Iowa Falls dates to 1856, and 20% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 73% of U.S. towns · #61 of 140 in Iowa State. What drives it
20 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 39 buildings between them. Below: 11 old photos and papers, maps from 1885 on, and the census since 1880.
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1855.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Iowa Falls’ History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Iowa Falls is more historic than 73% of U.S. towns, #61 of 140 in Iowa State. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Iowa Falls’ overall grade.
Iowa State towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Iowa State town has 9.1 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Iowa Falls’ 109 sits above most of its state (83% of Iowa State towns have fewer) while its 55 historic buildings outnumber those of 86% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B− to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.2 points). Two sources give 1856.
Founding year: Wikipedia (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Iowa Falls’ past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Every building
Iowa Falls, building by building, 1885–1917
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
Iowa Falls was laid out and platted in 1856. Prior to being named Iowa Falls, the area had been known as Rocksylvania. However, this name was abandoned due to fears of it being too difficult to spell and pronounce. The town would instead be named Iowa Falls, a reference to the falls along the Iowa River.
The Illinois Central Railroad was built through Iowa Falls in 1866.
The Metropolitan Opera House was built in 1899 and presented plays, operas, and vaudeville during the first half of the twentieth century. The building now operates primarily as a movie theater, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
In 1856, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Iowa Falls’ post office opened in 1855, and the census of 1880 counted 955 people here.
How does Iowa Falls rank for history?
Iowa Falls is more historic than 73% of U.S. towns, #61 of 140 in Iowa State. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in Iowa Falls?
20 listings: 15 buildings, among them the Metropolitan Opera House (listed 1975, the first), 2 historic districts, the Mills Tower Historic District and the Washington Avenue Commercial Historic District, with 39 contributing buildings, and 3 structures. 55 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Iowa Falls?
20% of Iowa Falls’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.2 points), against a typical 22% for an Iowa State town; the median home was built in 1961.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From Wikimedia Commons (1), the Library of Congress (10), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (20), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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