City of Muscatine history

The first German settlers in Bloomington ( now Muscatine) came here in 1837.

The first settlers from Germany came in 1838.

Bloomington was incorporated as a Town of the second class on January 23, 1839, and on May 6 its first president, Joseph Williams, was elected.

Henry F. and Robert D. Bodmann came here with their parents in 1847; also Vincent Maurath, blacksmith; Peter Leysen, who opened and operated the first dairy here; and John Erhardt Frenzel, a farmer in Moscow township.

In 1849 came Frank Maurath, a farmer; and John J. Schmidt, who conducted a bakery.

Because of the great difficulty in getting mail, (it was often sent to Bloomington, Illinois, or Bloomington, Indiana, and sometimes Burlington, Iowa), in 1850 the new name of Muscatine was adopted for both the town and county.

On February 21, 1851, Muscatine was incorporated by a special act of the Iowa State Legislature and is 1 of 4 Iowa cities that continue to operate under such special authority.

In 1852 the following came: Ferdinand Barnhardt, who conducted the first dray and express here.

The Chicago, Rock Island, and Pacific Railroads were the first railroads to be built in Iowa reaching Rock Island, Illinois, in August 1854 and connecting with Iowa by a ferry crossing the Mississippi River.

On November 20, 1855, the Mississippi and Missouri Railroad, which later became part of the Rock Island System, operated the first passenger train between Davenport and Muscatine.

In 1859 William J. Lohr, a cabinet maker arrived in the county and is still living.

Secession and the politics of the Civil War, 1860–65The coming of the warThe political course of the warMoves toward emancipationSectional dissatisfaction

P. M. Musser came here in 1862 and for a long time was engaged in the lumber business on an extensive scale.

In 1867 J. G. Gunzenhauser, proprietor of an iron foundry, arrived.

In 1868 came George Laepp, a brewer, who is still living; and Herman Huchendorf, a miller of Pine Creek, who is still living here.

In 1869 came Herman Hoffmann, a shoemaker, who is still here; Louis Schwartz, a shoemaker, who is also still here; and Franz J. Walz, who conducts a boarding house but formerly conducted a saloon, being for many years well known as "Der Schwabenkoenig." He is still living at the age of eighty-six.

In 1887, German immigrant and skilled button cutter, John F. Boepple came to Muscatine looking for raw materials to create shiny, durable buttons.

Grover Cleveland’s first termThe surplus and the tariffThe public domainThe Interstate Commerce ActThe election of 1888

The Benjamin Harrison administrationThe Sherman Antitrust ActThe silver issueThe McKinley tariffThe agrarian revoltThe PopulistsThe election of 1892

Nearing the mid-1900’s, the pearl button industry was in decline.

By 1905, during the height of button production, 1.5 billion buttons, nearly 40% of the world’s output of buttons, were manufactured in Muscatine.

World War IIThe road to warThe United States at warWar productionFinancing the warSocial consequences of the warThe 1944 electionThe new United States role in world affairs

The peak Cold War years, 1945–60The Truman Doctrine and containmentPostwar domestic reorganizationThe Red ScareThe Korean WarPeace, growth, and prosperityEisenhower’s second termDomestic issuesWorld affairsAn assessment of the postwar era

The Muscatine Historic Preservation Commission was formed by local ordinance in 2000, consisting of five members currently.