1890 - Ottumwa, Iowa: The nation's only Coal Palace has just finished its first season, with another exhibition scheduled for 1891. Finishing touches are being put on the Opera House at the corner of Main and Jefferson. The new post office has just gone into service. Churches, schools, businesses and hotels are busy; houses from simple to grand march up the hills on the north side of the Des Moines River and spread across the plain on the south bank. Originally published in 1890, Illustrated Ottumwa is a time capsule of the city's progress and history just decades after its founding. More...