PLAN YOUR VISIT
Experience The Jordan House, a stately Victorian home of Italianate Gothic design and Bennett School, one of the last one-room schoolhouses built in Iowa.
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BECOME A MEMBER
West Des Moines Historical Society is dedicated to the mission of historic preservation and to educate public about our historic sites in Central Iowa.
MAKE A DONATION
Your tax-deductible contribution supports community enrichment through education, preservation, and celebration of the history of the greater WDM area.
RECENT NEWS
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05
Aug
2019The Iowa Files
The Iowa Files, an educational history lecture series, returns in 2019/2020. Free and open to the public, thanks to the generosity of West Des Moines Historical Society members, the Iowa Arts Council and the Friends Foundation...
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16
Jul
2019Historical Holiday Hosts
Do you love to decorate for the holidays? Looking for a new way to share your ideas & holiday spirit? Then ho-ho-head over to the Jordan House Museum or Bennett School Museum for our first ever Historical Holiday...
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UPCOMING EVENTS
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WEST DES MOINES HISTORICAL SOCIETY - HISTORIC BUILDINGS
The Jordan House Museum
The Jordan House, a stately Victorian home of Italianate Gothic design, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is a member of the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Program....
The Bennett School Museum
Built in 1926 or ’27 the Bennett School was one of the last one room schools to be built in West Des Moines and was in use until at least 1941. It was originally located on an acre of ground donated...
Jordan House and The Underground Railroad
The Underground Railroad was a loosely organized system for helping escaped slaves from the southern states reach freedom in the North or Canada in the years before the Civil War.
To learn more about the Underground Railroad, click here.