The Mount Vernon Uptown Streetscape study will have its next public meeting Wednesday, April 24 at 5:30 p.m. at Mount Vernon City Hall.
According to Kristen Ohnoutka, an employee for JEO, which is the group conducting the Mount Vernon Uptown Streetscape Master Plan, it is important that the City receive as much public and stakeholder feedback as possible during the first phase to ensure the final plan recommendations reflect the entire community of Mount Vernon. To provide comments on potential streetscape improvements to Uptown, residents can take the public survey found on the City’s project website.
“This will include informed designs and improvements that accurately reflect how people and vehicles get around Uptown, parking, landscaping, furnishings, public art, event space, and more,” Ohnoutka said.
Ohnoutka said that there is nothing wrong with the current aesthetic of uptown Mount Vernon, and they don’t plan to change much of that appeal.
“What we hope to address through this streetscape master plan effort is safety and accessibility improvements that support the growth and natural character of this historic community asset,” Ohnoutka said. “We hope to be able to make it so more residents and visitors can easily get around and enjoy Mount Vernon’s main street.”
Mount Vernon’s uptown is a busy place, with many of the community’s festivals including Heritage Days, Chalk the Walk, Chocolate Stroll, Magical Night, Chili Cook-Off, Nitty Gritty Antique Festival, and Lincoln Highway Arts Festival.
Citizens can also learn about uptown Mount Vernon’s history and why the district is listed in the National Register of Historical Places. An open house in uptown Mount Vernon will be held Saturday, April 27, from 1-5 p.m.
Participants will be able to pick up a brochure and discover pieces of history hidden in the stories of buildings in the commercial buildings throughout uptown. The tour will help people learn about the time period buildings were built, the different architectural styles, and who works or worked there over the years. Punch cards will be provided for a chance at winning prizes.
Mary Evans, an employee with the Mount Vernon Historic Preservation Commission, provided some of the history of the different eras of the uptown Mount Vernon district.
The original settlement in the late 1830s was called Pinhook, named after the wooden pins used by merchants to hang up goods. In 1847, a small group of residents decided to establish a town around the hill and rename the community with a more patriotic name. The town of Mount Vernon was platted and the six-block plat was filed with the county the following year.
The town of Mount Vernon was settled on a mile long ridgeline running northwest to southeast, also known as a paha. This landform guided settlement patterns in the “Hill City.” The older streets were aligned with the hill, laid out in a grid pattern. The main commercial street, First Street, runs along the ridgeline and intersects with the old Military Road, Highway 1, at the east end of the commercial district.
“Not until the 1890s were subdivisions laid out in accordance with cardinal directions,” Evans wrote.
The geography of the paha provided the town with building materials, including clay for brickmaking and limestone. Small creeks near town provided waterpower for milling lumber.
“The use of natural building materials can be seen in the stone and brick buildings on Cornell College campus as well as the 30 brick houses scattered throughout Mount Vernon,” Evans said.
In around 1838, the Military Road era started, as 10 families settled in or around Mount Vernon.
Stagecoach travelers, immigrants, homesteaders, and dragoons used the Military Road.
Residents established businesses to accommodate these travelers. By 1847 general stores and a blacksmith shop were in operation along First Street. In 1850 the Franklin Post Office moved from the Smyth farmstead to Mount Vernon and the Methodist Church established the present-day cemetery.
The Iowa Conference Male and Female Seminary opened for classes in 1853, with 161 students enrolled in the first term. By 1857, two buildings (Old Sem and Old Main) were in use. That is the start of Cornell College.
The railroad came to Mount Vernon in the spring of 1959. The Chicago, Iowa and Nebraska Railroad entered the county just 12 years after Mount Vernon was platted. The railroad’s arrival helped more of the commercial district take shape, with many of the brick faced two-story storefronts being constructed in that time.
“Unifying features include many 1890s constructed dates, pressed brick in unusual patterns, metal cornices, and trim of local limestone,” Evans said.
With Military Road, Cornell College and the railroad connections in place, Mount Vernon prospered.
In 1894-5 nine new commercial buildings went up along First Street partially due to a series of three fires between December 1893 and July 1894. Among the new business houses were four built by the Doctors John D. & Thomas L. Wolfe.
Another item connecting Mount Vernon and Cedar Rapids was the interurban trolley line, which was constructed in 1913 and electrically powered. The train line ran down First Street in Mount Vernon and was quicker, cheaper and cleaner than a ride on the steam railroads. The Interurban provided transportation for students and residents for shopping in Cedar Rapids and Iowa City or for attending sporting events against Coe College. The interurban’s last run was in 1928, and there are efforts now to use some of that trail line to connect Mount Vernon and Cedar Rapids with a recreational trail in the future.
With the rise of automobiles, the intercontinental Lincoln Highway connecting the East Coast and the West Coast ran through Mount Vernon. First Street, which ran down Mount Vernon, was connected to the Lincoln Highway, which increased traffic and brought visitors to town.
Filling stations, a small hotel, garages, and other amenities were built along that highway.
“The intersection at the top of the hill of Highway 1 and First Street was and continues to be the historic heart of Mount Vernon,” Evans said. “Photographic evidence shows there was a watering trough right in the middle of this intersection. While the horses and oxen drank before moving on, the women walked west to the mercantile shops and the men looked east for mechanical services. Decades later, uptown Mount Vernon continues to offer vibrant shops, family restaurants, and places for quiet conversations with friends.”
Uptown Streetscape next meeting is Wednesday
Nathan Countryman, Editor
April 18, 2024
About the Contributor
Nathan Countryman, Editor
Nathan Countryman is the Editor of the Mount Vernon-Lisbon Sun.