Town Sign Project: Poweshiek County

I recently took a Friday off from the Computer Mine and Jesse and I spent the day tooling around Poweshiek County (and Benton County) harvesting their town signs. It was a very enjoyable trip, because it included ice cream! As all great road trips should.

Here are some facts about Poweshiek County:

+ Population is 18,388 (2019 estimate). The 38th most populous county in Iowa.
+ The county seat is Montezuma.
+ The largest town is Grinnell.
+ Formed in 1843.
+ Named for Chief Poweshiek (1791-1854) of the Fox tribe who signed the treaty ending the Black Hawk War.
+ Home of Grinnell College.
+ Home of the Brooklyn Flag Display.
+ Major highways are: I-80, US-6, US-63, IA-21, IA-85, and IA-146.
+ Adjacent counties are: Tama, Iowa, Keokuk, Mahaska, and Jasper.
+ Peak population was 19.910 in 1920.

Poweshiek County has a beautiful courthouse:

Poweshiek County Courthouse in Montezuma, Iowa

The Poweshiek County Courthouse is located in Montezuma:

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

PURPLE=COMPLETED

24 counties completed. 24.2% of the Cyclone State conquered.

Here are the town signs of Poweshiek County:

Grinnell, Iowa
Grinnell – Jewel of the Prairie
Population: 9,218

Brooklyn, Iowa
Brooklyn – Community of Flags
Population: 1,468

Montezuma, Iowa
Welcome to Montezuma
Population: 1,462

Victor, Iowa
Victor
Population: 893

Malcom, Iowa
Malcom – In the Middle of It All – Next 6 Exits – Est 1872
Population: 289

Deep River, Iowa
Welcome to Deep River – Est. 1884
Population: 279

Barnes City, Iowa
Welcome to Barnes City – Home of Lake Hawthorn
Population: 176

Searsboro, Iowa
Searsboro – Est. 1876
Population: 148

Hartwick, Iowa
<- Hartwick 3
Population: 86

Guernsey, Iowa
Est 1884 – Guernsey
Population: 63

The worst town sign is obviously Hartwick. They didn’t even have a city hall with their town name on it. They did have a spot that looked like it was destined for a town sign, but maybe it was just a very sparse flowerbed. Victor also has a terribly boring sign and Searsboro doesn’t try very hard either. However, by far the biggest disappointment is Montezuma. How do you have such an awesome town name and such a boring sign?

But who gets Best in Show for Poweshiek County. I love Guernsey’s sign. Grinnell has a solid sign as well. Brooklyn has a decent, although corporate art looking, sign. Barnes City’s sign has a great folk art look to it. However, I’m going to give Best in Show to Malcom.

Malcom – Best in Show – Poweshiek County

The only town in Poweshiek County with an alternate sign is Grinnell