The story
from WikipediaRead it all ↗Modale was originally called Martinsdale, and under the latter name was laid out in 1872 by Benjamin Martin, and named for him. The present name of Modale, so named from the city's setting in a dale near the Missouri River, was adopted when a railroad depot was first built.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
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Start Modale’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Modale’s history is told.
0 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10Famous people from Modale
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By decade
Modale, decade by decade
Before
2000
2000
No old photos in the archives yetWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
📷 Add from your albumToday2 photos
National Register of Historic Places
1 historic place in Modale
1 place in Modale is on the National Register of Historic Places, the country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
#186
In Iowaby listings · most towns there have none
1place listed1 building
0National Historic LandmarksNone here yet
1historic building protectedcounting each building in a district
2014first listedModale School and Masonic Hall
Where they are
Tap a dot for a photo and link. Districts show at their center.
Buildings
When they were listed
The Register began in 1966.
60s
70s
80s
90s
00s
110s
20s
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places (05/22/2026) · styles from the National Archives catalog · photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place
Then & now
When neighbors add old photos, retakes from the same spot appear here side by side.
Stories next door
nearby towns’ historyFrom Wikimedia Commons (2). Images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.