Billy Robinson in his monoplane with radial engine and parasol-type wings. On October 17, 1914, Robinson set a new American record in his plane for a non-stop flight, flying 370 miles in four hours, 44 minutes, from Des Moines to Kentland, Ind.,…
For over a century, the Conestoga wagon helped shape American culture and American transportation. In a sense, the Conestoga wagon was the transportation symbol of the United States' concept of Manifest Destiny. Able to carry families and supplies…
The town square in downtown Oskaloosa, Iowa has been able to capture just about every major scene of historical significance in Oskaloosa, Mahaska County, and the United States since being built. In this particular photograph, nothing stands out as…
Pictured here are members of the Epworth League and other random citizens catching a ride across the Des Moines River in Eddyville, Iowa, in June, 1917. The steamboat is leaving from the docks of the Empire Sand and Material Company. Travel by…
When a stagecoach came through your town in the late 1800's it could have meant several things. First, the stagecoach might have been carrying a family on its way to settling down in the community or just to stop in the middle of their journey east…
Pictured here is the southside of the Oskaloosa town square as it appeared around 1900. The southside of the square is bordered by 1st Avenue East, which runs perpendicular with South Market Street. As Oskaloosa entered the 20th Century, its roads…
This image captures Oskaloosa, Iowa at a point before the automobile came full circle to the community and after the horse and buggy started becoming a thing of the past. The trolley served as the halfway point in between these two methods of…
The primary means of transportation for police officers in Oskaloosa in the early 1900's was by foot or horseback. Pictured here are three Oskaloosa police officers on patrol via horseback around 1910. Note the building construction taking place in…
Pictured here is one of the earliest automobiles traveling west down 1st Avenue East in Oskaloosa, Iowa. 1st Avenue East was one of the first streets paved for automobile usage. Eventually, block after block would be paved in the community, but the…
John F. Lacey was a successful soldier, attorney, and businessman in Oskaloosa, Iowa. Pictured here is one of his many successful business ventures, the Lacey Hotel, dating from approximately 1910. Note the streetcar traveling on the left side of…