It was the Iowa State Fair of 1860—the seventh ever held. The state was young—only 14 years old. The American Civil War had not yet started in 1860. The capital had only recently been moved to Des Moines from Iowa City. The population of the state was not quite 700,000.
On Thursday, Gov. Terry Branstad requested a Presidential Disaster Declaration [https://governor.iowa.gov/2015/06/gov-branstad-requests-presidential-disaster-declaration-due-to-bird-flu-outbreak-in-iowa] for four Iowa counties due to the bird flu outbreak that, according to the governor’s press rele
Listen to the Podcast: IowaWatch summer intern Clare McCarthy and executive director-editor Lyle Muller talked on the Tuesday, June 16, 2015, "Your Town" show on KXIC radio, AM 800, in Iowa City about the IowaWatch News Quiz and a Haley Hansel story about wage theft.
Is graffiti a form of vandalism...a form of art...or both at the same time? Graffiti has been transformed from simply writing a name on a wall, to a cultural phenomenon with competitive aspects.
Mary Virginia “Jennie” Wade was the only civilian killed at the Battle of Gettysburg during the Civil War, but her sacrifice would have been overlooked if not for a group of Iowa women.
For over a century, drainage tiles have played a significant role in Iowa agriculture. But tile systems have also been targets of criticism from environmentalists who point to tiles’ environmental impact. How much do you know about Iowa’s drainage tiles?
Wage theft in Iowa amounts to stealing a year of earnings from an estimated 39,392 minimum wage workers, totaling about $594 million, according to statistics gleaned from an Iowa Policy Project report. That's one of the reasons the Iowa Legislature considered a bill this year to help stop businesses
With dishes in hand, Katie Wilson, 27, headed into the Applebee’s kitchen in Coralville as her shift drew to a close. The Ames native said she leaned over the sink and began her nightly routine of washing the plates when she heard something that her managers said she wasn’t supposed to hear.
Bundles of newspapers are in the state historical archives, waiting to be preserved...but there’s disagreement over how to do it. One state agency refused a quarter million dollars to do the work. We’ll tell you why, and also look to the future of the industry.
In the summer of 1913 a gang of horse thieves was operating from Boone to Belle Plaine and points in between all spring and summer. Finally, in August there was a breakthrough.
With the 2015 Iowa legislative session set to end this week, the House and Senate reached a budget agreement last week and leaders are saying adjournment is right around the corner. How much do you know about the history of past Iowa legislative sessions? Test your knowledge with three quick questio
