A few months back I cruised around Fayette County harvesting their town signs. It was a good trip:
Here are some facts about Fayette County:
+ Population is 19,604 making it the 35th most populous county in Iowa. Below Henry County and above Jackson County.
+ The largest town is Oelwein.
+ The county seat is West Union.
+ It is hard to say when Fayette County formed because it was part of the Wisconsin Territory and then party of the Iowa Territory. It was organized into its current size in 1850.
+ Named after Gilbert du Motier, marquis de La Fayette. A French general who fought with the Americans in the Revolutionary War. You know, the guy from HAMILTON. “I dream of France without a monarchy/The unrest in France will lead to “onarchy”/Onarchy? How you say? How you… oh, anarchy!”
+ Home of Upper Iowa University.
+ Major highways are: US-18, IA-3, IA-56, IA-93, IA-150, IA-187, and IA-281.
+ Adjacent counties are: Allamakee, Black Hawk, Buchanan, Bremer, Chickasaw, Clayton, Delaware, and Winneshiek.
+ Population peaked in 1920 at 29,251.
The Fayette County Courthouse isn’t bad. Very similar to Boone’s.
The Fayette County Courthouse in West Union, Iowa.
The Fayette County Freedom Rock is located in Fayette, Iowa.
With Fayette County completed, here is the Photography 139 Conquest Map:
PURPLE=COMPLETED
84 counties down. 84.8% of the Cyclone State conquered!
Here are the town signs of Fayette County:
Oelwein, Iowa
Welcome To…
OELWEIN
Population: 5,920 (-495)
West Union, Iowa
West Union
WELCOME YOU
Population: 2,490 (+4)
Fayette, Iowa
FAYETTE
UPPER IOWA UNIVERSITY
Est. 1857
Population: 1,256 (-82)
Fairbank, Iowa (Partially Buchanan)
Welcome to Fairbank
Population: 1,111 (-2)
Elgin, Iowa
WILLKOMMEN
GRUETZI MITEN AND
GREETINS ONE AND ALL
ELGIN
Little Switzerland of Iowa
Population: 685 (+2)
Clermont, Iowa
WELCOMT TO HISTORIC CLERMONT
Home of Willaim Larrabee,
Governor of Iowa, 1886-1890
Population: 586 (-46)
Maynard, Iowa
City of Maynard
WELCOMES YOU
Where the River Flows North
Population: 476 (-42)
Hawkeye, Iowa
HAWKEYE
2 MILES
Population: 438 (-11)
Arlington, Iowa
ARLINGTON
Where Hills and Prairie Meet
Population: 419 (-10)
Waucoma, Iowa
WAUCOMA
Just A Few Short Streets
Where Old Friends Meet
Founded – 1855
Population: 229 (-28)
Wadena, Iowa
Home of The Lighted Cross
Welcome To WADENA
Population: 209 (-53)
Westgate, Iowa
Welcome To Westgate
Population: 192 (-19)
St. Lucas, Iowa
ST. LUCAS
INC. 1900
WELCOMES YOU
Population: 167 (+24)
Randalia, Iowa
RANDALIA CENTENNIAL PARK
Population: 50 (-18)
Oran, Iowa – Unincorporated
Welcome To ORAN
Clearly the worst town sign in Fayette County is Randalia cause it isn’t even a true town sign.
But who gets Best in Show? There are some town signs in Fayette County that I really like. I like Waucoma. I like Wadena. I like Westgate. I like Arlington. I like Hawkeye. But my favorite is definitely Clermont. Backup the purple ribbon truck!
Clermont – Best in Show – Fayette County
There were a few alternate town signs in Fayette County:
West Union – Alternate
Hawkeye – Alternate
Fayette – Alternate
Fayette – Alternate
Arlington – Alternate
Here is the current list of Best in Shows:
Best in Show – Adair County
Best in Show – Adams County
Best in Show – Appanoose County
Best in Show – Audubon County
Best in Show – Benton County
Best in Show – Black Hawk County
Best in Show – Boone County
Best in Show – Bremer County
Best in Show – Buchanan 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 – Cherokee County
Best in Show – Chickasaw County
Best in Show – Clarke County
Best in Show – Clay County
Best in Show – Clinton County
Best in Show – Crawford County
Best in Show – Dallas County
Best in Show – Decatur County
Best in Show – Delaware County
Terril – Best in Show – Dickinson County
Best in Show – Dickinson County
Best in Show – Emmet County
Best in Show – Fayette County
Best in Show – Floyd 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 – Howard County
Best in Show – Humboldt County
Best in Show – Ida County
Best in Show – Iowa County
Best in Show – Jackson County
Best in Show – Jasper County
Best in Show – Jones County
Best in Show – Keokuk County
Best in Show – Kossuth County
Best in Show – Linn County
Best in Show – Lucas County
Best in Show – Lyon 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 – Mitchell County
Best in Show – Monona County
Best in Show – Monroe County
Best in Show – Montgomery County
Best in Show – O’Brien County
Best in Show – Osceola County
Best in Show – Page County
Best in Show – Palo Alto County
Best in Show – Plymouth 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 – Sioux 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 – Winneshiek County
Best in Show – Woodbury 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 visit Allamakee County.
Fake news. Elgin is the clear winner here.