Prairie Roots Run Deep: A Geologically Grounded History of Elk Horn, Iowa

Authors

• Warren Watson

Keywords

settlement, prairie, Danish-Americans

Abstract

Clay Township is located in the southeast corner of Shelby County, Iowa. It is made up of thirty-six one-mile square sections. The top tier of sections one through six are somewhat larger due to a surveying correction. It was one of the last townships in Shelby County to be settled. The first settlers were drawn to the northeast corner of Shelby County in the late 1840s and early 1850s. Once a Dane got a foothold in Clay Township in the 1860s, the area became populated quickly. It was eventually settled by the largest contingent of Danes in America. This is all just recent history, though, compared with the story the land itself can tell.

Recommended Citation

Watson, Warren (2023) "Prairie Roots Run Deep: A Geologically Grounded History of Elk Horn, Iowa," The Bridge: Vol. 46: No. 2, Article 3.
Available at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/thebridge/vol46/iss2/3