After laying my pick down for the week (cue Loverboy) on a recent Friday, I cruised up to Grundy County and harvested their town sign. I didn’t have my ritualistic Hardee’s breakfast due to the time of day, but I did have Hardee’s for supper, which was technically a loss, because I was hoping to have Godfather’s pizza from a gas station off of Highway 20, but it was sadly closed by the time I discovered it. However, it was still a successful road trip.

Here are some facts about Grundy County:

+ Population is 12,299 (2019 estimate), the 62nd most populous county in Iowa. Behind Union and ahead of Chickasaw.
+ The county seat and largest town is Grundy Center.
+ Formed on January 15, 1851.
+ Named for Felix Gundy and Tennessee politician and the 13th Attorney General of the United States.
+ Major highways are: US-20, IA-14, IA-57, and IA-175.
+ Adjacent counties are: Butler, Hardin, Franklin, Black Hawk, Marshall, and Tama.
+ Population peaked in 1920 at 14,420.

Grundy County has a gorgeous courthouse:

Grundy County Courthouse in Grundy Center, Iowa.

The Grundy County Freedom Rock is located in Conrad:

With Grundy County conquered, here is the updated Photography 139 Conquest Map:

PURPLE=COMPLETED

25 counties completed. 25.3% of the Cyclone State conquered.

Here are the town signs of Grundy County:

Grundy Center, Iowa
Grundy Center – Pioneer Trail Entrance – Felix Grundy Festival – Living the Good Life – Welcome
Population: 2,706

Grundy Center, Iowa – Back

Reinbeck, Iowa
Reinbeck Est. 1876
Population: 1,664

Dike, Iowa
Welcome to Dike
Population: 1,209

Conrad, Iowa
Welcome to Conrad – A Main Street Community
Population: 1,108

Wellsburg, Iowa
Wellsburg
Population: 707

Holland, Iowa
Welcome to Holland – 2 Miles West
Population: 282

Stout, Iowa
Stout Astrodome
Population: 224

Beaman, Iowa
Welcome – You’re not dreamin… You’re in Beaman
Population: 191

Morrison, Iowa
City of Morrison City Hall – Est. 1877
Population: 94

The worst town sign in Grundy County is pretty obvious. There are actually 2 of them. Stout didn’t even have a sign on their City Hall that said their town name. Best I could find is a sign that if was in a different competition, would be pretty sweet. But this is a town sign competition. Morrison is a tiny town, but it should be able to do better than the DOT sign. After all, it is home to what looked like a pretty successful restaurant and the Grundy County Museum. They have a sweet orange chair that sits in their park with the town name on it. If it was closer to the main drag, I would have counted it, but it was under a shelter a block away hidden behind picnic tables, so no dice.

The Best in Show for Grundy County is also a no-brainer:

Beaman – Best in Show – Grundy County

There were a couple of towns with alternate signs:

Wellsburg Alternate

Reinbeck Alternate

Beaman Alternate

Here is the current list of Best in Shows:

Best in Show – Adair County

Best in Show – Audubon County

Best in Show – Benton County

Best in Show – Boone County

Best in Show – Carroll County

Best in Show – Clarke County

Best in Show – Crawford County

Best in Show – Dallas County

Best in Show – Franklin County

Best in Show – Greene County

Best in Show – Grundy County

Best in Show – Guthrie County

Best in Show – Hamilton County

Best in Show – Hardin County

Best in Show – Jasper County

Best in Show – Madison County

Best in Show – Marion County

Best in Show – Marshall County

Best in Show – Polk County

Best in Show – Poweshiek County

Best in Show – Story County

Best in Show – Tama County

Best in Show – Union County

Best in Show – Webster County

Best in Show – Wright County

Next time we check in with THE TOWN SIGN PROJECT it will involve Lucas County.