Conover, Iowa facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Conover, Iowa
Ghost town
Conover, Iowa Location in Iowa
Country	United States
State	Iowa
County	Winneshiek
Elevation	1,227 ft (374 m)
GNIS feature ID	1941391

Conover is a ghost town located in Winneshiek County, Iowa, United States. A ghost town is a place that used to be a busy community but is now mostly empty. Conover is shown on maps near Fort Atkinson and uses the same ZIP code as nearby Calmar.

How Conover Started and Grew

Conover was just a cow pasture until September 1864. That's when people heard that a new railroad would pass through the area. Because of this exciting news, a village was quickly planned out on local farmland. This happened in just two weeks!

The McGregor Western Railroad Company laid tracks that reached Conover in August 1865. By then, the village had grown very fast. It had more than 200 buildings, including over 32 saloons and many markets selling fresh food.

They are building the railroad near Conover. Mr. Pushusta took his team of horses and helped them. He took us with his team and wagon over to see where they are building. A lot of other farmers were there to help with their horses.

In 1865, a very important company called Cargill got its start in Conover. William Wallace Cargill left his home and bought a "grain flat house" there. A flat house was like a big warehouse where farmers stored grain before it was shipped. This flat house was at the very end of the McGregor & Western Railroad line. This was the first step for Cargill, which grew into a huge company focused on agriculture.

By 1866, Conover had between 1200 and 1500 people living there. Many of them had moved from nearby Calmar. David Noggle asked for Conover to become an official town. On October 17, 1866, County Judge G. R. Wellett made it official. In 1867, Capt. V. C. Jacobs was chosen as Conover's first (and only) mayor.

Why Conover Became a Ghost Town

The railroad kept building tracks further north and west. This meant that businesses started to move away from Conover. In 1868, Calmar became the main railroad stop for the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad.

In 1869, a new railroad line was finished that connected Conover to Decorah. Robert Jameson was the first person to manage the trains on this new line. But in the same year, the main railroad station and freight house were moved from Conover to Calmar. Many people and buildings also moved back to Calmar. A big fire also caused more damage to Conover.

By 1870, most of the land in Conover had become farmland again. However, the 1880 census still showed that 168 people lived there.

Conover buildings huddle down the railroad track a half-hour walk – a town that somehow got cheated out of great expectations.

Railroad cars were still checked in Conover until the train yards closed in the late 1940s. Anna Becvar was the last railroad agent in Conover. By 1940, the population had dropped to just 49 people.

Education

Students from the Conover area attend schools in the South Winneshiek Community School District.