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Brooklyn Historical Society

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Brooklyn Historical Society

The Museum is open for tours every Saturday from May through September, 12pm to 4pm, or by appointme

The Brooklyn Historical Society was organized in 1996 to preserve the former William Manatt home, built in 1869. The house, which was given to the City of Brooklyn by William's youngest son, Coe Manatt, in 1963, was home to the Brooklyn Public Library until 1999. It is now known as the Brooklyn Museum/William Manatt House, and is listed on the National Register of Historical Places. Through privat

e donations, grants, and support from our members, the house has been restored as close to 1895 era as possible. The Museum is open for tours every Saturday from May through September, 12pm to 4pm, or by appointment.

04/07/2026

The Brooklyn Historical Society is still taking applications for museum tour guide. This is a paid position that includes greeting visitors at the museum every Saturday from noon to 4pm from Memorial Day through Labor Day. Knowledge of Brooklyn is helpful but we can train the right applicant.

Call or message Steve Rhoads at 641 521-2283 for more information.

02/23/2026

Help wanted!

The Brooklyn Historical Society is seeking applicants for two paid positions:

Museum tour guide: this position requires greeting and interacting with visitors at the museum every Saturday from 12-4pm from Memorial Day through Labor Day. Some private tours and special events are required. Must be comfortable engaging visitors about Brooklyn history.

Gardener: this position involves planting and maintaining the flower gardens on the museum grounds. Hours are variable as needed throughout the year. Green thumb required.

These two positions could be combined for the right person. Call or text Steve Rhoads at 641 521-2283 for more information.

12/28/2025

I HEREBY DECLARE THAT I DO NOT GIVE MY PERMISSION FOR FACEBOOK OR META TO USE ANY OF MY PERSONAL DATA. I do not give consent!

12/24/2025

The Brooklyn Historical Society sends you wishes for a blessed holiday season, by sharing some memorable Christmas photos from our archives with our Facebook readers. MERRY CHRISTMAS, everyone!

12/22/2025

Brooklyn Historical Society is saddened to hear of the passing of Don Brannian, a longtime contributor and event-volunteer to our organization. He was the great-great-great grandson of Bradish Cummings, who settled in Warren Township in 1855 and later established a merchandise business in the red-brick building that bore his name at the northwest corner of Front and Jackson Street (where the bank building is now located). Don was a popular, longtime auctioneer who handled many of the community's estate and farm sales.
(Shown: Don at BHS Cemetery Tours in 2000 and 2010, with BHS historian Richard Johnston & Mary Jo Thompson, Don in the town's Sesquicentennial parade in 2000; Don with a RAGBRI biker)

11/27/2025

Giving thanks for our BHS supporters –
The Brooklyn Historical Society is thankful for those who have helped BHS in its mission of preserving our community’s history & heritage!
Whether your contribution was a financial gift, historical artifacts for our displays, vintage photos for our digital library, your time as a volunteer, or your shares & “likes” of our Facebook posts – because of your support, BHS continues to maintain & “keep the lights on” in the Brooklyn Museum/William Manatt House.
THANK YOU & Happy Thanksgiving!
(Photo: from a Brooklyn area country school, precisely which one is unknown. If you recognize it or any of the students, please contact us at the Brooklyn Historical Society.)

10/07/2025

If you enjoy our Facebook posts, if you favor preserving our heritage at the Brooklyn Museum, please SUPPORT BHS by becoming a member for only $10 annually. YOUR BACKING keeps our electricity on & rekindles the enthusiasm of our volunteers who give time & energy to keep our doors open. Sign up with a $10 check to Brooklyn Historical Society, c/o Treas. Elsie Foels, Box 58, Brooklyn, IA 52211. Thank you!

09/18/2025

FROM THE BROOKLYN HISTORICAL SOCIETY:
Brooklyn’s Grace Methodist Church, built in 1914, was constructed on the NE corner of Clay & Pershing, a site that had been donated in 1873 by pioneer landowner William Manatt. Earlier, a large brick church was erected there in 1877, replacing the church’s small, frame building that had been moved from north Brooklyn. In 1914, as electricity became commonly used, the congregation wanted a modern-day building and raised $36,000 for the construction, dedicating it free of debt in 1915.
There were a few construction changes made that departed from the original rendering, seen here at left. Can you find them?
Both post card photographs shown here were produced by Brooklyn’s resident photographer, H.S. McDonald, who took numerous shots off local sites between 1910 and 1915. (Now, if only we knew the identities of the 3 local youngsters who posed for him on the church steps!)
For more details, see BROOKLYN, IOWA – THE FIRST 150 YEARS, pp. 207-210, 314, 321.

08/15/2025

From the Brooklyn Historical Society:
Although visitors have been known to drive into town from I-80 just to see it, many Brooklynites are unaware of the historical significance of the local Standard Oil building. Built at the SE corner of Jackson & 2nd Street in the early 1930s, the white glazed-brick & terra cotta gas station is a testament to the years when hundreds off cars drove daily through town on Highway 6, the major road between Des Moines & Iowa City. The Moderne-style script that spells “SERVICE STANDARD” on the roofline distinguishes the site & reflects the era when it was constructed.

A large Queene Anne-style home originally occupied the corner lot; after the Standard Oil Company purchased the sit, it was moved east towards the alley. It had been owned & occupied by Mrs. Lola Landes, donor of the city block that was developed as Landes Park. Previously, in 1919 a Standard service station was located directly north of the Catholic Church, where the former Ice Cream Cottage was later constructed in 1949. The original gas station building was the south portion of the ice cream business.

Currently the Standard station is managed by Jim & Pauline Plants. From 1951to 1965 it was run by Bob Roudabush, and during the recent Flag Days celebration in June, Bob’s daughter Marilyn Roudabush Gearhart, & his granddaughter Chris Cournoyer, visited the site. Shown above with her mother & Pauline Plants, Cournoyer, who serves as Iowa’s Lt. Governor, was an honored guest of the town for the annual event.

08/11/2025

Who remembers the FS station in front of the grocery store? Farm Service originally built a gas station in 1931 across the street from the grocery store where the generating plant still stands. In 1937 they moved the business across the street in front of the grocery store.

According to Ron Plants whose family operated the station from 1979 until 1987, there was just room to angle park in front of the grocery store and people often backed their car into the back wall of the station when leaving. Plants’ remodeled the station and put on a new facade as pictured. They also put an ice cream shop in the south end. In 1987 the station was purchased by the grocery store and demolished to make room for a self service pump as it remains today.

08/08/2025

We shared these photos on our BHS post two years ago, & we think they are worth another visit!

"With the Iowa State Fair currently in full swing, it’s time to revisit some vintage photos in the Brooklyn Historical Society’s photo collection. These were small, 2 x 3-inch snapshots found in a scrapbook donated to BHS by Elwin Bush’s daughter, Donna, in 2002. We believe they were taken by Elwin (1910-2002) or a relative, circa 1920, when he attended the Iowa State Fair. He had a particular interest in airplanes, & these photos show one of the Fair’s earlier airplane exhibits. (As an aside, aviator Amelia Earhart saw her first airplane at the Iowa State Fair in 1907 when she was 10; she lived with her family in Des Moines from 1907 to 1912.) We found the downtown street scene of Des Moines equally interesting. The tattered corners have been cropped from most of Elwin’s vintage photos & the color depth has been enhanced."

Address

PO Box 58//304 Jackson Street
Brooklyn, IA
52211

Telephone

(641) 522-7744

Website

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