Iowa Trivia & Tidbits

Looking for Iowa trivia? Try our list Iowa little know facts, tidbits and trivia.

One of the world's largest university and college track and field meets is the Drake Relays, held since 1910 at Drake University in Des Moines. The event has sold out on the final day of competition for more than 40 years.

first appeared: 1/24/2010

In 1942, Congress approved the creation of a Women's Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC) and opened the first training center at Fort Des Moines. The organization was renamed the Women's Army Corps (WAC) in 1943.

first appeared: 1/10/2010

Near Exira (pop. 810) is "The Plow in the Oak Tree," with the handles and part of a plow blade protruding from a live bur oak. According to lore, a farmer was plowing a field when Union soldiers passed on their way to battle during the Civil War. He leaned his plow against a bur oak sapling, joined the soldiers, and the tree grew around the plow.

first appeared: 12/27/2009

Opened in 2008, the first-class Honey Creek Resort State Park on Lake Rathbun in Appanoose County (pop. 13,721) boasts a lodge, conference center, restaurant, cabins, water park, 18-hole golf course, campgrounds and boat docks.

first appeared: 12/13/2009

Settled by Swedish immigrants in 1846, Madrid (pop. 2,264) originally was known as Swede Point. The town is the oldest continuously inhabited Swedish settlement west of the Mississippi River.

first appeared: 11/29/2009

Streets in Ankeny (pop. 27,117) had a spicy smell last December after city workers cleared them of ice and snow. Workers used 18,000 pounds of garlic salt, donated by Tone Brothers Spice Co., to melt the ice.

first appeared: 11/15/2009

Built in 1891 in the Beaux Arts style, the Dubuque County Courthouse in Dubuque (pop. 57,686) is crowned with a gold-leafed dome.

first appeared: 11/1/2009

Dedicated in 1934, Lake Keomah State Park near Oskaloosa (pop. 10,938) was named by combining the first syllables of the two counties-Keokuk (pop. 11,400) and Mahaska (pop. 22,335)-that helped finance the park.

first appeared: 10/18/2009

Bird watchers will want to look down in Audubon (pop. 2,382), where tile mosaic replicas of John James Audubon's bird prints are inlaid in the sidewalks. The sidewalk art honors the famed artist and naturalist for whom the city and county are named.

first appeared: 10/4/2009

A no-nonsense, frugal mother of nine, Thelma Meyer, of Granger (pop. 583), is the inspiration behind the line of green household cleaners called Mrs. Meyer's Clean Day products. Her daughter, Monica Nassif, founded the Minneapolis-based company in 1999.

first appeared: 9/20/2009

The Sullivan Brothers Iowa Veterans Museum in the Grout Museum District in Waterloo (pop. 68,747) features a re-created bow of the USS Juneau, the U.S. Navy cruiser on which the town's five Sullivan brothers fought and died during World War II. The museum explores Iowans' roles in all wars since the Civil War.

first appeared: 9/6/2009

Built in 1883 for Joshua Secrest, the Gothic-style octagonal Secrest barn in West Liberty (pop. 3,332) has a bell-shaped roof and is believed to be one of a kind.

first appeared: 8/23/2009

Built in 1878 along the Des Moines River in Bonaparte (pop. 458), the former Meek Grist Mill no longer attracts farmers with wagonloads of grain. Customers today are hungry diners at the Bonaparte Retreat restaurant.

first appeared: 8/9/2009

The first user of the microblogging service Twitter to collect more than 1 million followers was actor Ashton Kutcher, born in 1978 in Cedar Rapids. In April, Kutcher beat cable TV news network CNN in a challenge to reach the mark.

first appeared: 7/26/2009

—Built in 1912, a 50-foot-diameter round barn near Allerton (pop. 559) has been restored and features a loft free of support columns, made possible by its web-like construction. The barn is part of the International Center for Rural Culture and Art, which includes an old schoolhouse and a church.

first appeared: 7/12/2009

—In the Mississippi River town of Guttenberg (pop. 1,987), Ingleside Park, which runs the length of the community along the riverbank, is a popular spot for picnickers, joggers, fishermen and barge watchers. Barges lock through nearby Lock & Dam No. 10.

first appeared: 6/28/2009

—To settle a rivalry between towns for the Lee County (pop. 38,052) seat in 1847, the state legislature granted jurisdiction to both Keokuk (pop. 11,427) and Fort Madison (pop. 10,715). This is the only county in the state with two county seats.

first appeared: 6/14/2009

—The Iowa Hall of Pride in Des Moines showcases the achievements of Iowans, from student athletes to sports legends and movie stars to scientists. Some of the newest exhibits honor Shawn Johnson, Olympic gold medalist in gymnastics, from West Des Moines (pop. 46,403); golfer and Masters champion Zach Johnson, of Cedar Rapids; and Olympic hurdler Lolo Jones, of Des Moines.

first appeared: 5/31/2009

—In 1972, archery champion Doreen Wilber (1930-2008), of Jefferson (pop. 4,626), became the state's first female athlete to win an Olympic gold medal.

first appeared: 5/17/2009

—Leonard Olson's artwork is colorful and ever-changing at his Kaleidoscope Factory in Pomeroy (pop. 710), opened in 2004.

first appeared: 5/3/2009

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