44. HENRY COUNTY, IOWA

Section I: History and Geography

History

Henry County emerged out of Des Moines County when the latter was divided in 1836. Henry had become a part of Iowa with the Black Hawk Purchase of 1832. It derived its name from Colonel James D. Henry. Like the rest of Iowa, Henry was apart of the Louisiana Territory in 1800 until ceded to the United States in 1804. The first settler, Hiram Smith, established himself at Lowell in 1833. He brought an explosion of pioneers with James Dawson settling in Center Township in 1834 staking a claim in Tippecanoe. Presley Saunders arrived that fall but returned to Illinois until the next spring. He returned and built a cabin at today's Saunders Park. Isaac Pigeon put down roots south of Salem in 1835. Reverend Jon Ruble brought Methodism to Mt. Pleasant in the same year. The first courthouse came in 1839 smack‑dab in the middle of Mt. Pleasant's City Square, and a military road was laid out between Dubuque and Keosauqua the same year. In 1842, the Iowa Territorial Legislature approved the incorporation of Mt. Pleasant Literary Institute. It became Iowa Wesleyan College (Pioneer Hall). The tempo picked up after Iowa's statehood in 1846. A plank toll road linked Burlington and Mt. Pleasant in 1853. Mt. Pleasanter James Harlan was elected Iowa's first Republican senator in 1855. And more progress, in late July 1856, with the arrival of the Burlington and Missouri River Railroad at Mt. Pleasant; the opening of the first quarry providing ballast and stone for the Burlington railroad bridges. Coeducation came to Iowa Wesleyan University setting a first in higher education in the State.

Two institutions established in 1861 are Camp Harlan, Civil War rendezvous camp, slightly west of Mr. Pleasant, and the first mental health facility west of the Mississippi. Near one hundred member Second Baptist Church is organized in 1863 for Black residents. In 1870, a Women's Rights Convention is held in Mt. Pleasant with dignitaries such as Amelia Bloomer, Annie Savery, Hannah Tracy Cutler and Mary Darwin present. Joshua Newbold is elected lieutenant governor in 1876 and, in 1877, he occupies the governor's chair when Governor Samuel J. Kirkwood is elected to the United States Senate. The Burlington & Northwestern railroad reaches Winfield from Burlington in 1876, A girls' reform school is located southwest of Mt. Pleasant in 1878.

Boundaries

Henry County is located in southeastern Iowa, and is bordered by the following counties: West: Van Buren and Jefferson Cos.; North: Washington and Louisa Cos.; East: Louisa and Des Moines Cos., and South: Lee County.

Current towns and communities (Zip codes given for towns having Post Offices)

Town/Community Township Population

1890 1990

Hillsboro 52630 Salem 200 169

Lowell Baltimore 150

Mount Pleasant 52641 Center 3,997 7,959

Mount Union 52644 Canaan 75 140

New London 52645 New London 580 1,992

Olds 52647 Wayne 50 205

Rome 52642 Tippecanoe 200 124

Salem 52649 Salem 551 453

Swedesburg 52652 Wayne 100

Trenton Trenton 200

Wayland 52654 Jefferson 350 838

Winfield 52659 Scott 461 1,051

Abandoned towns

Town Township Town Township

Section III: Records – records may be found at the record sites abbreviated after each entry. See Section II for complete record site information.

· Federal: 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1900, 1910, 1920, 1930, microfilm: [MPPL] , [IGSL] , [ISHL]

· Federal Indices: 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1900, 1920, microfilm: [IGSL] , [ISHL]

· Henry Co Gen Soc: Henry Co Census for 1852, 1854, 1863, 1869 (1989): [IGSL] , [ISHL]

· Births: from 1880, originals: [HCCH] ; 1880-1935, microfilm: [IGSL] , [ISHL]

· Henry Co Gen Soc: Henry Co. Births – 1880 (1991): [IGSL] ; 1881-1888 (1999): [IGSL] , [ISHL]

· Marriages: from 1836, originals: [HCCH] ; 1836-1931, microfilm: [IGSL] , [ISHL]

· Deaths: from 1880, originals: [HCCH] ; 1880-1935, microfilm: [IGSL] , [ISHL]

· Henry Co Gen Soc: Death Records, Book 2, 1893-1898 (1991); Book 3, 1906-1913 (1996): [IGSL] , [ISHL]

· Henry County death records derived from 1850, 1860, 1870 federal census mortality schedules: [MPPL]

· Henry Co Gen Soc: Naturalization records, from 1841, transcription (1991): [IGSL] , [ISHL]

· Henry County death records from Mt. Pleasant papers, 1921-1959, (1959): [ISHL]

· Iowa Wesleyan College Church Files and related records, 1840-1960, microfilm: [ISHL]

· Swengle Meyer collection of all Iowa Methodist churches (includes pastor information) : [IWCL]

· Commemorative booklet: Sugar Creek Church, 1871-1971, Wayland (1971): [ISHL]

· Farmer: Sugar Creek Mennonite Church Congregation History 1871-1997 (1997): [ISHL]

· Wright: History of the Good Samaritan Society of the Pleasant Hill Community (Church), n.d.: [ISHL]

Newspapers: (on microfilm for towns listed; there may skips in the date ranges listed for each newspaper)

· Western Hist. Co.: The History of Henry Co., Iowa (1879): [NPL] , [MPPL] , [ISHL]

· Henry Co Bicentennial Commission: The History of Henry County, Iowa (1982): [CPL] , [NPL] , [MPPL] , [IGSL]

· Acme Pub Co: Biographical Review and History of Henry Co., Iowa (1888): [CPL] , [NPL] , [MPPL] , [IGSL] , [ISHL]

· Workman: Index to 1888 Biographical Review and History of Henry Co., Iowa (1987): [ISHL]

· Biographical Review and History of Henry Co., Iowa, indexed (1906): [MPPL] , [ISHL]

· Hayes: Highlights of Henry County History 1833-1976: [MPPL] , [IGSL] , [ISHL]

· Salem History Book Committee: The Place of Peace, memories of Salem, Iowa 1835-1996 (1996): [ISHL]

· Iowa Genealogical Society: Hawkeye Heritage articles through 1993, [IGSL] (Entries indicate year, issue number and page number.)

- Grand Army of the Republic, Salem (1969) 4:165; Hillsboro (1969) 4:160; New London (1969) 4:162; Winfield (1969) 4:169; Mount Pleasant (1969) 3:120

· The following Henry County Publications are for sale through the Van Buren County Genealogical Society. Consult the Van Buren County Genealogical Society webpage for a detailed listing and availability.

· The following Henry County Publications are for sale through the Iowa Genealogical Society. See the Iowa Genealogical Society webpage for a detailed listing and availability.

Section IV: Credits

We wish to acknowledge the contributions made by members of the Henry County Genealogical Society, the Henry County Courthouse, the Iowa State Historical Society and volunteers at the Iowa Genealogical Society in providing data contained in this research guide. Their efforts have been of immeasurable help in gathering this information.