Iowa Archives

On Memorial Day weekend 70 years ago, a large Irish family was at home in eastern Iowa enjoying its last spring together. No one knew that the five…

A new museum exhibit is coming together that will tell the story of how gender equality came to the U.S. Army. It all started at Fort Des Moines.

The Des Moines Symphony concludes its season next month with a classical Russian program. In 1965, the season ended with something entirely different and…

A nationwide search is underway for graduates of the largest pipe and drum band in the world. It is all in preparation for a reunion in Iowa City.…

It was 150 years ago this week when the “Iowa Lunatic Asylum” opened in Mount Pleasant and the state’s first mental health patient was admitted. Just…

Host Rick Fredericksen dives into archival material compiled from his Iowa Archives project. Among the audio documentaries explored- the story behind the…

This is the first time we've applied our historic sound project to a building. Iowa's largest memorial to war veterans is closed for renovation. Sometimes…

It has been 45 years since the Williams Brothers broke up. That’s when the youngest member launched his own act. Iowa Public Radio's Rick Fredericksen was…

It was just over 75 years ago when a young Iowa boy joined his brothers in a church choir in western Iowa. Until 2012, when Andy Williams passed away, he…

It was the biggest shovel-ready, public works project of its time. 75-years ago today, a mammoth dam, named after Herbert Hoover, was dedicated on the…