Iowa history is alive and well

A conference in Des Moines proved the merit of history

History doesn’t have to be a pile of dusty, old relics. It is a living study of the past that relates to today.

That’s my take, anyway, and an attitude shared by dozens of experts and hundreds of fellow history fans at the Iowa History Conference Thursday at the State Historical Museum of Iowa in Des Moines.

I’ve always loved history — the story of humanity, really — and a series of discussions were held that related to small and large topics involving Iowa and Iowans. (The conference was sponsored by the University of Iowa and the State Historical Society of Iowa.)

The State Historical Museum of Iowa in Des Moines is a free attraction that tells the story of Iowa. (Photo by John Naughton.)

I listened to speakers who discussed topics such as Iowa archaeology, Iowa during war and on the homefront, and writing and preserving Iowa’s agricultural history.

Fascinating stuff. But the program also gave me a chance to reflect on what Iowa history is and the condition of history in our state.

For this, I went to an expert — Leo Landis, the curator of the State Historical Museum of Iowa — a man who knows more about the subject than nearly anyone.

So what is “Iowa history?”

“Iowa history is a narrative of a multitude of people that represent what our state means today, within a context of the United States,” Landis said.

Further, he said the history of our people is how we live up to the framework set up by the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. and Iowa Constitutions.

That multitude of people, of course, includes our rich civilization comprised of the indigenous people that populated (and continue to reside within) our state’s borders, pioneers and migrants, rural people and city dwellers. We are a patchwork of history.

Leo Landis, curator of the State Historical Museum of Iowa, poses in front of one of the current exhibits. (Photo by John Naughton.)

After fielding that inquiry, I asked Landis about the “State of Iowa History” for 2024, framing it as a State of the Union-type question.