Volume 18, Issue No. 3, May/June 2026
As our nation prepares to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing and adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, you might be surprised to learn about Iowa’s connections to the Revolutionary War. From war veterans who are buried in Iowa, to an official copy of the Declaration of Independence that the state holds, to monuments and organizations across our state, our cover story written by staff members of the State Historical Society of Iowa is a must-read before you gather with family, friends and neighbors to celebrate America’s semiquincentennial.
Publisher Michael Swanger devotes his column to some of the organizations and events that will commemorate the American Revolution in Iowa on July Fourth and throughout the year.
How does an artist take the first steps? Author Barbara Lounsberry explores how Ruth Suckow’s diary reveals the dawning of one of Iowa’s most notable writers.
Read the finale of the in-depth series about Ding Darling. Retired newspaperman Don Doxie focuses on Darling’s conservation efforts.
Discover more about Samuel Byers the Civil War soldier and poet who wrote ‘Sherman’s March to Sea’ and ‘The Sing of Iowa’ from Norman Van Mersbergen of the Ottumwa Civil War Round Table.
“Country Roads” columnist Arvid Huisman writes about how Sunday afternoons are not what they used to be.
TO READ MORE FASCINATING STORIES ABOUT IOWA HISTORY, subscribe to Iowa History Journal. You can also purchase back issues at the store.