Mills Tower Historic District | |
Location | E. Rocksylvania Ave., 1/3 mile east of Freight House, Iowa Falls, Iowa |
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Coordinates | 42°31′22″N93°14′55″W / 42.52278°N 93.24861°W |
Area | 1.79 acres (0.72 ha) |
Architect | Illinois Central Railroad |
MPS | Advent & Development of Railroads in Iowa MPS |
NRHP reference No. | 90001304 [1] |
Added to NRHP | September 6, 1990 |
The Mills Tower Historic District is a nationally recognized historic district located in Iowa Falls, Iowa, United States. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990. [1] At the time of its nomination the district consisted of six resources, including two contributing buildings, and four non-contributing buildings. [2] All of the buildings are associated with the Illinois Central Railroad (IC). The Dubuque & Sioux City Railroad, an affiliate of the IC, laid the first rail track to Iowa Falls in 1866. The following year the Iowa Falls & Sioux City Railroad, another IC affiliate, continued construction of the line to the west, and it reached Sioux City by 1870. The Burlington, Cedar Rapids and Northern Railway (BCR&N) by way of its affiliate the Cedar Rapids, Iowa Falls & North Western, entered Iowa Falls in 1880. Two years later it was expanded to the north and intersected with the IC main line, which required a controlled crossing. Little is known about this first crossing and what it contained. [2]
Iowa Falls businessman E.S. Ellsworth founded the Des Moines, Iowa Falls & Northern Railroad (DIF&N) in 1899 with the intention of connecting Iowa Falls to Des Moines. The Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad acquired the BCR&N in 1903, and created the St. Paul & Des Moines Railroad to acquire the DIF&N and to complete the line to St. Paul, Minnesota beginning in 1905. This new Rock Island route created a new Junction with the IC to the east of the original Iowa Falls junction. The two-story frame Mills Tower was built at the new junction about 1909. It was designed by the IC and may have been built by them as well. [2] Offices were located on the first floor, and the control room was on the second floor. The second contributing building is the c. 1912 signal maintainers and supply house. It was used mainly as storage and office space for the switchtender. The other buildings in this district were built later. They include the coal house, oil house, and tool house, all from about 1945, and an outhouse from 1976.
Cedar Rapids is the second-largest city in Iowa, United States and is the county seat of Linn County. The city lies on both banks of the Cedar River, 20 miles (32 km) north of Iowa City and 100 miles (160 km) northeast of Des Moines, the state's capital and largest city. It is a part of the Cedar Rapids/Iowa City region of Eastern Iowa, which includes Linn, Benton, Cedar, Iowa, Jones, Johnson, and Washington counties.
Columbus Junction is a city in Louisa County, Iowa. The population was 1,830 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Muscatine Micropolitan Statistical Area.
James Barney Marsh was an American engineer and bridge designer. He patented a new design for arch bridges. Marsh gave Archie Alexander, the first African-American to graduate as an engineer from Iowa State University, his first job. Marsh worked in the bridge building business for over 50 years, and several of his bridges are listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
The Burlington, Cedar Rapids and Northern Railway (BCR&N) was a railroad that operated in the United States from 1876 to 1903. It was formed to take over the operations of the bankrupt Burlington, Cedar Rapids and Minnesota Railway, which was, in turn, the result of merging several predecessor lines, the construction of which began in 1869. The corporate headquarters were in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and it had operations in Iowa and in Minnesota. It was succeeded by the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railway.
The Linn County Courthouse is located on May's Island in the middle of the Cedar River in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, United States. It, along with the Veterans Memorial Building and two other buildings, is a contributing property to the May's Island Historic District that was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. The courthouse is the third building the county has used for court functions and county administration.
Burlington, Cedar Rapids and Northern Railroad Passenger Station, also known as Rock Island Railroad Depot and the Rock Island Depot Railroad Museum, is a historic building located in Clarion, Iowa, United States. The station was built in 1898 by contractor A. H. Connor & Company of Cedar Rapids, Iowa for the Burlington, Cedar Rapids and Northern Railroad (BCR&N). Clarion also had a Chicago Great Western Railway depot, no longer extant. At one time there were 14 trains that served the city. In 1903 the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railway acquired the BCR&N, and this depot served that railroad. The single story, Romanesque Revival, brick structure measures 26 by 88.5 feet. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1988.
The Burlington, Cedar Rapids & Northern Freight House, also known as the Rock Island Freight House, is a historic building located in Burlington, Iowa, United States. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.
The Burlington, Cedar Rapids, and Northern Railroad-Rock Rapids Station, Railroad Track and Bridge is a nationally recognized historic district located in Rock Rapids, Iowa, United States. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976. At the time of its nomination the district included one contributing building and three contributing structures.
The Burlington, Cedar Rapids & Northern Passenger Station-Vinton, also known as Rock Island Depot and the Vinton Depot, is a historic building located in Vinton, Iowa, United States. Completed in 1900, this depot replaced a previous depot of the Burlington, Cedar Rapids and Northern Railway (BCR&N) located on the east side of town. It was designed by the railroad's architect and chief engineer, H.F. White, and built by A.H. Connor & Company of Cedar Rapids. The single-story brick structure was constructed on a limestone foundation. Three years after it was built, the BCR&N was acquired by the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad. It continued to serve as a working depot until 1967. The Benton County Historical Society restored the depot and converted into a railroad museum. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990.
