Lehigh, Iowa
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Lehigh is a city in Webster County,
Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...
, United States. The population was 395 at the time of the 2020 census. Located in a valley, Lehigh is divided in two by the
Des Moines River The Des Moines River () is a tributary of the Mississippi River in the upper Midwestern United States that is approximately long from its farther headwaters.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe N ...
, unusual for such a small town. Originally the two halves of Lehigh were two separate towns. While the town on the west side of the River was always called Lehigh, the east town was called Slabtown, and a piece of history marks the east side's roots––a sign that hangs over the playground with the words "Slabtown Traders," perhaps alluding to the flea market which is held there every summer during Lehigh River Days. The "Slabtown Traders" sign was blown over by a gust of wind in the summer of 2010. It survived several floods while being located on River Street. Lehigh was surrounded by coal mines until the early 20th century and home to a large clay sewer pipe factory until the 1980s. Dolliver State Park, Brushy Creek State Recreation Area and Woodman Hollow State Preserve are located within a few miles of the town.


History

Lehigh's first settlers, a Mr. Reed and Mr. Wright, set up a steam
sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logging, logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes ...
on the site in 1855. Originally, the town was named ''Slabtown'' because slabs, scrap from the mill, were used in construction. By 1870, there was a
Methodist church Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...
and a school, and Oliver Tyson had purchased the mill and expanded it, adding a flour mill. Soon after this, Tyson opened a store. The town was later renamed Lehigh, comparing the local coal veins to those of Pennsylvania's
Lehigh Valley The Lehigh Valley () is a geography, geographic and urban area, metropolitan region formed by the Lehigh River in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, Lehigh and Northampton County, Pennsylvania, Northampton counties in eastern Pennsylvania. It is a co ...
. In 1871, W. C. Wilson of Webster City opened a coal mine in Lehigh and formed the Crooked Creek Railroad and Coal Company. The company built a 3-foot gauge rail line from Judd, on the
Illinois Central Railroad The Illinois Central Railroad , sometimes called the Main Line of Mid-America, is a railroad in the Central United States. Its primary routes connected Chicago, Illinois, with New Orleans, New Orleans, Louisiana, and Mobile, Alabama, and thus, ...
8.5 miles south to the mines, including a 370-foot wooden truss bridge across the Des Moines River. The line was later extended to Webster City. By 1894, the company had opened 5 mines, all using
longwall mining Longwall mining is a form of underground coal mining where a long wall of coal is mined in a single slice (typically thick). The section of rock that is being mined, known as the longwall panel, is typically long, but can be up to long and wi ...
. The Webster Coal and Land Company operated a mine near Lehigh from 1899 to 1902. In 1878, Lehigh shipped 5,640 tons of coal. In 1883, 6,887 tons were shipped, in 1884, 9,000 tons. Membership in the
United Mine Workers The United Mine Workers of America (UMW or UMWA) is a North American Labor history of the United States, labor union best known for representing coal miners. Today, the Union also represents health care workers, truck drivers, manufacturing work ...
union is a useful measure of the importance of mining. In 1912, Lehigh was home to UMW Local 855 with 64 members (about 6.9% of the 1910 population). The Crooked Creek railroad was widened to
standard gauge A standard-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge of . The standard gauge is also called Stephenson gauge (after George Stephenson), international gauge, UIC gauge, uniform gauge, normal gauge in Europe, and SGR in East Africa. It is the ...
in 1880 and a line to Webster City was built in 1886. In 1916, the line was incorporated into the Fort Dodge, Des Moines and Southern Railroad, Iowa's longest
Interurban The interurban (or radial railway in Canada) is a type of electric railway, with tram-like electric self-propelled railcars which run within and between cities or towns. The term "interurban" is usually used in North America, with other terms u ...
line. Diesel traction replaced overhead electric lines in the 1950s and the track was abandoned in 1962. By 1901, Lehigh was large enough to support a new First National Bank, with an initial capitalization of $25,000. The bank must have been small; in 1910, O. J. Woodward arrived in town to become the cashier, manager and director of the bank. In addition to coal mines, Lehigh was home to several other industries. The most prominent were brickyards that used the
shale Shale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock formed from mud that is a mix of flakes of Clay mineral, clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g., Kaolinite, kaolin, aluminium, Al2Silicon, Si2Oxygen, O5(hydroxide, OH)4) and tiny f ...
of the coal measures as a source of
clay Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolinite, ). Most pure clay minerals are white or light-coloured, but natural clays show a variety of colours from impuriti ...
to make both brick and drain tile, firing their kilns with local coal. One of these, the Lehigh Brick and Tile company, won the contract to provide paving brick for
Dubuque, Iowa Dubuque (, ) is a city in Dubuque County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. The population was 59,667 at the 2020 United States census. The city lies along the Mississippi River at the junction of Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin, a region ...
in 1896, but suffered a serious fire in late 1897. In 1901, there were 2 large brickworks in Lehigh, the Corey Pressed Brick Company and the Lehigh Clay Works, which began operation in 1900. In addition, the old Lehigh Brick and Tile works was being rebuilt after the fire. Corey was mining clay from both above and below the coal seam. By 1903, Lehigh Brick and Tile was back in production, the Lehigh and the Campbell brickyard of the Webster city Brick and Tile Company. The Cory plant was primarily a brickworks, while the others primarily produced drainage tile.


Geography

Lehigh is located on the west bank of the
Des Moines River The Des Moines River () is a tributary of the Mississippi River in the upper Midwestern United States that is approximately long from its farther headwaters.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe N ...
. According to the
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water.


