(23) Wright County 7.08.2022

Wright County started off with disappointment when we showed up in Dows and it was all shut down for the Wright County Fair. We at least got a few pictures of some of the old buildings but were bummed we weren’t able to tour any of them (see list below).

 

After our disappointment in Dows, we headed to Belmond, which was not a disappointment! Belmond had a really lively main street with lots of shops, a coffee shop, antiques, and businesses. It was really quite thriving. We of course did some antiquing and stopped at the Bloemke Pharmacy to get some ice cream for the kids at the old fashioned “soda fountain” inside. 

Also on the main street, is the Belmond Historical Museum. It was a small but well-done museum with a lot of neat artefacts from Belmond’s history. We were bummed that we weren’t able to go to the Belmond Drive-In for lunch as it was closed for family in town; I guess we’ll just have to make a return visit 😊

Since we were thwarted for lunch in Belmond, we decided to eat in downtown Clarion at the Grounded Restaurant and went to Granny’s Iowa Market, which is all Iowa-made goods. 

We then headed to the main attraction for the day, as it is the home of the Heartland Museum. Clarion is also the home of the 4-H emblem, with a school house museum exhibiting the history of 4-H and how the 4-H emblem first began in Wright County, then spread to Iowa, and then nationally. We love learning about Iowa’s history! The Heartland Museum has been one of the best county museums we’ve been to, taking you through the different eras in Iowa’s history- definitely worth the stop.

 

We also made a quick stop at the Clarion Depot which is now the Chamber of Commerce.

 

Before heading to Eagle Grove for the Wright County Fair, we made a quick drive through Goldfield to see this log cabin that was built by the Boy Scouts in 1926. We also made a quick stop to check out the Carnegie Library in Eagle Grove.

We spent a few hours at the Wright County Fair, where we saw lots of livestock and played some fun games in the family tent. We passed up fair food for dinner and opted instead to eat at the The Family Table which was your typical home-town diner with good eats!

 

We couldn’t leave Wright County without visiting the home of the original Super Man, George Reeves. Surprisingly the town did not commemorate him with any official markers, but we did find one local who wanted to make sure George Reeve’s was honored (yes, this is in someone's yard 😊)!

 

Return Rating: 2

 Other things to see/do:

• Evans Prairie Home, Dows
• Blacksmith and Wagon Museum, Dows
• Dows Mercantile and Ice Cream, Dows
• Vernon Schoolhouse, Dows
• Santa House (only open at Christmas-time), Belmond
• Jenison-Meachem Art Museum, Belmond
• Arden Scott Collectibles, Eagle Grove
• Rowan Historical Museum, Rowan