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- How did people keep cool before air-conditioning was invented?
In the 1890s, they used the River!
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Tag Archives: Davenport
One-Way Question, Multi-Directional Answer
Weren’t Third and Fourth streets in Davenport always one-way streets? And if not, when did they change from two-way to one-way traffic? These were the questions being asked for the last couple of weeks, ever since the Davenport City Council … Continue reading
Posted in Local History
Tagged Davenport, Fourth Street, Iowa, Local History, Research, Third Street, Traffic
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Dreams of Olympics Past: Nat Pendleton
The Summer Olympics are across the ocean this year, but that doesn’t stop us from remembering our past ties to these games: the Davenporters who were counted among the world’s finest athletes. One of these was Nat Pendleton, who was … Continue reading
Davenport, Iowa: A City In Which To Live
The Greater Davenport Committee, a precursor to the Davenport Chamber of Commerce, was founded in 1910, with E. P. Adler as its first president. Its purpose was to advertise Davenport and bring new businesses to the city. For one of … Continue reading
Happy 175th Birthday, Davenport!
The year 2011 marks the 175th anniversary of the founding of Sofa City – that’s right! In February of 1836 the official “Articles of Agreement” were drawn up, land was purchased from Antoine LeClaire, and a town was platted in … Continue reading
Posted in Local History
Tagged 175th Anniversary, Antoine LeClaire, Davenport, Local History, William F. Skiles
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Flood of Images: the West End Perspective
As we keep a watchful eye on the river levels around here, it might be interesting to look back at the last few times it rose up to shake hands with Davenport. Here are a some of our favorite flooding … Continue reading
When Opportunity Knocks . . .
It is August in the Midwest and we all know without a doubt that the weather around here can be brutal (Heat Wave: 1936). There’s no need to dwell on the heat or the humidity. So today’s post will avoid the topic … Continue reading
Kathryn Kirschbaum: First Woman Mayor of Davenport
Kathryn Kirschbaum was born August 30, 1931, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to Frank and Esther (Kiplinger) Goll. She graduated from Denison College in Grandville, Ohio, in 1953 with a degree in “Citizenship”. She was First Lieutenant in the Army Medical Corps … Continue reading
Posted in Local History
Tagged biography, Davenport, Davenport (Iowa), Mayors, Women, Women's History
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The 911 of 1889
On the afternoon of February 8, 1889, the alarm at telephone patrol box number 3 at Front Street between Main and Brady Streets was sounded by an officer on patrol. It was the first alarm sounded on the week-old system that … Continue reading
Posted in Local History
Tagged Davenport, Davenport Police Department, Patrol Wagon, Telephone, Telephone Patrol Box
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The Free and Independent State of Scott
As has been said before here, Davenport was the home to many breweries and saloons in the mid-1800s. This wasn’t a problem during the Civil War, when those of a teetotal inclination had other things to worry about. But once … Continue reading
Posted in Local History
Tagged Davenport, Ernst Claussen, Iowa, Prohibition, The September Project
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Voices of City Government Past and Present
Since 2004, libraries across the world have organized events about freedom and issues that matter to their communities during the month of September. This grassroots project favors free over fee, public over private, and voices over silence. Throughout the week of … Continue reading
Posted in Local History
Tagged City Council, Davenport, Special Collections, The September Project
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