Milford Township and Proud of It

Marshes and Recreation Sites near Milford Twp

I-35 through Milford Township

Identification of dots in lower left column. Many of the marshes and slews of the nineteenth century and earlier have been drained, some as recently as the 1960's, so that a time traveler from a hundred years ago would not recognize the landscape of Milford Township.

The Dayton Park article on the previous page appeared on 20 August 1920 announcing the sale of the popular resort and recreation area located in the north half of the northeast quarter of Sec 24 in Franklin Twp. While this is technically not in Milford Twp, it was just across the road in Franklin Twp, southwest of the intersection of Dayton Rd (560th Ave) and E29 (190th St). Visitation declined throughout the 1930s and early 1940s as ease of transportation increased. Following the war, there were only occasional events at the dance hall, and around the time of the Korean War the place closed its doors for the last time.

The listing of the items at the park is very impressive and one of the things that catches the eye is in the last paragraph about a facility in Nevada supplying the electricity. This would mean that, at the time of the moving of the four or five one-room schools to the Sec 15 site; the movers would have had to contend with electric wires. Milford Consolidated School in Sec 15 did not receive public utility electricity until 1925.

An interesting footnote to the history of Dayton Park was that the remaining deteriorating structure of the dance pavilion burned to the ground on the night of the Milford 1956 Jr-Sr Prom. (Held at the airport in Des Moines 21 April 1956) It is reported that the light of the fire could be seen by the students of Milford Twp all the way home from Des Moines.

Story County Care Facility
1920

Looking south toward Section 35.

An aerial view probably from the 1950's with the Knoll cemetery to the lower left and the many barns, cribs and other buildings just out of the picture at the top. The path going from the west road to the upper left corner of the picture is a waterway.

Dark Dot Identification on the Map: North to South Lekwa's Greenbelt Access Doolittle's Prairie Anderson' Canoe Access- "H" Tree Site Soper's Mill McFarland Park, 188 acres in Sec 7. Peterson Pit Park *Dayton Park until 1956 Wakefield Woods Pk, 10 acres in Sec 19. Cooper's Prairie Marsh, 10 acres - Sec 21. Sleepy Hollow Access to Skunk River Jim Ketelson Greenwing Marsh, 68 acres in Sec 31. Larson Marsh, 12 acres in Sec 34. *The former Dayton Park was at the end of E29 on the west side of Dtyon road.

Ol' Milford Farmer ponder: Put the words `the' and `IRS' together-- and it spells, `Theirs"!