Unexpected bequests help fund Winneshiek Historical Society’s planned addition

Construction is expected to begin within the next few weeks on a new archive addition to the Winneshiek County Historical Society at the corner of Broadway and Mill Streets in Decorah. (Photo by Roz Weis)

By Roz Weis,

The impact made by several benefactors will be felt in Decorah during the coming year and beyond.

According to Winneshiek County Historical Society Board President Stacy Gossling, recent estate gifts are making a big impression on the group’s future.

Gossling said bequests, totaling well over half-a-million dollars, will make the Historical Society’s plans for the addition of new archive space a reality. 

The new 24-by-30 addition will be constructed east of the Historical Society’s headquarters at the corner of Broadway and Mill Street. A hyphen or breezeway will connect the new construction to the existing building. The plan for a carriage house design is meant to complement other elements within the city’s historic district. The new archival area will store photos, artifacts, records, wills, probates and other items which are currently stored on the second floor of the former Winneshiek County Jail building near the county courthouse.

The historical society plans to break ground on the archive project in the coming weeks, with construction expected to be complete in the fall.

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Two large bequests

A recent unexpected donation to the historical society from the estate of the late Lois Ann Conover totaled $440,000.

Conover was the granddaughter of the late Frederich W. Conover, a pioneer Decorah dentist who was married to the former Mary R. Heivly — whose family built the octogen-shaped house which still stands in Decorah’s historic district. Fred was educated in Allamakee County and Winneshiek County schools, and he attended the former Breckenridge Institute at Decorah — currently the Congregational Church on Broadway Street. He opened his dental office in Decorah during the 1890s.

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