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History · Persia

Persia’s history is
mostly unwritten

The public archives hold no old photos of Persia. The rest are in attics, shoeboxes and the historical society. Help start the collection.

0old images & papers
2recent photos

The story so far

from Wikipedia & the U.S. Census

Persia is a city in Harrison County, Iowa, United States. The population was 297 in the 2020 census, a decline from 363 in the 2000 census.

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 319 to 297 (-7%). Half of its homes were built before 1945.

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Persia yet — the old photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Intro from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Population and housing: U.S. Census Bureau.

Be one of the first

Start Persia’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Persia’s history is told.

0 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Famous people from Persia

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KJKaren JenningsSportsJHJoan HesterPolitics & Law
By decade

Persia, decade by decade

Before
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 album
Today2 photos
Persia, IACommonsPersia, IA2018IAMap-doton-PersiaCommonsIAMap-doton-Persia2004
National Register of Historic Places

Nothing in Persia is on the National Register yet

That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Persia has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Eckle Round Barn in Shelby, 6.4 miles away.

Persia and the nearest listed places

Dashed line = Persia. Tap a dot.
Eckle Round BarnShelby Consolidated SchoolChicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad Stone Arch ViaductCarstens FarmsteadState Savings BankHarrison County Courthouse

Closest to Persia

Eckle Round BarnShelby · Building6.4miShelby Consolidated SchoolShelby · Built 19227.2miChicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad Stone Arch ViaductShelby · Built 18837.9miCarstens FarmsteadShelby · Building8.9miState Savings BankLogan · Building12.1mi

How a place gets listed

1Talk to the stateEvery nomination goes through the State Historic Preservation Office. Owners, towns and historical societies can start one.
2Try a local or state list firstMany states keep their own register with a shorter form, a common first step for old barns, halls and schoolhouses.
3Write it upA nomination covers the history, photos and a map. Eckle Round Barn’s page links to a real one.
Know an old place in Persia?A mill, a schoolhouse, a cellar hole, a church: add a photo of it to Persia’s story, or a memory of it.
📷 Add a photo of an old place
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places · photos from Wikimedia Commons

Then & now

When neighbors add old photos, retakes from the same spot appear here side by side.

Stories next door

nearby towns’ history
📜 Portsmouth📜 Tennant📜 Minden📜 Shelby

From Wikimedia Commons (2). Images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.

We left the porch light on

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/18 · 2025-01-01
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