Highway 99 Culvert

Highway 99 had collapsed at a culvert where the highway intersected with Pumping Station Road.

A bypass had been made around the break. Des Moines County purchased a new culvert and repaired the break a while back. They also repaired Pumping Station Road. The county has begun picking up debris from homes located in the rural areas, over six months after the flood happened. It is anticipated the removal will be completed by the end of December.

Sand Removal

Some farmland was covered by sand from the failed levee as well as that washed in by the flood waters. The farmer below has been scraping sand so he can plant crops next year.

This pile is from only a small section of land. Hopefully, the snow will stay away for a time so more sand can be removed before it is covered.

Big Thanks

The Red Cross coordinated the volunteer workers for a couple of months. When they pulled out, Tonya Lanz volunteered to take over the position. She has worked, unpaid, since August putting in long days, 5 or 6 days a week. If someone need assistance, she puts them on the list and organizes the volunteers, equipment and supplies needed to complete the task.

Tonya has charge of equipment to loan and gives out supplies and water. She has been a sounding board for complaints and a shoulder to cry on. Tonya was out in the heat and humidity, now she has a trailer next to the Oakville Community Building for the cold. She doesn't like the attention but she deserves it.

Tonya is also a member of the Oakville Volunteer Foundation which accepts funds which are used to purchase building supplies for rebuilding houses. Many others have spent time in Oakville, but Tonya has been the face of them. She and all of the others deserve big thanks for what they have done and continue to do.

Auction

The family farm is sold.

The weather was sunny with a brisk, cold wind when we were setting up. Small items were placed on hay racks. Other items like vehicles and shop items were placed on different spots and wood was stacked in all of the sheds.

The sun disappeared behind clouds when the bidding started. Some things sold for less than hoped, while others sold for more.

The land was considered a potential problem for the auctioneers. They had never dealt with a situation where the auction happened so close to a major disaster that affected the entire area. In the end, the price exceeded most expectations.

A local farmer purchased most of the property while his father-in-law purchased the small lot. The farmer plans on farming the tillable acres but said he hadn't considered what to do with the rest yet. There were rumors of the lots being considered for a gas station. The house may be saved, but that is his business now.

Oakville Levee Delayed

The U.S. Corps of Engineers have delayed repairing the levee that was breached. The levee was being repositioned further from the river. An archaeological survey found artifacts where the new levee is to be located. The artifacts could be anywhere from 100 to 10,000 years old.

Just north of Oakville are the Toolesboro Mounds which possibly contain the largest Hopewell era mound in Iowa. The area close to Oakville was reputed to be the location where the Indian warrior Black Hawk met with Chief Keokuk before the Black Hawk War in which Abraham Lincoln took part. There are several mound locations found on the bluffs south of Oakville along Highway 99, along with Chief Taimah's (Tama) grave site just north of Burlington.

Aloha Hooey

There is actually a Merrie Melodies cartoon that mentions the town. It is called "Aloha Hooey" and stars "Cecil Crow from Oakville, Ioway." Cecil is portrayed as a hick with a southern accent. He smokes and does a lot of stupid things, but ends up with the girl.

Auction Cleanup

We finally finished the cleanup for the auction. Everything is out of the house. A sign was found which indicated when the house was built. The date is difficult to see but it says, "Saturday, October the 5th, 1895." It was removed since the house is slated to be demolished.

The sheds have been cleaned out and moved into place. Some may even be able to be used by whoever purchases the property.

The hole the larger red shed had fallen into was filled in with dirt washed in by the flood.

The pole building will have wood placed in stacks for the auction. It will also hold hay racks that will be used for many smaller auction items.

Mike mowed the entire field with the tractor. It took an entire day. He found some debris and removed it. The tractor will be auctioned as well.

Other equipment include a disc, planter and cultivator. Dad used these when be farmed the acreage. He had rented the land out so it hadn't been used in quite a while.

The other buildings will have wood stacked for bidding when it comes closer to the auction. The wood shown here was caught in the flood.