Dunkerton Historical and Tourism Association

06/17/2026

Here are some photos of today's Tractorcade. The first Pit Stop of the day was at Dusk to Dawn on the corner of N. Raymond and Gresham Roads. The DHTA crew was there to sell root beer floats. The 300+ tractors came from all over the country and even from Germany. They were staying at the Bremer County Fairgrounds and came through in 6 controlled "waves" ranging from 25 tractors in the first group to over 90 in a later group.

06/16/2026

06/15/2026

🏛️ Museum Monday 🏛️

This week’s featured artifact is a colorful striped "Ring Ding" shot glass once owned by Myrtle (Redman) Magee (1892–1986).

Decorated with bands of red, yellow, black, and green, this small glass is a reminder that not every museum artifact is connected to a major historical event. Sometimes the most meaningful pieces are the ordinary household items that were part of daily life.

Myrtle spent nearly a century witnessing the tremendous changes that transformed rural Iowa—from horse-drawn transportation and kerosene lamps to automobiles, electricity, television, and the modern age. Objects from her home help us understand not only how people lived, but also the items they chose to keep and use.

While small in size, artifacts like this help tell the larger story of the families who built and sustained our community. Preserving everyday objects allows us to connect with the routines, traditions, and experiences of generations past.

View the full catalog description in our online museum at the following link:
https://dunkertonhistory.catalogaccess.com/objects/4748

Support your Dunkerton Historical & Tourism Association with a donation at the following:
https://dunkertonhistory.com/ols/all

06/10/2026

⭐ Wishlist Wednesday ⭐

This week's wish is simple: a full house for Bob Jefferson's 98th Birthday Celebration!

Bob has been a lifelong advocate for preserving Dunkerton's history and was one of the founding board members of the Dunkerton Historical & Tourism Association. His knowledge of our community's past has helped preserve stories, photographs, and memories for future generations.

On Saturday, June 13, at 10:00 a.m., Bob will be sharing his memories and knowledge of the Dunkerton School, a topic he knows well from both personal experience and from this father, William Jefferson, longtime superintendent of the school.

🎂 Help us celebrate Bob's 98th birthday by joining us for this special Community Connection event.

📍 Dunkerton Public Library
📅 Saturday, June 13, 2026
⏰ 10:00 a.m.

Whether you attended the Dunkerton School, know someone who did, or simply enjoy local history, this is a wonderful opportunity to hear firsthand stories from someone who has spent nearly a century watching our community grow and change.

Our wish this Wednesday is to see friends, neighbors, former students, and history enthusiasts fill the library to help celebrate Bob's birthday and thank him for his many contributions to preserving Dunkerton's history.

Please join us—and feel free to bring a friend!

06/08/2026

🏛️ Museum Monday 🏛️

This week’s Museum Monday features not one artifact, but a historical mystery that we hope the community can help solve!

These photographs document the evolution of Dunkerton’s early school buildings, but they raise more questions than answers.

The first photograph, labeled "Dunkerton High School," dates to about 1910 and shows a two-story frame school building. A 1910 map places the school on the south edge of town along Williams Street in the McNellis Addition.

Both the 1919 and the 1920 Dunkerton yearbooks show the same photographs of two school buildings. The larger building matches the earlier high school photograph, while a second building appears to the right. The yearbook explains that District No. 9 school stood "near Fettkether's corner" and was moved to town when Dunkerton was established. We are unsure of its exact location. In 1892, the board voted to rent the building "on H. W. Bucher's lots" for $90 per year. By 1908, it was ordered torn down.

Then comes the real mystery.

A third photograph from the 1921 yearbook is labeled "Town Schools" and uses the photo from 1919-1920 yearbooks and a new photo with three school buildings. The large square building is labeled "High School" in both photos, but there are now two smaller buildings next to it, each labeled by a teacher's name. Were these relocated one-room schools? Temporary buildings? We simply don't know.

What makes the story even more intriguing is that the new brick school building opened in 1921, replacing these facilities. If the new school was already being planned, why were additional buildings apparently being used or added just before the transition? The 1922 yearbook has the first photo of the new brick school.

We're looking for clues! If you have information that might help unravel this mystery, we'd love to hear from you.

High School photo:
https://dunkertonhistory.catalogaccess.com/photos/2159

1910 map:
https://dunkertonhistory.catalogaccess.com/archives/1192

1919 Yearbook:
https://dunkertonhistory.catalogaccess.com/archives/1412

1921 Yearbook:
https://dunkertonhistory.catalogaccess.com/archives/1414

06/05/2026

Come to the Gresham School today til 6:00 pm and Saturday 8:00-2:00 pm at 406 Marilyn Street for the town wide garage sale! Duplicated items that have been donated to the museum, two printers, a band saw, aircraft memorabilia, cookbooks, yearbooks! Plus Julie Magee has clothing, toys, flower pots, and more! And a special bonus, you get a preview look inside the freshly primer-painted school!

06/01/2026

🏛️ Museum Monday 🏛️

This week’s featured artifact is a humble but important piece of Dunkerton business history—a stool used by Erma McMillin in McMillin’s General Store on Main Street.

For many years, this stool sat behind the counter where Claude and Erma McMillin greeted customers, rang up purchases, stocked shelves, and kept the store running. While it may seem like an ordinary object, it represents thousands of everyday interactions that helped make a small-town business the heart of the community.

Claude and Erma operated McMillin’s General Store for 40 years, serving generations of Dunkerton residents before closing the business in 1977. Long before convenience stores and online shopping, local general stores were where people purchased groceries, household goods, hardware, and often caught up on the latest community news.

This well-worn stool is a reminder that history isn't just found in grand events—it can also be found in the objects used every day by the people who helped shape our town.

Do you remember shopping at McMillin’s? What do you recall about Claude, Erma, or the store itself? We'd love to hear your memories!

View the full catalog description in our online museum at the following link:
https://dunkertonhistory.catalogaccess.com/objects/1778

Support your Dunkerton Historical & Tourism Association with a donation at the following:
https://dunkertonhistory.com/ols/all

05/30/2026

Volunteer painting hours tomorrow will count towards the new Volunteer Program we will be launching later this summer. Come have some fun and show your support.

05/30/2026

First coat of primer sprayed on after some fits and starts and a run to Waverly for 10 MORE gallons of primer. Old, thirsty wood soaks it in! We will be going over it again tomorrow at 2:00 pm and need many hands to go over the cracks with paintbrushes. We’ve discovered brushing fills in the rough surfaces and cracks much better than spraying. Come join us!