertakings and toward each other. If one of them undertook a contract for clearing land, making rails or cutting cordwood, his brethren all joined in and made short work of the undertaking.

When the question of land titles was settled in , speculation in town lots commenced and prices went kiting. This speculation continued until interrupted by the financial panic in Buying and selling lots was the ruling idea. Louis — from all the money centers of the U. People went almost made with excitement. The erection of the Estes House was commenced and carried up to the fourth story, when the panic came on.

There was a terrible shrinkage in values, and the projectors of the mammoth structure were forced to succumb to the inevitable. In their extremity, they applied to Col. Hornish for aid to complete the undertaking.

Hornish responded and commenced to advance money to finish this metropolitan enterprise. It was never opened as a hotel, and when the Civil War commenced, it was occupied as a government hospital. In the railroad land-grant system of Iowa was organized upon a large grant from the U. This grant was manipulated in the exclusive interests of raid centering in Chicago.

At that date, there were no railroads touching the Mississippi River and Keokuk was the practical head of unobstructed navigation, and St.

Louis was the commercial center of all trade on the upper Mississippi country. But the railroad land-grant, pushed roads from four different points across Iowa east and west of the rapids, and in all the interest of Chicago. The completion of these roads changed the direction and practically superseded the influence of St.

Louis and the river trade. Keokuk was the Medical Center of the Midwest until the closing of the Medical College shortly after the turn of the century. In the population of Keokuk was estimated at 15, When the panic came on in September of that year, everything became flat and business combinations discouraged.