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History · Prescott

Prescott’s history is
mostly unwritten

The public archives hold no old photos of Prescott. 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

Prescott is a city in Prescott Township, Adams County, Iowa, United States. The population was 191 at the time of the 2020 census.

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 257 to 191 (-26%). Half of its homes were built before 1938.

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Prescott 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 Prescott’s collection

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

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

Famous people close to Prescott

See all 25 →
Henry A. WallaceHenry A. WallaceOrient · 16 miJohnny CarsonJohnny CarsonCorning · 7 miMarcia Wallace PeamsMarcia Wallace PeamsCreston · 13 miWCWalter CunninghamCreston · 13 miJulee CruiseJulee CruiseCreston · 13 miVirginia ChristineVirginia ChristineStanton · 26 mi
By decade

Prescott, 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
Prescott, IACommonsPrescott, IA2019IAMap-doton-PrescottCommonsIAMap-doton-Prescott2004
National Register of Historic Places

Nothing in Prescott is on the National Register yet

That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Prescott has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Snider Bridge in Prescott, 2.3 miles away.

Prescott and the nearest listed places

Dashed line = Prescott. Tap a dot.
Snider BridgeCorning Opera HouseAdams County JailCorning Commercial Historic DistrictLenox HotelU. S. Post Office

Closest to Prescott

Snider BridgePrescott · Structure2.3miCorning Opera HouseCorning · Building6.7miAdams County JailCorning · Built 18776.7miCorning Commercial Historic DistrictCorning · Classical Revival6.7miLenox HotelLenox · Late 19th and Early 20th Century American Movements10.2mi

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. Snider Bridge’s page links to a real one.
Know an old place in Prescott?A mill, a schoolhouse, a cellar hole, a church: add a photo of it to Prescott’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
📜 Corning📜 Cromwell📜 Lenox📜 Carbon

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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