In 1904, the editors of the
Atlas of the State of Iowawrote of the site of Iowa Falls, “The Iowa River, close at hand, with bold and rocky bluffs, cut perpendicularly down in places, deep and shady glens, with native timber and smooth prairie land not far distant, combine to make up a most picturesque and romantic spot.”
14The city was laid out in 1855, and by 1857 it had acquired a three-story stone mill and a good-sized hotel.