Iowa Historical Geography

United States   Iowa    Historical Geography

Historical geography books can help you learn about Iowa territorial, state, and county boundaries.

One source that shows changes in Iowa state boundaries is:


 * Shambaugh, Benjamin Franklin. Maps Illustrative of the Boundary History of Iowa. Salt Lake City: Genealogical Society of Utah. 1976. (FHL film 989450 item 3.) This book has several maps showing state boundaries but does not have maps showing county boundaries.

A valuable bibliography concerning early settlements and territorial jurisdictions is:


 * Petersen, William John. Iowa History Reference Guide. (Cited fully in For Further Reading.)

To learn when a particular county was organized and from which county it was created, you may wish to consult:


 * Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources. 3rd ed. (Cited fully in For Further Reading.)

For historical geography books, look in the Place Search of the FamilySearch Catalog under:


 * IOWA - HISTORICAL GEOGRAPHY