Rockdale, Iowa facts for kids

Rockdale, Iowa was once a small village located just south of Dubuque, Iowa. It was situated near the Catfish Creek in Dubuque County, Iowa. This area was special because it was home to one of the very first mills in the state of Iowa.

In the early 1830s, David Hutton and his son built a mill out of logs. It was first called "The Catfish Mills." Later, in 1840, James Pratt and Walter Manson bought the mill and renamed it "Rockford Mill." They replaced the old log building with a much bigger, four-story wooden one. This new mill was very productive, making 90,000 bushels of wheat into flour every year! The flour was so good that it was as high quality as flour from St. Louis, Missouri. Because of this, the mill was very important in the upper Midwest for a long time until other mills were built. Pratt and Manson ran the mill for 25 years, and during this time, Rockdale became a busy place where farmers would meet.

The Rockdale Mill had to stop working for a while because of a big flood. But it eventually started making flour again. In 1878, the mill sadly burned down. Thomas Watters Jr. rebuilt it using stone and called it the South Dubuque Mill. Later, J.F. Gondolfo bought it in 1885 and kept it running for many years. In 1901, a company leased the mill and operated it for 14 years. Finally, in 1915, the mill closed for good. For a short time, it was used as a dairy barn, but then it was destroyed by another fire in 1927.

The village of Rockdale grew over time. It had a saloon, a hotel, stores, a blacksmith shop, several homes, and even a post office. The villagers built a Methodist church out of logs in the 1830s. In 1874, a new red brick church was built at 1500 Old Mill Road. The Rockdale Methodist Church is still standing and used today, along with its cemetery.

In 1902, Rockdale had 132 people living there, and by 1925, the population was 85.

The Rockdale Flood: A Big Storm

On July 4, 1876, Rockdale experienced one of the worst flooding disasters in the area's history. People had been celebrating the 100th anniversary of the United States all day. As night came, the celebrations ended. Around 10 p.m., a light rain started. This quickly turned into a very heavy downpour. The Catfish Creek soon overflowed its banks and broke the mill dam located upstream from the village.

A huge wall of water, estimated to be 20 feet deep and hundreds of feet wide, rushed through the village. After the flood, only the mill and one house were left standing. In Rockdale, 42 people died in the flood. In nearby Dubuque, only one person died. Some survivors were found in treetops, where the floodwaters had carried them. Charles Thimmesch, a local barkeeper, had an amazing escape story. He climbed onto the roof of the post office after warning others about the flood. Thimmesch managed to swim to higher ground. Because of all the destruction, the village was never the same. Most of the people who lived there had died during the flood.

Rockdale's Changes Over Time

After the big flood, and with the mill closing down, Rockdale began to change. New highways were built for cars, but they went around the Rockdale area, not through it. This meant Rockdale was no longer a busy crossroads for travelers. Eventually, the Rockdale area became part of the city of Dubuque. Today, some local traffic still passes through the area because of Kelly Lane, but most cars use bigger roads like U.S. Highway 151 and 61, completely bypassing the old village.