Historical Program Remembered The Communities That Have Made Up Mahaska County

Dave Baker with ‘The 29th State’ shared Mahaska County history on Friday evening at George Daily Auditorium.

by Ken Allsup
June 12th, 2022

Oskaloosa, Iowa – Local history seems important to area residents, along with any chance to learn more about and remember the people and places that have made up Mahaska County.

Dave Baker is the creator of the website and Facebook page ‘The 29th State’ and works in his spare time to help people explore what is quickly becoming a forgotten past.

Baker’s interest in documenting Iowa communities goes back to 2009 while working at the Historic Pella Trust.

On his website, Baker wrote, “The 29th State. It is a state of 99 counties; filled with 945 unique incorporated communities, dozens of unincorporated villages, scores of ghost towns, and countless depots, post offices, churches, cemeteries, and landmarks.”

Oskaloosa News, with the help from the George Daily Auditorium, helped make Baker’s presentation possible.

After a brief introduction, Baker told the nearly 170 visitors they would see why he likes Oskaloosa and Mahaska County.

Baker started with the nearly extinct community of Evans, Iowa, which was once home to approximately 3000 people.

Teddy Roosevelt made a stop there when his train ran out of fuel. Baker also talked about the two bands that performed for the community.

Beacon and Buxton were mentioned briefly, while places like Muchakinock, Cooperstown, White City, Durfee, and Lost Creek occupied a large portion of the presentation.

Pekay, Carbonado, Lakonta, Givin, Olivet, and Fishville also garnered attention from Baker.

At the end of his presentation, Baker shared his reason’s why the Mahaska County area was important to him. Watch the video to learn about that.

http://www.iowathe29thstate.com/
https://www.facebook.com/The29thState/