Balfour, Iowa

Unincorporated community in Iowa, United States

41°2′56″N 95°40′4″W / 41.04889°N 95.66778°W / 41.04889; -95.66778CountryUnited StatesStateIowaCountyMills CountyTime zoneUTC-6 (Central (CST)) • Summer (DST)UTC-5 (CDT)

Balfour is an unincorporated community in Mills County, in the U.S. state of Iowa.

Geography

Balfour is 4 miles (6.4 km) from the county seat of Glenwood.^[2]

History

Balfour was founded in 1902 when the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad bypassed Hillsdale. The new rail line opened in August 1904; Balfour soon had a stockyard, rail station, and general store/post office.^[3]

Balfour and Hebard were declared as "new towns" on the railroad by the Council Bluffs Daily Nonpareil, replacing Hillsdale and Hawthorne, towns now without rail access and saving the C.B.& Q. Railway 6.5 miles (10.5 km) of track, and more importantly to the railway, making the grade less steep.^[4]

The grange hall at Hillsdale was moved to Balfour and was dedicated on December 12, 1912.^[3]

Balfour's population was 25 in 1920.^[5]

By the 1930s, Balfour was being abandoned. The stockyards were used until 1939.^[3]

The population was 30 in 1940.^[2] The rail station was removed in the 1940s. Today, all that remains in Balfour are a few houses.^[3]

References

^ "Geographic Names Information System". edits.nationalmap.gov. Archived from the original on September 29, 2022. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
^ ^a ^b The Attorneys List. United States Fidelity and Guaranty Company, Attorney List Department. 1940. p. 293. Archived from the original on November 3, 2022. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Wortman, Allen. "Ghost Towns of Mills County". iagenweb.org. Archived from the original on September 29, 2022. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
^ "New Line Complete - Road Open From Pacific Junction to Hastings - The Burlington Eliminates Curves and Grades - Much in Shortening Distance Between Two Points". The Daily Nonpareil. Council Bluffs, IA. November 1, 1904. p. 8.
^ Company, Rand McNally and (1925). Premier Atlas of the World: Containing Maps of All Countries of the World, with the Most Recent Boundary Decisions, and Maps of All the States, Territories, and Possessions of the United States with Population Figures from the Latest Official Census Reports, Also Data of Interest Concerning International and Domestic Political Questions. Rand McNally & Company. pp. 188–190. Archived from the original on December 29, 2023. Retrieved September 29, 2022.