A few months back I made two separate trips to harvest the town signs of Clayton County. It was a great trip and I truly believe that Clayton County is one of the prettiest counties in Iowa. The whole region of Iowa is spectacular!
Here are some facts about Clayton County:
+ Population is 16,998. Making it the 41st most populous county in Iowa. Below Delaware County and above Tama County.
+ The largest town is Postville. The county seat is Elkader.
+ Established in 1837.
+ Named after John M. Clayton, a Senator from Delaware and the Secretary of State under Zachary Taylor.
+ Part of the Driftless Area.
+ 5th largest county in Iowa by area.
+ Home to Effigy Mounds National Monument. (Partially)
+ Major highways are US-18, US-13, US-52, IA-128, IA-56, IA-3, and IA-76.
+ Adjacent counties are Allamakee, Dubuque, Fayette, Delaware, Winneshiek, and Buchanan.
+ Population peaked at 28,829 in 1880.
Clayton County has a decent, but not spectacular looking courthouse:
The Clayton County Courthouse in Elkader, Iowa.
The Clayton County Freedom Rock is located in Guttenberg:
With Clayton County conquered, here is the updated Photography 139 Conquest Map:
PURPLE=COMPLETED
88 counties completed. 88.9% of the Cyclone State conquered!
Here are the town signs of Clayton County:
Postville, Iowa (Partially in Allamakee County)
EST. 1849
POSTVILLE
Hometown to the World
Population: 2,503 (+276)
Guttenberg, Iowa
Guttenberg
Historic Rivertown
Population: 1,817 (-102)
Monona, Iowa
Garden City of Iowa
MONONA
Incorporate 1897
Population: 1,471 (-78)
Elkader, Iowa
WELCOME TO ELKDAER
SHOP DINE EXPLORE & MORE
Population: 1,209 (-64)
Strawberry Point, Iowa
STRAWBERRY POINT
Population: 1,155 (-124)
Edgewood, Iowa (Partially Delaware County)
CITY OF EDGEWOOD
Population: 909 (+45)
Garnavillo, Iowa
Welcome To GARNAVILLO
Gem of the Prairie
Population: 763 (+18)
McGregor, Iowa
Est. 1837
WELCOME TO HISTORIC McGREGOR
Home of Pikes Peak
Population: 742 (-130)
Marquette, Iowa
MARQUETTE
WELCOMES YOU
Population: 429 (+54)
Luana, Iowa
Welcome to LUANA
Population: 301 (+32)
Farmersburg, Iowa
Farmersburg
THE SMALL TOWN IN THE COUNTRY
Population: 271 (-31)
Volga City, Iowa
VOLGA CITY
Population: 203 (-5)
North Buena Vista, Iowa
Welcome to:
North Buena Vista
GROTTO
BOATING FISHING
Population: 109 (-12)
St. Olaf, Iowa
St. Olaf Civic Center
Population: 106 (-2)
Garber & Elkport, Iowa
Welcome to the Elkport-Garber Community
Where The Rivers Run Wild
Garber Population: 76 (-12)
Elkport Population: 29 (-8)
Clayton, Iowa
CLAYTON
Est. 1849
Population: 45 (+2)
Osterdock, Iowa
Welcome to Osterdock
God’s Country
Population: 43 (-16)
Hardin, Iowa – Ghost Town
VILLAGE OF HARDIN
That is a pretty solid set of town signs. I think the worst one is pretty obvious though. It is St. Olaf. It isn’t really a town sign, just a sign marking their Civic Center.
But who gets the purple ribbon for Clayton County? I love the signs for Osterdock and Marquette and Guttenberg and Elkport-Garber and Garnavillo and Monona and Postville. Volage City’s town sign is a fountain! A FOUNTAIN! I don’t imagine there is another town sign in Iowa that is a fountain. But only one town has a town sign that is also the world’s largest strawberry. I have to give the prize to Strawberry Point.
Strawberry Point – Best in Show – Clayton County
There are quite a few alternate town signs in Clayton County:
McGregor – Alternate
Guttenberg – Alternate
Volga City – Alternate
Strawberry Point – Alternate
Monona – Alternate
Here is the current list of Best in Shows:
Best in Show – Adair County
Best in Show – Adams County
Best in Show – Allamakee 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 – Clayton 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 – Johnson 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 – Washington 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 Wapello County.
This was a really solid bunch of signs, but there was really only Strawberry Point for the #1 slot.