A couple months back I cruised around Buena Vista County harvesting the balance of their town signs. It was a foggy, icy, and excellent trip.
Here are some facts about Buena Vista County:
+ Population is 20,283 making it the 29th most populous county in Iowa. Below Mahaska County and above Carroll County.
+ The largest town and county seat is Storm Lake.
+ Formed on January 15, 1851.
+ Named after the Battle of Buena Vista from the Mexican-American War. It is surprising how many things in Iowa are named after things from that war.
+ Home of Buena Vista University.
+ Major highways are: US-71, IA-3, IA-7, IA-10, and IA-110.
+ Adjacent counties are Clay, Pocahontas, Sac, and Cherokee.
+ Population peaked in 1960 at 21,189.
For a modern looking courthouse, I don’t hate the Buena Vista County Courthouse:
Buena Vista County Courthouse located in Storm Lake, Iowa.
The Buena Vista County Freedom Rock is located in Albert City, Iowa.
With Buena Vista County conquered, here is the updated Photography 139 Conquest Map:
PURPLE=COMPLETED
61 counties completed. 61.6% of the Cyclone State conquered.
Here are the town signs of Buena Vista County:
Storm Lake, Iowa
STORM LAKE
Population: 11,269 (+669)
Alta, Iowa
WELCOME TO ALTA
Catch the Energy!
Population: 2,087 (+204)
Newell, Iowa
WELCOME TO NEWELL
Population: 906 (+30)
Sioux Rapids, Iowa
WELCOME TO Sioux Rapids
IN THE Valley of Beauty
Population: 748 (+27)
Lakeside, Iowa
CITY OF Lakeside
BEST LITTLE CITY BY A DAM SITE
Population: 700 (+104)
Albert City, Iowa
ALBERT CITY
“HOW SWEDE IT IS”
Population: 677 (-22)
Marathon, Iowa
MARATHON
Population: 230 (-7)
Rembrandt, Iowa
WELCOME TO Rembrandt
A Classic Since 1901
Population: 209 (+6)
Linn Grove, Iowa
Welcome to LINN GROVE
Population: 163 (+9)
Truesdale, Iowa
TRUESDALE
100 USA
Est. 1917
Population: 69 (-12)
I think this is a great collection of town signs. It might be the strongest county I’ve seen so far! The only one I think is a bad sign is Alta. I don’t even think that is terrible. It is just that they seem to have made a sign out of a file that was too small and that has made the sign pixelated and doesn’t look very good.
There are so many town signs I love here and when I put together the book I can see at least two of these being included in it. I don’t know what the exact plan for the book is going to be, but I’m leaning towards including 100 town signs in the book. The 100 best in Iowa. Which means many counties won’t be represented and a few counties like Buena Vista could have several.
I love the Albert City sign. I love the sign for Sioux Rapids, Marathon, and Rembrandt as well. But only one town sign includes a giant lighthouse. That means that Storm Lake gets a rare purple ribbon for a county seat!
Storm Lake – Best in Show – Buena Vista County
There are a couple of alternate town signs in Buena Vista County:
Storm Lake – Alternate
Rembrandt – Alternate
Albert City – Alternate
Here is the current list of Best in Shows:
Best in Show – Adair County
Best in Show – Adams County
Best in Show – Audubon County
Best in Show – Benton County
Best in Show – Boone County
Best in Show – Bremer County
Best in Show – Buena Vista County
Best in Show – Butler County
Best in Show – Calhoun County
Best in Show – Carroll County
Best in Show – Cass County
Best in Show – Cedar County
Best in Show – Cerro Gordo County
Best in Show – Clarke County
Best in Show – Clinton County
Best in Show – Crawford County
Best in Show – Dallas County
Best in Show – Decatur County
Best in Show – Franklin County
Best in Show – Fremont County
Best in Show – Greene County
Best in Show – Grundy County
Best in Show – Guthrie County
Best in Show – Hamilton County
Best in Show – Hancock County
Best in Show – Hardin County
Best in Sow – Harrison County
Best in Show – Humboldt County
Best in Show – Ida County
Best in Show – Iowa County
Best in Show – Jasper County
Best in Show – Jones County
Best in Show – Kossuth County
Best in Show – Linn County
Best in Show – Lucas County
Best in Show – Madison County
Best in Show – Mahaska County
Best in Show – Marion County
Best in Show – Marshall County
Best in Show – Mills County
Best in Show – Monona County
Best in Show – Monroe County
Best in Show – Montgomery County
Best in Show – Page County
Best in Show – Pocahontas County
Best in Show – Polk County
Best in Show – Pottawattamie County
Best in Show – Poweshiek County
Best in Show – Ringgold County
Best in Show – Sac County
Best in Show – Shelby County
Best in Show – Story County
Best in Show – Tama County
Best in Show – Taylor County
Best in Show – Union County
Best in Show – Warren County
Best in Show – Wayne County
Best in Show – Webster County
Best in Show – Winnebago County
Best in Show – Worth County
Best in Show – Wright County
The next time we hit the open road for THE TOWN SIGN PROJECT, we will cruise the roads or Palo Alto County.
I would give Newell the worst. But I love me a town-based pun, so I have to go with either Lakeside or Albert City. The lighthouse is cool, but they aren’t as representative of the town itself. (Unsolicited votes.)
I do take unsolicited votes, but I do worry I will website will end up on Fish Stick Jr.’s show criticizing me of election fraud. Followed by a 10 minute segment praising Putin.
Newell celebrates Pride Days! I mean in this increasingly backwards hick state, isn’t it nice to see a small town backing the LGBTQIA community? Don’t try to tell me that isn’t what Pride Days in Newell is for.