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Current view of W.R.C. Hall Courtesy of
the Iowa Falls Historic Preservation Commission |
Organized nationally in 1883, the Women's Relief Corps was one of at least three
women's organizations created to serve the country's veterans. Members were responsible
for decorating veteran's graves on Decoration Day, caring for disabled veterans,
and seeing to the needs of widows and orphans of Civil War veterans. Shortly
after the Charles Payne Post of the Grand Army of the Republic was organized in
Iowa Falls in 1883, the women of the community chartered Payne Post #48 of the
W.R.C. in 1886. The current hall was completed in 1898 after several years of
fundraising. Their fund raising activities and their dedicated service to veterans
and their families continued. But as time passed membership dwindled. After years
of Easter programs, entertainment, oyster suppers, flower sales and tireless efforts
to care for the graves of veterans, the hall was deeded to the American Legion.
The Legion deeded it to the City, which sold it to a local individual. The building
was recently sold again to a local bridal and formal wear business. The segmented
arched windows and bracketed metal cornice are the primary design elements, which
give this building its Italianate character. The adaptation made at street level
to identify this as something other than a retail business was accomplished very
simply, by the asymmetrical placement of the entrance and the use of tall slender
windows rather than large pieces of plate glass. The building is located
at 710 Washington Ave. in Iowa Falls and is open to the public during normal business
hours.
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