Category Archives: Tama County

July 23, 2008: RAGBRAI riders stop outside Montour’s most famous institution, Rube’s Steakhouse. Rube’s turns 50 this year. RAGBRAI bounced off the corner of Montour in 2023 despite the locals’ best efforts to get riders to divert. The southern Tama … Continue reading →

The 99 I experienced in Albuquerque in 2019 was a dry heat. This is not a dry heat. Glory to corn sweat. Cedar Rapids’ last 100-degree day was a decade ago next week (August 30, 2013).

For the second week in a row, I went to a Tama City Council meeting. Once again, the Lincoln Highway bridge was the subject. My Substack is ideally about Iowa history and highways, and right now, this is the story … Continue reading →

See my story about Monday’s Tama City Council meeting on Substack.

July 9, 2023: Happy birthday! We’re celebrating Traer’s 150th birthday this weekend, although many of the activities were back in June. The schedule is on the WSF committee’s Facebook page. My parents are grand marshals for tomorrow’s parade, which starts … Continue reading →

August 9, 2008: The north side of Traer’s business block was constructed after a fire in 1894 burned the whole thing down. Toledo Chronicle, August 7, 1873: The town of Traer, the present terminus of the Pacific branch of the … Continue reading →

July 23, 2008: Riders enter Tama on RAGBRAI XXXVI. Tama-Toledo is again a host community this year. RAGBRAI will be going from Des Moines to Tama-Toledo on Thursday, and highs are expected to be in the upper 90s. By the … Continue reading →

July 9, 2023: Crop of a picture of the Winding Stairs, before cleaning. On July 16, Traer’s iconic Winding Stairs had a refreshment. It wasn’t a drink, but a full-on sandblast followed by a new coat of paint. The North … Continue reading →

Here’s coverage from the North Tama Telegraph, along with lots of photos, of Traer’s Big Birthday Bash on June 3. Naturally, with Tama County being in a moderate drought, the event was plagued by rain showers.