byway - Prairie Rivers of Iowa

Haunted Places Are Popular Destinations on the byways

by Jeanie Hau | Oct 1, 2025

Haunted destinations are becoming increasingly popular, and the byways do not disappoint. Cemetery walks can be found in almost every county and public libraries are getting in on the fun as well. Carnegie libraries are the oldest in the country so of course they have their own haunting stories. From luxury stays at the haunted Hotel Millwright to roughing it at the Squirrel Cage Jail. Searching for paranormal activity is exciting and fun for all ages.

Located on both the Lincoln Highway Heritage Byway and the Iowa Valley Scenic Byway, an 1892 former Funeral Home, the Periwinkle Place Manor is a one-of-its kind adventure in waiting.

The manor is a B&B but also an event center. Whether you are spending the night hunting for ghosts, having a corporate cookout at the “cremation station,” or gathering for a scouting adventure through the “witch village,” haunting memories fill dreamlands for many nights after. The manor will also host Birthday celebrations with a twisted Alice in Wonderland theme being very popular. The Periwinkle Manor was even a proud stop on the Kyle’s Mile Ride for Suicide prevention last summer. A public Witchy themed night, private parties, and a Hallowgein Ball round out October events. And don’t forget to get your photo taken at the photo booth!

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Another destination to note on the Lincoln Highway Heritage Byway is the Granger House Victorian Museum in Marion. The mansion was occupied by the same family for over 150 years, and the family is refusing to leave. At least four children and a woman were known to have died in the house. The restored example of a Victorian era home has been said to have furnishings which rearrange themselves to other rooms. A Lady in White appears in a window watching visitors but is nowhere to be found when sought out. Bone chilling singing from a young girl will accompany piano music and the girl will laugh when visitors cannot find her upon being heard. Other unexplained voices and apparitions have also been documented. Museum tours, private ghost hunts, and special events are available at the Granger House Museum.

So, whether you tour a museum, spend the night in a haunted hotel, or explore a cemetery by candlelight, October along the byways is the most ghoulish time of the year. Share your favorite experiences with us!

See you…on the byway!

Photos compliments of the Periwinkle Place Manor and the Granger House Museum Facebook page.

Prairie Rivers receives $5,000 for Inventory of Lincoln Highway Museum

by Jeanie Hau | Sep 2, 2025

The State Historical Society, Inc. of Iowa has awarded Prairie Rivers of Iowa with a $5,000 grant to begin an estimated $10,000 project to inventory the Lincoln Highway Museum in Grand Junction, Iowa.

Created in 1983, as a separate entity from the State Historical Board, the State Historical Society, Inc. of Iowa is a non-profit dedicated to protecting the heritage of Iowa. The organization utilizes its funds to support the preservation of Iowa’s history with a grant cycle available twice a year. Grants are available for projects which:

Collect and preserve materials
Conduct historical studies and research projects
Spread knowledge of the history of Iowa

Bob and Joyce Ausberger own and manage the Lincoln Highway Museum in Grand Junction, Iowa. In the late 1980s, the Ausbergers set out to save the Eureka Bridge in Greene County from destruction. After winning the battle in court to save a version of the historic bridge, the Ausbergers were tied to the Lincoln Highway and the preservation of its history.

Through the years, the Ausbergers have collected an estimated 1000 objects related to the Lincoln Highway and highway development in Iowa. In addition to objects and artifacts, the museum, housed in an old bank, features a well-established library of books, postcards, original blue-prints, and the archive of a precursor group to the Iowa Lincoln Highway Association.

The Lincoln Highway Museum Inventory Project began last spring with the assistance of the Historical Society of Iowa’s Field Services Program. Collections professional, Angela Stanford from Advanced Museum Services visited the museum and was able to define a scope and proper methods and procedures to use for completion of an inventory. To complete the inventory by a professional, an estimated $10,000 is needed. The $5,000 will allow us to begin the inventory and establish a system which can be completed in the future when additional funding is found.

Archives in the bank vault at the Lincoln Highway Museum

At the conclusion of the inventory, the Lincoln Highway Museum will have a comprehensive record of what is in the collection and where the pieces are located within the museum. The inventory document will also be a tool to identify gaps in the collection and to add stories to the artifact entries.

