(19) Pocahontas County 3.18.2022

Our first stop in Pocahontas County was the Kalsow Prairie State Preserve which is the center of the Manson Crater (Manson is actually located in Calhoun County). So many years ago, a meteor hit the area, creating the Manson anomaly aquifer. Apparently, the water tastes much different here; although these days it’s treated so you can’t taste the authentic crater water.  

 

 (Manson is in Calhoun County)

Next up was Gilmore City, Iowa’s Limestone Capital. We did a little pit stop at the Moore Recreation Area to do some exploring of some of the limestone quarry.

 

Then we scoured the landscape for the remains of Old Rolfe and found the Old Rolfe Cemetery and the marker for the first Pocahontas County Court House. 

But what might have been even cooler than Old Rolfe is the marker for the spot where the last bison in Iowa was shot.

Of course we had to enjoy some local food at The Udder Cow in Pocahontas. We also did some shopping downtown at the local boutiques and stopped for coffee at Aspen Leaf. Definitely a cute downtown, and the food and drinks were all wonderful! And we couldn’t leave Pocahontas without visiting the oh-so-famous giant statue of Pocahontas herself.

 

Our last stop in Pocahontas County was Laurens. We got a personal tour at the Pocahontas County Historical Society Museum in the old Carnegie Library. 

Our wonderful tour guide also took us over to check out the original mower and trailer from the Disney movie The Straight Story that was based off of a man from Laurens who drove his lawn mower all the way to Wisconsin; the film was shot in Laurens in 1998. We weren’t able to watch the movie prior to our visit, but it’s definitely on our must-watch list now 😊

 

Return Rating: 1

Other things to see/do:

• The Art Barn, Gilmore City
• No 7 School, Rolfe (not sure if this still exists!)
• Tilley Cabin 1858, Rolfe (not sure if this still exists!)
• Rialto Theater, Pocahontas
• Fonda Arts Center, Fonda
• The Fonda Museum, Fonda