Volume 18, Issue No. 5, Sept/Oct 2026
While millions of U.S. Armed Forces servicemen were fighting the Axis powers overseas during World War II, millions of women back home were supporting the war effort by working in factories to manufacture everything from airplanes to clothing for U.S. servicemen. These women were given the nickname “Rosie the Riveter” and they filled wartime labor shortages in the defense industries and civilian services. In Iowa more than 70 factories had military contracts and they hired thousands of women to turn out items for the war cause as author Linda Betsinger McCann writes for our cover story.
Publisher Michael Swanger reminds readers of when Babe Ruth suited up for practice with Drake University’s football team 100 years ago. See some rare photos of the Sultan of Swat in Des Moines!
Explore the functional and decorative history of barn cupolas that can be seen across Iowa from Dave Austin of the Iowa Barn Foundation.
Celebrate the University of Northern Iowa’s 150th anniversary. Kevin Mason, assistant professor of history at UNI writes about the institution that’s true in spirit, strong in knowledge.
Author Jerry Harrington shares how West Branch’s Scattergood Hostel welcomed European refugees fleeing Nazi persecution during World War II.
Grab a snack and settle in for this one. “Country Roads” columnist Arvid Huisman shares tells how Iowa has long been a big player in the production of popcorn.
TO READ MORE FASCINATING STORIES ABOUT IOWA HISTORY, subscribe to Iowa History Journal. You can also purchase back issues at the store.
Volume 18, Issue No. 4, July/August 2026
From the 1932 novel, to three films, to Broadway and TV, Iowa novelist Phil Stong’s “State Fair” has endured for decades in our popular culture. Just in time for this year’s fair season, author and broadcaster Tim Harwood revisits the classic summertime tale about the Frake family’s visit to the Iowa State Fair where the parents compete for prizes and their children find unexpected romance. Like eating food on a stick, or strolling through the cattle barn at the fair, reading our cover story about the history of “State Fair” needs to be on your bucket list of fun things to do this summer.
Publisher Michael Swanger reminisces about the 1976 U.S. Bicentennial celebration for his column.
Explore the Iowa Revolutionary War Memorial located on the grounds of the Iowa State Capitol in Des Moines for a picturesque tribute to the 41 known patriots who are buried in Iowa. Publisher Michael Swanger takes you along exploring history.
Learn about the incredible story of survival of Larry Spencer—Iowa’s longest held prisoner of war and Vietnam War pilot who was detained for years at the “Hanoi Hilton” from Michael Vogt, curator of the Iowa Gold Star Military Museum.
‘Farmers never had it so good.’ Broadcaster and author Jeff Stein chronicles how President Richard Nixon’s response to a question from an Iowa broadcaster about the agriculture industry in 1974 made national headlines.
“Country Roads” columnist Arvid Huisman shares the lessons he learned during his youth while walking beans.
TO READ MORE FASCINATING STORIES ABOUT IOWA HISTORY, subscribe to Iowa History Journal. You can also purchase back issues at the store.
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.
Volume 18, Issue No. 2, March/April 2026
Jay Norwood “Ding” Darling was one of the most diverse and interesting Iowans of the 20th century. Darling, who spent half of his childhood and almost all of his adult life in Iowa, had two astonishingly successful and vastly different careers. He was among the most popular editorial cartoonists ever, winning two Pulitzer Prizes—including drawing for the Des Moines Register from 1906 to 1949—and his more than 15,000 editorial cartoons were syndicated nationwide. But he also essentially was the father of America’s conservation movement, as well as a sculptor, musician, pundit and philanthropist. In everything he ever did, he almost never was dull. Read the first part of our exclusive two-part series about Darling written by award-winning retired journalist and author Don Doxsie.
Publisher Michael Swanger writes about Tim Harwood’s latest book, “Seniors to Juniors: A Collection of Waterloo Hockey Stories,” which is available at Black Hawks home games and waterlooblackhawks.com.
Are you ready to boldly go where no town has gone before? Author Jerry Harrington chronicles Riverside’s annual Trekfest, celebrating the future birthplace of Captain James T. Kirk as this year marks the 60th anniversary of the popular Star Trek franchise.
IHJ Exploring History: Retired newspaperman Arvid Huisman celebrates the 100th anniversary of U.S. Highway 20, from its origins as a “dragged highway,” to the four-lane expressway today that spans the continent from the Atlantic to the Pacific oceans—including Dubuque to Sioux City
Timothy Walch pens the finale of his Abraham Lincoln and Herbert Hoover series about the Great Emancipator’s influence on the Great Humanitarian
“Country Roads” columnist Arvid Huisman devotes his Country Roads column to story time at the library.
TO READ MORE FASCINATING STORIES ABOUT IOWA HISTORY, subscribe to Iowa History Journal. You can also purchase back issues at the store.
Volume 18, Issue No. 1, Jan/Feb 2026
From admiring a painting of President Abraham Lincoln that hung in his childhood home in West Branch, to delivering speeches on Lincoln’s birthday to pay tribute to “The Great Emancipator,” Herbert Hoover was a lifelong admirer of the 16th president of the United States. The influence of Lincoln’s philosophy and values on the Iowa native and 31st president of the U.S. is undeniable. The evidence can be found in Hoover’s personal papers that are in the archives of the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum in West Branch, as revealed by author Timothy Walch in the first part of his series “Lincoln and Hoover.”
Publisher Michael Swanger writes about visiting “The American Revolution Experience” as we turn the calendar to a new year that marks the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
Get the compelling story about the little-known connection between the Erie Canal, New York Gov. DeWitt Clinton and John Deere — all three of which spurred the development of Iowa during its early years. Ambassador Kennth Quinn, President Emeritus of the World Food Prize Foundation and recipient of the Iowa Award Medal shares the details.
Discover the inspiring story behind the person Catlett Hall is named after at the University of Iowa. Our publisher dives into the life and times of Elizabeth Catlett, the renowned artist, educator and civil rights activist who studied with Grant Wood at the University of Iowa.
How did the USS Iowa (BB-4) play a vital role in the Spanish-American War? Find out from Mike Vogt, curator of the Iowa Gold Star Military Museum.
“Country Roads” columnist Arvid Huisman can help you sharpen your trivia skills. Iowa provides a wealth of trivia from a bullhead to sliced bread!
TO READ MORE FASCINATING STORIES ABOUT IOWA HISTORY, subscribe to Iowa History Journal. You can also purchase back issues at the store.