Local News

City: Sports pavilion owner failed to pay on time

The company that city officials say is buying the sports pavilion at Corridor Plaza failed to make eight payments in a timely manner and has not reported some other required financial data, according to a notice of forfeiture approved by the City Council. In the opinion of city leaders, that company is MandM LLC, of Ankeny. But last month, the Fort Dodge-based Better Way Project announced that it had ousted the Ankeny outfit and was now the owner and manager of the property. It put up signs naming the facility the BetterWay CourtPlex. In a series of transactions last year, the City ...

Railroads were key to the growth of Fort Dodge

When the first locomotive rumbled into Fort Dodge spewing smoke and steam on a summer day in 1869, the community was finally connected to the rest of the country in a reliable way. The arrival of the railroads helped launch a long growth spurt in Fort Dodge. The city was served by four ...

America at 250: First Transcontinental Railroad had immediate impact on nation that continues to be felt today

It’s very rare that we can say a nation was fundamentally different the day after a major construction project was completed from what it was the day before. But that’s exactly what happened to the United States of America on May 10, 1869, as the First Transcontinental Railroad was ...

Fort Dodge Ford Toyota | Ja-Mar Cruise Night

Brush by brush

GOWRIE — Genealogy took Southeast Valley High School history teacher Josh Dyer to many cemeteries over the years, and he kept noticing the same thing: some headstones were cared for, others left to the weather and covered in moss and dirt. This spring, Dyer handed seven Southeast Valley ...

One dead after Thursday morning house fire in Webster City

WEBSTER CITY — A house fire claimed one life Thursday morning. According to neighbors, the homeowner was in a wheelchair, and rarely left the house. In a press release from Fire Chief Chuck Stansfield, details on the fire were released. The Webster City Fire Department responded to ...