Visiting Winterset
During my road trip in Iowa I made a stop over in the small town of Winterset. Despite only having a population of 5,000, Winterset is complete with its own town square that includes a movie theater, courthouse and small shopping district. Above is a photo of the town center with their courthouse below.
The downtown square had several large vintage photos of Winterset’s past. There weren’t many descriptions of the photos but I assume these were some of the original settlers in Iowa. I wasn’t able to find a lot of information on Winterset’s history, but from what I understand the town was formed in the summer of 1849. There was a cold spell that year so I imagine that had something to do with the name of Winterset.
In the town center, most of the stores seemed to be home furniture and decorating. I was here on a Sunday so most were closed, not that I would have had much to by for myself anyway. I visited in the beginning of September when it was still hot and dry out. It was a bit strange to see Halloween decorations already set up!
I visited Winterset for the purpose of seeing John Wayne’s home. The famous cowboy and actor grew up here. With main streets named after him and lots of other references, you can tell how proud Winterset is to be his hometown.
I never realized John Wayne was from Iowa until I visited the state. Luckily for me I was driving by and happened to see a sign that pointed out John Wayne’s home. I assumed that he had lived his younger years in Winterset and moved as a teen or even an adult. As it turns out John Wayne moved to Los Angeles at the age of 4. More than likely he remembered next to nothing about his brief childhood here. The house he was born in back in 1907 still exists and is now a museum along with his statue. John Wayne passed away in 1979 at the age of 72.