Carroll County IAGenWeb History Journal

     The village of Carrollton, for twelve years the seat of justice of Carroll County, was laid out by Leas & Harsh, of Des Moines, who had entered the land. The particulars as to the choice of this site for the county seat have been given on a previous page. It is located on the north half of the northeast quarter of section 1, township 82, range 34, and the south half of the southeast quarter of section 36, township 83, range 34. S. L. Loomis built a small house, and opened the first store in 1856. H. L. Yontz afterward bought it, and was the first postmaster. In a year or two Lafayette McCurdy built the second store, and got the post office. The first blacksmith was Richard McChine; the second, John Grove. In 1859 the lower story of the court-house was built, but not painted or plastered. The place grew slowly, as did the county, until the building of the Northwestern Railroad in 1867, and the laying out of Carroll. October 8, 1867, eighty-eight votes were cast for removing the county seat to the new town on the railroad, and thirty against removal. The records were taken to Carroll in May, 1868, and Carrollton, which had at this time perhaps fifteen houses, steadily declined from that time. The building of Coon Rapids, on the St. Paul Railroad, has taken away its last hopes of ever being a place of importance. Most of the houses have been taken into the surrounding country, where they are used for stables or other out-houses. There are yet remaining a store, post office, blacksmith shop and a residence or two. Crockett Ribble, one of the pioneers and early county officers, is postmaster. He doubtless thinks—

"I feel like one who treads alone some banquet
hall deserted;
Whose lights are fled, whose garlands dead, and
all but me departed."