~by Denise Van for the Greene County Historical Society
Driving on Highway 144 from Grand Junction to Perry, local oldtimers probably note the town of Angus on the Greene and Dallas County line, a place anchored by an aging grain elevator before the eastward turn to Perry.
Nancy Hanaman of Rippey will tell the story of that ill-fated mining town on Friday, Oct. 3, at the Rippey Methodist Church, 103 Main St. Lunch will be served at noon, and the free program will follow at 12:45 pm.
According to Hanaman, Angus was the largest coal mining town in Iowa in the 1890s, with a population of perhaps 10,000. It was trumpeted as “the Chicago of the West,” and had reliable railroad access. There were houses and stores, plus several saloons along what was known as “Whiskey Row.” And churches, one of which, the Methodist, whose congregation vigorously opposed alcohol, mysteriously burned one night.
The open pit mines produced low-grade coal and played out in the 1940s, when the town’s decline began.
Today, although there remains a street sign denoting “Angus Avenue,” there are only two houses along the gravel roads in the unincorporated town. The population is perhaps five, says Hanaman.
Please make reservations for the $10 lunch by Tuesday, Oct. 3. Call a Historical Society community contact, or 515-386-4408 to get a seat at the table.