Iowa Falls Union Depot is a historic building located in Iowa Falls, Iowa, United States. The Dubuque & Sioux City Railroad, an affiliate of the Illinois Central Railroad (IC), laid the first rail track to Iowa Falls in 1866. The following year the Iowa Falls & Sioux City Railroad, another IC affiliate, continued construction of the line to the west, and it reached Sioux City by 1870. They built a plain, two-story frame depot to serve Iowa Falls. The Burlington, Cedar Rapids and Northern Railway (BCR&N) by way of its affiliate the Cedar Rapids, Iowa Falls & North Western, entered Iowa Falls in 1880. They built their own depot. It was basically another east–west route, but local business leaders desired a north–south route to serve the community.
Illinois Central Combination Depot-Ackley is a historic building located in Ackley, Iowa, United States. The Dubuque & Sioux City Railroad, an affiliate of the Illinois Central Railroad (IC), laid the first rail track to Iowa Falls in 1865. Two years later the Iowa Falls & Sioux City Railroad, another IC affiliate, continued construction of the line to the west, and it reached Sioux City by 1870. They built a plain, two-story frame depot to serve Ackley. From the 1890s to the 1920s the IC replaced its first generation stations with new brick structures. IC architect J.H. Schott designed the new depot at Ackley, and it was built by Coomer & Small Construction Company of Sioux City. The long and low single-story brick building exhibits influences from the Prairie School and the Tudor Revival style. A combination depot is one that incorporates passenger and freight services in the same building. It was also an island depot, meaning that it sat in the middle of the tracks. It was one of the last replacement depots the IC built before the Great Depression. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990.
The Lewis System Armored Car and Detective Service Building, also known as the Bell Tire and Rubber Company (Service Company) and Sioux City Tent and Awning, is a historic building located in Sioux City, Iowa, United States. F.A. Martin and Richard Nash, who owned the property, had this two-story brick commercial building constructed in 1929. KB Construction (Federation Construction Company), who built the building, occupied the second floor. Bell Tire and Rubber Company was the first business located on the first floor from 1930 to 1933. A few other businesses occupied the space until Sioux City Tent and Awning was located here from 1937 to 1941. The following year Lewis System moved in and remained until 1969. The second floor was converted into apartments about 1950.
Coggon Public School, also known as the Coggon Center, is a historic building located in Coggon, Iowa, United States.
The Cedar Rapids Central Business District Commercial Historic District is a nationally recognized historic district located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, United States. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2015. At the time of its nomination it consisted of 60 resources, which included 46 contributing buildings, one contributing structure, 12 non-contributing buildings, and one non-contributing structure. Cedar Rapids was platted on the east bank of the Cedar River as Rapids City in 1841, and it was incorporated under the same name in 1849. Kingston was established on the west bank of the river in 1852. The two smaller communities consolidated in 1870 as Cedar Rapids. The streets were laid out parallel and perpendicular to the river, which flowed from the northwest to the southeast. The Chicago, Iowa and Nebraska Railroad was the first to arrive in the community in 1859 and the tracks were laid on Fourth Street on the eastern edge of the central business district. The first bridge across the river was built at Third Avenue in 1871.
The Des Moines Western Railway Freight House, also known as the Des Moines, Iowa Falls & Northern Railroad Freight House, is a historic building located in Des Moines, Iowa, United States. Built between 1902 and 1903 by local contractor William H. Brererton, this two-story brick building features a low-pitched, side gable roof. It was built as a railroad freight house for F.M. Hubbell and the Des Moines Western Railway, which was an attempt to link the city and points west, but it never made it beyond the city limits. It is now a rare example of a once common building type in the city. The building was leased to the Des Moines, Iowa Falls, and Northern Railroad (DMIF&N), another Hubbell venture. An interurban line, the Fort Dodge, Des Moines & Southern Railroad (FtDDM&S), acquired the DMIF&N and continued to use this freight house for that purpose as they carried a high volume of freight. The building has been remodeled three times. The first was when part of it was converted by the FtDDM&S into an interurban passenger depot in 1933. The second time was when it was converted into a restaurant in the 1980s. The third time was its conversion into an office building, which is what it is today. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2008.
The Iowa City Downtown Historic District is a nationally recognized historic district located in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2021. At the time of its nomination it consisted of 102 resources, which included 73 contributing buildings, one contributing site, one contributing object, 21 non-contributing buildings, and seven non-contributing objects. Eight buildings that were previously listed on the National Register are also included in the district. Iowa City's central business district developed adjacent to the Iowa Old Capitol Building and the main campus of the University of Iowa. This juxtaposition gives the area its energy with the overlap of university staff and students and the local community. The district was significantly altered in the 1970s by the city's urban renewal effort that brought about the Ped Mall, which transformed two blocks of College Street from Clinton Street to Linn Street and Dubuque Street from Burlington Street to Washington Street. It is the contributing site and the large planters/retaining walls that are original to the project are counted together as the contributing object. There are also several freestanding, limestone planters, five contemporary sculptures, and a playground area are the non-contributing objects.