As museums and archives struggle with traditional funding practices to preserve history, we must continue to take the steps necessary to ensure that history is not lost. The Lincoln Highway Museum Inventory is that current step that we are taking to look to the future.

Catch up on the Byway Buzz

by Jeanie Hau | May 23, 2025

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Hello byway travelers! You may be wondering where we have been (unless of course, you follow the “Where Was I on the byway” series on social media).

We have been very busy in the byway department. Our former Lincoln Highway Coordinator and now Special Projects Consultant, Shellie Orngard, finished a two-year study on historical structures in the Lincoln Highway Corridor.

“Many historic properties have been lost over the years, and it is critical that this work be undertaken to avoid losing more… Surveys are a point-in-time snapshot of properties and to ascertain their preservation needs. The end product provides information gathered and includes recommendations for preservation.”

The project was funded in part by the State Historical Society of Iowa, Historical Resource Development Program.

The Survey of National Historic Register Sites, Lincoln Highway Heritage Byway, Iowa; Final Report, prepared by Shellie Orngard is available now on our website.

We were fortunate to have a student working with us the past several months and we kicked out some “to do” list items.Our student spent time editing a new series, “Tales on the byway.”

This is an oral/video history project we are experimenting with to record conversations with people who have lived and worked along the Lincoln Highway Corridor. The video was recorded for the Colo Historical Association and will be played at the Reed Station Museum during open hours.

The Iowa Valley Scenic Byway Audio Tour App is something we have been spending time getting up and going, and learning about future capabilities. We needed to change the name and online location of the App so that we can expand with future tours featuring recreation areas and the Lincoln Highway once funding can be secured. The new location is: https://seeyouonthebyway.stqry.app.

Be sure to use the share icon (square with an arrow) to choose “save site to home screen.” We continue to make changes and updates to the app as we gather updated information, photos, and links. A great new “Quiz” section will be added in the coming months.

“Where Was I on the byway” continues to be the Lincoln Highway Byway theme for Wednesdays on social media and we have added a series to the Iowa Valley Scenic Byway called, “Where Was I on the App”. This series encourage exploration of the App, the audio tour, and ultimately to visit the communities.

We made much-needed route updates in our source map for the Lincoln Highway Heritage Byway. Recently, the Iowa Department of Transportation completed the Hwy 30 four-lane from Lisbon to Ogden. With this construction, there were a few changes with how the Lincoln Highway enters and exits the four-lane. We are patiently awaiting new signs to complete the sign updates in Lisbon, Chelsea, and the Ralston Corners area where the route was incorrectly signed several years ago. Continue to reference the Lincoln Highway Map until we can update these sign inconsistencies.

Speaking of road construction (after-all it is spring in Iowa), we have just linked a map to our Lincoln Highway Heritage Byway website that has most of the summer/fall road construction locations marked along our updated route. We have been experimenting with the My Google Maps and trying to see how we can add information with a limited number of layers, so note that the layers in this map are still a work in-progress.

Those are the highlights of what the byway team has been up to since January. We continue to be involved with the Reed-Niland Corner’s progression with developing preservation guidelines and the development of the Reed-Niland Corner non-profit. We are working with the City of Tama regarding the Lincoln Highway Bridge. An alternate vehicular route has been constructed around the bridge. We need an inspection to move forward.

June will keep us busy again with the Preserve Iowa Summit, where Shellie and Jeanie will be a part of the round-table presentations and discussion on June 7^th.

We are looking forward to the Lincoln Highway Association’s Middle Third Tour through Iowa, June 19th-21st, with overnight stays in Cedar Rapids and Ames.

We will be hosting a viewing of the Iowa PBS Road Trip Iowa Lincoln Highway episodes on June 19^th at the Clinton Area Showboat Theatre with special guest, Kelsey Kramer. Kelsey is the producer of the eastern Iowa episodes. This event is FREE to attend and is open to the public. Shows begin at 9:30 with a discussion with Kelsey to follow.

Also during the tour, the Iowa Lincoln Highway Association President, Mary Preston, will be at the Cedar Rapids evening Tour stop and Joyce Ausberger is hosting lunch at the Lincoln Highway Museum on June 21^st. All are welcome to travel along; only those on the tour can attend meals.

