A few weeks back I cruised around Pocahontas County harvesting their town signs. Some of these I harvested on a trip to northwest Iowa with Teresa. The rest I harvested on a solo trip.
Here are some facts about Pocahontas County:
+ Population is 7,078. It is the 93rd most populous county. Behind Ida County and ahead of Wayne County.
+ The largest town and county seat is Pocahontas.
+ Formed in 1851.
+ Named for the Powhatan “Princess” Matoax. Pocahontas was a childhood nickname and she kept her real name hidden from the colonists that held her hostage. The truth of her story is pretty widely misrepresented by Disney… to say the least.
+ Home of a giant (and terrible) statue of Matoax (Pocahontas).
+ Home to a sweet sculpture of the greatest mascot in all the lands, Cy.
+ Home of Palmer’s boys basketball team (now consolidated) that won 103 straight games in the 1980s.
+ Major highways are: IA-3, IA-4, IA-7, IA-10, and IA-15.
+ Adjacent counties are: Palo Alto, Humboldt, Webster, Calhoun, and Buena Vista.
+ Population peaked in 1940 at 16,266.
The Pocahontas County courthouse is similar to the one in Boone.
The Pocahontas County Courthouse located in Pocahontas, Iowa.
The Pocahontas County Freedom Rock is located in Rolfe, Iowa:
The Pocahontas County Freedom Rock is right across the street from a sweet sculpture of Cy, so it probably doesn’t get as much attention as the rest of the Freedom Rocks in Iowa.
With Pocahontas County conquered, this is the updated Photography 139 Conquest Map:
PURPLE=COMPLETED
34 counties completed. 34.3% of the Cyclone State conquered.
Here are the town signs of Pocahontas County (population from 2020 Census):
Pocahontas
WELCOME TO POCAHONTAS
“THE PRINCESS CITY”
Population: 1,867 (+78)
Laurens, Iowa
LAURENS
Population: 1,264 (+6)
Fonda, Iowa
FONDA
HOME TOWN WITH A HEART
Population: 636 (+5)
Rolfe, Iowa
ESTABLISHED 1863
WELCOME TO Rolfe
Population: 509 (-75)
Gilmore City, Iowa (Humboldt County)
IOWA’S LIMESTONE CAPITAL
GILMORE CITY WELCOMES YOU
Population: 487 (-17)
Palmer, Iowa
PALMER
Population: 138 (-27)
Havelock, Iowa
HAVELOCK
EST. 1881
Population: 130 (-8)
Varina, Iowa
A LITTLE TOWN WITH A BIG HEART
Population: 68 (-3)
Plover, Iowa
PLOVER
EST. 1882
Population: 50 (-27)
I think the town with the worst town sign in Pocahontas County is pretty obvious. It is Fonda. They allegedly used to have a pretty cool town sign, but it is either gone now or in the process of being replaced, cause I combed (with Teresa) pretty much every inch of that town and didn’t find it.
I think it is a two horse race for the best town sign in Pocahontas County. Pocahontas and Rolfe have nice signs, but it really comes down to Plover and Havelock. I’m going to give it to Plover because the backwards “1”s in Havelock’s sign makes me think it is a clue to some kind of New World Order/Masonic Temple conspiracy that might be going down in that town. I actually think Plover’s alternate town sign is even better than their main town sign.
Plover – Best in Show – Pocahontas County
Here are the alternate town signs of Pocahontas County:
Pocahontas – Alternate
Plover – Alternate
Laurens – Alternate
Laurens – Alternate
Havelock – Alternate
Varina – Alternate
Varina – Alternate
Something I find interesting about Pocahontas County is that a couple of the towns are references to things in Matoax’s life. Rolfe (assumptions here) is named after John Rolfe the Englishman that Matoax would marry after she was baptized and changed her name to Rebecca. Varina is named after Varina (another assumption) the farm where Matoax and John Rolfe lived. If you are a fan of the musical HAMILTON (and we probably aren’t friends if you aren’t), Laurens is named after Hamilton’s close friend and critic of slavery John Laurens. And Plover is named for a bird. And Fonda is named because the post office in the day was too incompetent to tell the difference between Manson and Marvin.
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 – Butler County
Best in Show – Calhoun 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 – Hancock County
Best in Show – Hardin County
Best in Show – Humboldt County
Best in Show – Ida County
Best in Show – Jasper County
Best in Show – Lucas County
Best in Show – Madison County
Best in Show – Marion County
Best in Show – Marshall County
Best in Show – Pocahontas County
Best in Show – Polk County
Best in Show – Poweshiek County
Best in Show – Sac County
Best in Show – Story County
Best in Show – Tama County
Best in Show – Union County
Best in Show – Warren County
Best in Show – Webster County
Best in Show – Wright County
The next time we hit the dusty trail with THE TOWN SIGN PROJECT, we will visit Cerro Gordo County.