The story
Read it all →How Luana came to be
From Wikipedia’s history of Luana.
Luana was surveyed in 1867 by W. S. Scott, and named in honor of his wife, Luana.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
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History · Luana
Luana’s post office opened in 1864, and 18% of its homes were built before 1940
Its Register listing is the Monona Township Culvert. Below: old-book passages.
1864first post office
1on the National Register
18%homes built before 1940
Quick answers
How Luana began
When was Luana founded?
1864
The Luana post office opened in 1864, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1867.
2020 census: 301162 years
Founding year: the first Luana post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1867.The full story ↓
What stands out about Luana’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
★ What stands out · Help out
Start Luana’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Luana’s history is told.
Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.From the old history books
What they wrote about Luana, 1882–1916
Passages that mention Luana, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Clayton County, together with sketches of its cities, villages and townships ... biographies of representative citizens1882 · page 1034Read the page →
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In 1856 the first school-house erected within the present limits of the district township of Monona, was built half a mile west of the town of Luana. Through the energy of its citizens, and Board of Directors, composed of W. S. Scott and S. H. Oatliout, they succeeded in building a commodious and substantial brick school-house that for nineteen years fully met the wants of the district. John Ufford taught the first school. During this year Miss Angeline Tibbetts taught a school in the place, then known
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History of Clayton County, Iowa1916 · page 321Read the page →
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Luana is of later origin and grew up with the railroads. It was surveyed in 1867 and W. S. Scott, the proprietor, named it in honor of his wife, Luana. It has been a rival of Strawberry Point as a creamery center. The village is located on the Jacob Zimmerman farm where he lived in 1853. The first residence in Luana was built by R. P. Oliver and the first store by William Mott. The postoffice was established in 1864 with James M. Chapman as postmaster. Mrs. Wiltsee taught the first school in Monona township in a dwelling owned by P. P.
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History of Clayton County, together with sketches of its cities, villages and townships ... biographies of representative citizens1882 · page 374Read the page →
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S. H. Oathout came from Hew York May 28, 1855 with his fam¬ ily and settled in Monona Township, a half mile west of the pres¬ ent village of Luana. He still lives on his farm there, which con¬ tains 340 acres of land, all under high cultivation. Mr. Oathout is now seventy-three years of age, and his life companion is still living at the age of seventy-one. Both are active and energetic for people of their age and have always had good health. May they be spared many years longer.
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History of Clayton County, Iowa1916 · page 207Read the page →
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River Railroad — In 1870, the only railroad in Clayton county was the line from North McGregor through Monona and Luana and to the west. The people of McGregor had found that this railroad, instead of increasing their importance, had decreased it, but the enterprising peo-
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
By decade
No old photos in the archives yet
Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
Add from your albumOn the National Register
1 historic place in Luana
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
1998
Monona Township Culvert
Structures
Architectural styles listings
Stone Arch Culvert1
All 1 listings
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Famous people
See all →Famous people close to Luana
Nobody well known was born in Luana itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Questions about Luana’s history
What year was Luana founded?
The Luana post office opened in 1864, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1867.
What is on the National Register in Luana?
One place: the Monona Township Culvert (listed 1998).
Memory lane
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
Start a conversation
Sources
Where this page comes from
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). How TownRatings grades history →
From the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.