History · Washta

Washta’s history is mostly unwritten

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

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What stands out about Washta’s past

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A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Washta are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Washta’s homes were built before 1938.

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Decades since 1900 with photos

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The story so far

Washta, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Washta yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Washta is a city in Cherokee County, Iowa, United States. The population was 209 at the time of the 2020 census. It is called "The Coldest Spot in Iowa", recording a temperature of −47 °F (−44 °C) without wind chill on January 12, 1912. Washta's name dates back to 1868 when a local man named Whisman turned his farm into a trading post/mail stop for the freight train going from Correctionville, Iowa, to Cherokee, Iowa. He was asked to be the official postmaster for the area. When asked what the name of his town would be, he recalled an interesting encounter with two Native Americans the year before: While Whisman was out hunting, the two came upon him, removed his gun, looked at it, and hand…

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 248 to 209 (-16%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.