We are five weeks into Phase 1 of the downtown streetscape project, and we continue to uncover a bit of history scoop by scoop with our local contractor, Con-Struct. Our historic downtown was originally platted as the village of Marshall in 1853 and renamed to Marshalltown in 1862. Many of the buildings in this section were built between 1876 and 1938. This stage of construction where the paved surface is removed and trenches are dug to install new utilities exposes bits of the past including water mains that pre-date 1911 records; an intersection of the original route of the 1913 Lincoln Highway; brick streets estimated to have been installed in the 1920s; abandoned communication, gas, and electrical utilities; building vaults; unmapped sanitary sewers and building drains; a section of the dual streetcar tracks that ran down Main St; and a pretty impressive hand-built cistern.

Did you see the size of the cistern? One of our more unexpected finds so far has been a cistern under Center St, just north of Main St. After the asphalt overlaid street and bricks were removed, a new water main pipe was trenched in on the west side of the street, and Con-Struct was in on a Saturday to work the dirt to help dry it out from over 3-inches of rain that had fallen that week, a small piece of limestone appeared. When the limestone piece was moved, it revealed a limestone and brick stack access point about 16-inches by 16-inches, with the throat extending three feet down opening up to a hole so dark that the bottom wasn’t easily visible. As a few crumbles of dirt fell in, all you heard was the echo of them hitting water deep below your feet. Further investigation by the City’s Sewer Crew revealed a 14-ft diameter brick stack circular structure with a skim coat mortar interior extending over 18-feet below. While we don’t know the age of it, we do know that it was buried below the brick streets and at least a century old. With buildings on either side being constructed in 1875 and 1929, it makes you wonder what all that water might have been used for during that time period – could it have been used during their construction, as a means to fight fires, or were our ancestors practicing green infrastructure with rainwater reuse before “green infrastructure” was even a titled thing? Can you imagine how hard-working and such craftsmen they must have been to install such a structure? It was a pretty cool find and if you missed it, there’s a short video through the ‘Marshalltown Main Event’ social media outlets on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok as well as a link to the video that was sent out in the twice weekly project update emails that you can sign up for here: www.marshalltown.org/main-event .

Admittedly, history was not my favorite subject in school, but if these finds pique your interest, you’re in luck! We are fortunate to have a robust library and a dedicated group of volunteers with the Historical Society of Marshall County who have been able to pull some fun finds from their files, such as actual tokens used to ride the streetcars throughout its different ownerships in the late 1800s and early 1900s. I encourage you to check the Historical Society out on social media or in person at the Mowry Irvine Mansion located at 503 W. Main St. or browse through the local history section of the Marshalltown Public Library at 105 W. Boone St.

As we head into week 6 and progress towards giving underground utilities another century of life; giving the streets, sidewalks, and landscaping a facelift; and adding lighting and gathering places to make downtown more pedestrian friendly, all while still providing over 1,500 public parking stalls, I humbly ask for you to please come downtown and patron these businesses during construction. There is so much they have to offer: food, desserts, and drinks; new and used clothing and shoes; furniture, décor, books, and jewelry; pet care, salons, spas, barbers, and tattoo parlors; professional, insurance, financial, and realtor services; upholstery, embroidery, bikes, and appliances; hardware and car care; physical and mental therapy; eye and hearing care; home medical equipment; ACA, Chamber, and MCBD; City and County government services; and more. They are all open for business!

Do you have questions or want to find out more in-person? We hold open office hours for this project every week from 11:00 – 11:30 AM on Wednesdays. Find us on the north courthouse lawn and future home of our downtown event block space (rain location at 34 W. Main).

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Heather Thomas is the city of Marshalltown’s

public works director.