DES MOINES – Preserving the Historic Squirrel Cage Jail records in Council Bluffs…Saving the 1885 “Guardian Angel” painting in Des Moines…Racing against time to restore the Jasper County Courthouse clock. Those are just three of the projects that will receive Historical Resource Development Grants and Country School Grants in fiscal year 2018 from the State Historical Society of Iowa. Overall, the State Historical Society of Iowa awarded $535,726 to museums, historical organizations and others for 27 projects in 25 communities across 21 Iowa counties today (Wednesday).

In Council Bluffs, the Historical Society of Pottawattamie County received a $1,226 Historical Resource Development Grant to preserve and protect materials from the past century at the Historic Squirrel Cage Jail, which was built in 1885 and was in use until 1969. It was added in 1972 to the National Register of Historic Places and today serves as a museum and repository for historic documents and photographs.

Historic Squirrel Cage Jail

Historical Resource Development Program grants help individuals and organizations preserve, conserve, interpret and educate the public about documentary collections, historic preservation and museums. Since 1990, the program has awarded more than $16 million to 1,200 historical projects across the state to conserve museum collections, microfilm newspapers, preserve photographs, install exhibits, survey historic neighborhoods, nominate buildings and districts to the National Register of Historic Places, and more.

View a list of all grant recipients, alphabetized by category and then by city, here: https://iowaculture.gov/sites/default/files/history-grants-awardedgrants-fy18.pdf

The Historical Resource Development Program and Country School Grant Program are funded by the Resource Enhancement and Protection Act, established by the Iowa General Assembly in 1989. Local governments, nonprofit corporations, individuals, businesses and American Indian tribes are eligible to submit applications. Projects funded in this grant cycle must be completed by Nov. 30, 2019.

The State Historical Society of Iowa is a division of the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs. More information is available at www.iowaculture.gov or 515-281-5111.