Iowa Old Press
Onawa Sentinel
Onawa, Monona co. Iowa
40th Anniversary and all Historical Edition
Thursday, March 27, 1924
CASTANA MERCHANTS TAKE GOOD CARE LARGE TRADE TERRITORY
With a population of 452, Castana is a municipality of thrift
which is surrounded by one of the best farming communities in
Monona county, and its merchants, ever alert to please their
patrons, carry large and varied stocks, thus holding trade at
home that might, under adverse circumstances be diverted to some
other community.
The town has a municipally owned water system with fire plugs on
the street corners, the water supply being secured from a deep
well. It is fine drinking water, no filters being necessary,
because it is clear and pure and without sediment.
Electricity for lights and power is supplied by the Iowa Light,
Heat and Power Company, which recently took over the plant at
Mapleton.
Everybody in Castana is a volunteer fireman, and the
fire-fighting equipment consists of a hose-cart and hose. All
sidewalks are paved.
Castana has three churches—Congregational, Christian and
Seventh Day Adventist, and a Consolidated school—as good as
there is in the county.
The Congregational church building has recently been turned into
a community church. The Northwestern railroad passes through the
town.
The business interests of Castana are represented by two banks,
two hardware stores, two grocery stores, one general store,
lumber yard, harness shop, elevator, blacksmith shop, barber
shop, garage, two physicians, drug store, three cream stations,
two oil stations and a shipping association.
The officers of the incorporated town are:
Mayor— Lawrence Nelson; Clerk— H. M. Connor; Treasurer—
Ernest Baumann; Councilmen— William Kennedy, Charles Ward,
M. L. Gordon, Charles Riley and Max Walters; Marshal— Pete
McCall; Justice of the Peace— C. D. Bennett.
Among other things, Castana has a splendid weekly newspaper, a
city park located in the heart of town and one of the prettiest
in the county, and a town hall.
The beautiful village of Castana was laid out by the Western Town
Lot Company in the summer of 1886, and one of the first buildings
erected was a warehouse of Day & Co., being completed July
28th, 1886. The railroad tracks were laid past the depot in
April, 1886.
In the fall of 1886, W. T. Day & Co., general merchants at
what was called Old Castana, erected a store in Castana and began
operations.
S. L. Willetts moved his blacksmith from Old Castana and put up a
shop in the new village.
John C. Carritt opened the first grocery store there.
A. J. Lynch had the first hardware store and R. H. Loueks put up
a building and opened a drug store. This was later purchased by
Dr. J. H. Talboy.
Colis S. Penor erected a building for a barber shop and a pool
hall.
The first lumber yard was operated by the Green Bay Lumber Co.,
which is still in operation there.
Waples and Copeland opened the first implement house in the new
town.
The first bank in Castana commenced business September 4th, 1888,
by George P. Wiley, who erected a building and conducted a
general banking and insurance business.
The Chicago & Northwestern erected a depot there in the fall
of 1886 and the first agent was C. W. Gould, being later
succeeded by Ben Smythe.
The first attorney hung out his shingle from the office of the
Green Bay Lumber Co. in Castana on October 1st, 1889. His name
was W. S. Morton.
[transcribed by L.Z., February 2017]