Stagecoach Inn restoration event Nov. 10

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A fundraiser to benefit the restoration of a rare historic gem, the Beers and St. John Company Stagecoach Inn, hosted by the West Liberty Heritage Foundation will take place Sunday. Nov. 10, beginning at 2 p.m. at the West Liberty Community Center.

The three-story, 3,000 square foot building was moved three miles from the west side of West Liberty into Heritage Park in February. It is described as an “unaltered rural example of a stagecoach inn” and dates back to 1845, even before Iowa officially became a state.

The inn was listed on the National Historical Registry on Feb. 10, 2016, because it was once a site for regional communications, commerce and transportation, located on what is now U.S. Route 6.

A key stopping route between Iowa City and the Mississippi River in the days of transportation by horse and buggy, the Stagecoach Inn operated until 1851, when a railroad line was built from Davenport to Iowa City.

Plans for the building, once listed on the most endangered property list, include creating a museum within the structure.

About the fundraiser

Prints of the historic Stagecoach Inn will be unveiled and available for purchase in two different sizes, 8 x 10 and 11 x 14, suitable for framing, as part of the fundraiser, painted by a local artist.

The event will include a program put together by three local historians who will talk about their unique adventures in growing up in West Liberty before Heritage leader Scott Brooke gives an update on the renovation of the inn.

Leta Mae Howard Christensen and Marilyn Duncan Henderson will talk about their young lives being raised in the community before Bob Cline provides a slide show of various local residents and places of years past.

Artist Carlos Maldonado will exhibit his painting depicting the Inn's warm welcome to visitors.

A free-will donation will be asked at the door and refreshments will be served.

In July, the West Liberty Community Endowment Fund awarded their first grant in 2024 to the Heritage Foundation to be used for ongoing restoration work on the historic stagecoach inn. The Endowment fund is funneled through the Community Foundation of Greater Muscatine of which Cindy Mays of West Liberty is a member of that board.

The heritage foundation was founded in 1999 for the purpose of collecting, preserving, promoting and perpetuating the community’s heritage. The former Rock Island Railroad Depot turned museum and Heritage Park is located at 405 N. Elm Street.

For more information, please contact wlheritagefoundation@gmail.com

Workday set

This Saturday, Oct. 26, the Rotary Club of West Liberty will host a special workday at the Heritage Foundation campus, beginning at 10 a.m.

According to organization leader Cliff McFerren, volunteers will take on projects from painting, taking the canopy off the carousel and covering the horses,  and adding Christmas lights to the caboose on the grounds. There will also be opportunities for brush and tree removal long the Heritage Trail that extends from Heritage Park and the Depot Museum past the high school.

There are also plans to try to level the signal house along the trail near the high school football field entrance.

McFerren said there are enough projects for 10-15 volunteers, weather permitting. The group plans to grill outside to reward the volunteers with lunch.

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