Demographics


2020 census

As of the
census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...
of 2020, there were 395 people, 188 households, and 113 families residing in the city. The
population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...
was 187.1 inhabitants per square mile (72.2/km2). There were 215 housing units at an average density of 101.9 per square mile (39.3/km2). The
racial Race is a categorization of humans based on shared physical or social qualities into groups generally viewed as distinct within a given society. The term came into common usage during the 16th century, when it was used to refer to groups of va ...
makeup of the city was 97.2%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 0.0% Black or African American, 0.0% Native American, 0.0% Asian, 0.0%
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...
, 0.0% from other races and 2.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino persons of any race comprised 1.0% of the population. Of the 188 households, 23.9% of which had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.0% were
married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...
living together, 9.6% were cohabitating couples, 18.6% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present and 29.8% had a male householder with no spouse or partner present. 39.9% of all households were non-families. 34.6% of all households were made up of individuals, 12.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years old or older. The median age in the city was 43.9 years. 22.0% of the residents were under the age of 20; 6.3% were between the ages of 20 and 24; 22.3% were from 25 and 44; 27.3% were from 45 and 64; and 22.0% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 56.2% male and 43.8% female.


2010 census

As of the
census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...
of 2010, there were 416 people, 205 households, and 118 families residing in the city. The
population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...
was . There were 231 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 98.6%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 0.2%
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, and 1.2% from two or more races.
Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
or Latino of any race were 0.2% of the population. There were 205 households, of which 18.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.4% were
married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...
living together, 7.3% had a female householder with no husband present, 6.8% had a male householder with no wife present, and 42.4% were non-families. 36.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 19.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.03 and the average family size was 2.61. The median age in the city was 49.8 years. 16.8% of residents were under the age of 18; 8.7% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 16.6% were from 25 to 44; 36% were from 45 to 64; and 21.9% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 51.7% male and 48.3% female.


2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 497 people, 223 households, and 130 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 247 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 98.19%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 0.40%
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, 0.20% from other races, and 1.21% from two or more races.
Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
or Latino of any race were 0.20% of the population. There were 223 households, out of which 23.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.3% were married couples living together, 4.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.7% were non-families. 35.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.23 and the average family size was 2.86. In the city, the population was spread out, with 24.5% under the age of 18, 6.0% from 18 to 24, 24.1% from 25 to 44, 25.2% from 45 to 64, and 20.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 110.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 110.7 males. The median income for a household in the city was $25,227, and the median income for a family was $31,458. Males had a median income of $26,484 versus $24,250 for females. The per capita income for the city was $13,816. About 10.5% of families and 14.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 27.4% of those under age 18 and 3.9% of those age 65 or over.


Education

It is in the
Southeast Valley Community School District Southeast Valley Community School District is a rural public school district headquartered in Gowrie, Iowa. The district includes sections of the following counties: Webster, Calhoun, Boone, and Greene. Municipalities in the district inc ...
.
Southeast Valley High School Southeast Valley High School is a high school in Gowrie, Iowa, United States, operated by the Southeast Valley Community School District. Prior to the merger into Southeast Valley district in 2023, the school was operated by the Prairie Valle ...
in Gowrie is that district's comprehensive high school. Lehigh was a part of the
Southeast Webster-Grand Community School District Southeast Webster-Grand Community School District was a rural public school district headquartered in Burnside, Iowa. It, along with Prairie Valley Community School District, operated under the name Southeast Valley and they are the Jaguars. ...
, established on July 1, 2005, by the merger of the
Grand Community School District Grand may refer to: People with the name * Grand (surname) * Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor Places * Grand, Oklahoma, USA * Grand, Vosges, village and commune in France with Gallo-Roman amphitheatre * Grand County (disambiguation), ...
and the
Southeast Webster Community School District Southeast Webster Community School District was a school district in Iowa. Communities served include Burnside, Dayton, Harcourt, and Lehigh. It operated Burnside Elementary School, Dayton Elementary School, Southeast Webster Middle School, a ...
.REORGANIZATION & DISSOLUTION ACTIONS SINCE 1965-66
"
Iowa Department of Education The Iowa Department of Education sets the standards for all public institutions of education in Iowa and accredits private as well as public schools. It is headquartered in Des Moines. Organization As of 2020, the Iowa Department of Education c ...
. Retrieved on February 23, 2019.
In 2023 the Southeast Webster-Grand district merged into the Southeast Valley district. It was previously served by the
Southeast Webster Community School District Southeast Webster Community School District was a school district in Iowa. Communities served include Burnside, Dayton, Harcourt, and Lehigh. It operated Burnside Elementary School, Dayton Elementary School, Southeast Webster Middle School, a ...
,Home
Southeast Webster Community School District. January 11, 1998. Retrieved on February 24, 2019. which was formed on July 1, 1991, with the merger of the Central Webster Community School District and the Dayton Community School District.


Notable persons

*
John Donaldson (pitcher) John Wesley Donaldson (February 20, 1891 – April 14, 1970) was an American baseball pitcher in Pre-Negro league and Negro league baseball. In a career that spanned over 30 years, he played for many different Negro league and semi-professional t ...
ended his 30+-year professional baseball career in Lehigh (1949). * Hugh Lester, professional soccer player for
Liverpool F.C. Liverpool Football Club is a professional Football club (association football), football club based in Liverpool, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Founded in ...


References

{{authority control Cities in Iowa Cities in Webster County, Iowa Populated places established in 1855 1855 establishments in Iowa