And then it is off to Ogallala for the Lincoln Highway Association Conference, where we will be taking the traveling exhibit, “Promise Road, How the Lincoln Highway Changed America.”– There is still time to register!

And with that….I will see you on the byway!

All my best,

Jeanie

Lincoln Highway Heritage Byway A National Scenic Byway

IPBS Road Trip Iowa Spring 2025: The Lincoln Highway Episodes

by Jeanie Hau | Mar 4, 2025

The Lincoln Highway Heritage Byway- A National Scenic Byway will be showcased by Iowa Public Television during Season 2 of the Road Trip Iowa Series. Episodes will premiere weekly on Wednesdays at 6:30 p.m. and will repeat on Saturdays at 9 a.m. on Iowa PBS. The program will also be available to stream on demand on iowapbs.org and on the PBS app.

AIR DATE	EPISODE NUMBER	ROAD TRIP IOWA – S2 EPISODE ORDER
4/9	201	Driftless Area Scenic Byway
4/16	202	River Bluffs Scenic Byway
4/23	203	Loess Hills National Scenic Byway North
4/30	204	Loess Hills National Scenic Byway South
5/7	205	Grant Wood Scenic Byway
5/14	206	Historic Hills Scenic Byway
5/21	207	Lincoln Highway Heritage Byway East
5/28	208	Lincoln Highway Heritage Byway East-Central
6/4	209	Lincoln Highway Heritage Byway Central
6/11	210	Lincoln Highway Heritage Byway West

Be sure to catch the

Iowa Valley Scenic Byway | Iowa PBS

from Season 1!

A New Memorial to Lincoln for 2025

by Jeanie Hau | Mar 4, 2025

10 millionth Ford photo by Greene County Historical Society 2024

Hello from the Lincoln Highway Heritage Byway- A National Scenic Byway and the Iowa Valley Scenic Byway. We have had an exciting year on the byways. The Ten Millionth Model-T Ford celebrated a 100-year Anniversary by trekking across the country and stopped at many of our beloved locations.

And who could forget the Big Boy Steam Locomotive No 4014 and Jay Leno jumping on to film an episode of Jay Leno’s Garage? How many of you were fortunate enough drive beside the Big Boy along the Lincoln Highway? So how can 2025 compare those exciting events?

On February 17^th, Presidents Day, the Union Pacific Railroad unveiled their newest commemorative locomotive. The Abraham Lincoln No 1616 – a symbolic tribute to the nation’s 16th president. The Abraham Lincoln Locomotive will, “travel the rails, serving as a traveling ambassador and participating in community events and education programs that highlight the historic role of railroads in American’s growth and its continued contribution to our country, communities and economy,” said Union Pacific CEO Jim Vena. Read the complete press release and see the limited edition poster.

The Abraham Lincoln No 1616 advertisement

Lincoln in Council Bluffs

In 1859, before our 16^th President was elected an Illinois State Senator, he made a trip to Council Bluffs to purchase land to use as collateral for a personal loan (17 plots between 9^th and 16^th Ave).

Lincoln and Dodge in Council Bluffs Iowa

While in Council Bluffs, Mr Lincoln met with General Grenville Dodge, a Civil War veteran who had moved his family to Council Bluffs. During his trip Dodge convinced Lincoln that the eastern terminus for the first Transcontinental Railroad should start in Council Bluffs and head west to the Pacific.

In 1862, President Lincoln signed the Pacific Railway Act creating the railroad that connected the eastern and western United States.

postcard of lincoln monument in council bluffs iowa

In 1911, Council Bluffs built an obelisk Lincoln Monument overlooking the Missouri Valley west of the historic Fairview Cemetery where the meeting between Dodge and Lincoln took place.

More Memorials

In 1913, when Carl Fisher, Frank Seiberling, and Henry Joy were just finishing up the planning of the first improved Coast-to-Coast Rock Highway, they decided that naming the road after Abraham Lincoln would be both a tribute and would give great patriotic appeal to the highway. The town of Jefferson, Iowa was the first to build a statue of Abraham Lincoln along the new highway in 1918. Memorials to the president have since been plentiful across Iowa and the United States along the Lincoln Highway and now the Railroad!

Lincoln Locomotive Poster by the Union Pacific Railroad.

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