Appanoose County has a unique heritage, yet it shares a common legacy with all rural Midwestern communities. The boundaries were drawn in 1843, and pioneers from the East came and staked their claims. Jonathan Stratton, the surveyor who platted an addition to Ann Arbor, Michigan, that would eventually become the University of Michigan, did the same with the county seat, Centerville, and remained there. Coal was discovered in the county and became the primary industry for over 50 years. Waves of immigrants came to the area for work in the mines, changing the landscape of the populace forever. Even as coal mining faded away, the diverse culture of the residents remained. These people of Appanoose County maintained a strong work ethic and a positive attitude that pulled them through tough times. They took pride in the community and celebrated their great fortune to live in Appanoose County.

Excerpt from The History of Appanoose County, Iowa: Containing a History of the County, Its Cities, Towns, &C., A Biographical Directory of Citizens, War Record of Its Volunteers in the Late Rebellion, General and Local Statistics, Portraits of Early Settlers and Prominent Men Ess than half a century has rolled into eternity since the Indian title to any portion of the soil of Iowa was extinguished, and the Black Hawk Purchase permitted the resistless tide of emigration westward to flow across the Mississippi; and only thirty-three years ago the Sac and Fox Indians reluctantly left their beautiful hunting-grounds, a por tion of which was the southern part of Appanoose County. Only forty years have elapsed since the adventurous kirby and wells built the first rude cabins in the southern part of the county, followed a few years after by the brave and hardy pioneers who settled in the edges of the beautiful groves that deck the expanses of' prairie within its borders, But these fleeting years have been replete with eventful changes - of history that it has been the purpose of this work to gather, arrange and preserve for transmission to posterity as one of the almost countless chapters in the annals of this great country. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

A detailed history of the settlement and development of Appanoose County, Iowa, from its earliest days to the present. The book provides a fascinating glimpse into the lives of the pioneers who first settled the area, and explores the economic, social, and political forces that have shaped the region over time. This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.