This is a picture taken at the Old Excelsior Mine Shaft #2 back in 1886. The mine was located three miles south of Oskaloosa, Iowa, in Mahaska County. Today, many buildings and facilities in Oskaloosa were once the site of a coal mining operation. …
Religion has always played a very important role in Mahaska County, Iowa. One of the credits to the county has been its people's tolerance for others to worship freely without fear. This photograph shows the the old Methodist Church in Oskaloosa,…
Beacon, once known as the town of Enterprise, did not fully switch its name over until 1874. Beacon's success revolved around its coal mining connection and proximity to the railroad lines. Before Oskaloosa, the county seat of Mahaska County,…
Olivet was created by the Civil Enginner Free Tufts on June 13, 1877, but the plat of the community wasn't created until July 10th of that year. Coal mining was the chief source of employment for people in this community and all seemed like this…
This was the scene around Christmas in 1924 if you were in downtown Oskaloosa, Iowa. Pictured here is a Christmas promotional outside of Oppenheimer-Alsop's, which served as toy town and Santa Claus's headquarters that year.
