BLACK HAWK COUNTY, IOWA
HISTORICAL INFORMATION
( County Seat - Waterloo)
Black Hawk County was created in 1843, three years before Iowa gained statehood. It was named for the Sac Indian leader who, in the Black Hawk War of 1832, unsuccessfully fought the U.S. government's plan to move the Sac and Fox tribes from their lands along the Mississippi.
Since there were no residents in the county at the time of its birth, it was attached to Delaware County for administration purposes. Settlers started arriving in 1844. In 1845, the administration of Black Hawk County was transferred from Delaware County to Benton County. The census of 1850 found 26 families in Black Hawk County. The 135 people included 75 males and 60 females. Four children attended the county's first school. In the same year, Andrew Mullarky opened "The Black Hawk Store" in Cedar Falls, and the county's first post office opened.
Following another administrative transfer in 1851, this time to Buchanan County, the legislature passed an act allowing the county to organize its own government and elect officers in 1853. At the same time, the counties of Bremer, Grundy and Butler were administratively attached to Black Hawk County. The act also formed a commission to fix the seat of justice for the county. Cedar Falls (then called Sturgis Falls), as the county's largest town, was selected, which galled residents of the more centrally-located Waterloo. Efforts to relocated the county seat led to a mob from Waterloo descending on Cedar Falls in 1854 with the intention of removing the county records from the loft of Mullarky's store. Forsaking frontier justice for more civilized methods, Waterloo residents persuaded the legislature to permit a county-wide election to decide between the two cities. The election favored Waterloo, 388-260.
Another controversy erupted as to whether the county's first courthouse should be built on the east or west side of the Cedar River. Another election was held, and the East Siders won, aided by Cedar Falls voters, who were revenging themselves on the West Side businessmen who petitioned the legislature for the earlier election. The construction contract was for $12,747; the final cost was $27,000, including $2,000 for a fence. It was built several inconvenient blocks from the business district on property which the county judge, who selected the site, had an interest. These facts rankled residents until another courthouse was built in 1902 for $150,000.
It took three bond elections before a new $2 million courthouse was approved in 1960. Endorsing a proposal by local citizens to change the location and design, the supervisors held a fourth election to bond for an additional $450,000. After construction bids were received, the new jail had to be eliminated to stay within the budget. Eventually, two more special elections authorized $350,000 more from county funds. This allowed construction of a jail atop the courthouse and covered land acquisition costs, which ran higher than expected.
In a 1990s version of the courthouse shuffle, Black Hawk County is moving ponderously toward the construction of a new jail. A 1990 referendum approved nearly $14.5 million of the project. Since then: The election spawned a lawsuit that was settled out of court; doubts persist whether the bond issuance will cover costs of the original plans; and property acquisition has been slowed to a snail's pace by the discovery of contaminated water below the proposed site. In another 50 or 100 years, our descendants will doubtless recollect the matter with the same amusement we currently derive from the foregoing episodes in Black Hawk County history.
Taken from History of County Governments in Iowa, published in 1992 by Iowa State Association of Counties, Des Moines, Iowa
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