NEWS:”Road Tripping Through Iowa Using an Emigrant Trail Diary” (February 17, 2025)
RELATED: YouTube series access at https://tinyurl.com/RTIowaSeries
Author and historian, Janelle Molony, has been nominated for the 2025 Loren Horton Community History Award for her project: “Road Tripping Through Iowa Using an Emigrant Trail Diary.”
What’s the Series About?
This YouTube video series guides audiences through historical points of interest in Central and Western Iowa using the authentic 1864 trail guide of Sarah Jane Rousseau (1844 pioneer settler of Marion County, Iowa). Molony has spent over a decade researching the trail diarist’s history and activity in the state and in 2024, she dedicated time to bring much of it’s content to life with vivid storytelling, expansive views and up-close and often intimate details of the people who participated.
“Road Tripping” demonstrates a very practical way to enjoy exploring the Council Bluffs Road and Mormon Road to their fullest extent. The tours show how old documents such as the 1864 diary are still relevant to this day and useful for historical tourism. Viewers are encouraged to enjoy their local history spots with appreciation for the past, or for some, to to pique or renew their interest in the topic.
Information on the Award
The Loren Horton Community History Award, given by the State Historical Society of Iowa, recognizes projects that increase awareness and participation in Iowa history on a local level. It can be awarded to an individual, group, or organization that meets the award criteria for an outstanding program or event, use of volunteers, project related to a museum/library/archive or other educational activity, outstanding research or a project for youths.
The winning project should:
- Encourage collaboration and support from a cross-section of individuals and groups in the community;
- Increase awareness and appreciation for local or community history; and
- Promote future interest in the history of the community and continue to generate enthusiasm and provide long-term protection of community history, whether tangible or intangible.
In addition to the overall award, a special Certificate of Recognition may be presented in each of the five “outstanding” categories. Winners are selected by a committee and are presented with awards at the annual ceremony in the Summer.
How Does “Road Tripping” Do This?
Molony’s video series invites viewers from across the world to see what it might have been like to travel the state in a wagon train, including dramatic landscape changes, severe weather conditions, and important landmark features along the trail like waterways and historical camps. She spares no detail in establishing the pioneer contributions to early Iowa history such as enhancing its culture and making strides in government policies and community development.
“Road Tripping” includes lively and well-researched (and often humorous and cheeky) commentary on pioneering families, their intricate relationships to big names and moments in U.S. history, and on the difficulties presented in researching local history. Specific families she features include that of:
Rev. Israel Curtis – Baptist Minister, Founder of Central College, District Attorney and 1863 nominee for State Senate.
Nicholas Earp – Local Justice of the Peace, farmer, Provost Marshal and 1863 nominee for Sheriff (and father of the later famous Virgil. Wyatt, Morgan, and Warren Earp).
Dr. James Rousseau – County Land Surveyor, Civil Engineer, Physician and Postmaster.
John Hamilton Jr. – Son and Nephew of unincorporated Marion County settlers who sold their land to Rev. Henry Scholte before eventually settling in Hamilton, Iowa.
Rev. Henry Scholte – Dutch Reformer, Founder of Pella, Lawyer and Minister (amongst many other jobs contributing to the city).
The series puts positive attention on an important subject that needs to be remembered and introduced to younger audiences through popular and highly accessible and shareable means. Above all, this video series offers an abundance of examples showing that exploring local Iowa history is fun and worthwhile.
There are 21 (and counting) videos so far. Viewer data shows the audience is primarily between the ages of 25-and 50. The video content is still growing with new material being edited and to be posted in the near future.
The series is available on YouTube at https://tinyurl.com/RTIowaSeries.
Community Support & Giving Back
The videos were prepared with the support and blessing of several important organizations such as the Pella Historical Society, the libraries and archives of Pella, Knoxville and Grinnell, the Marion County Genealogical Society, the State Historical Society of Iowa and others at the individual level. Research assistance was provided at library archives, in newspaper databases, in historical journal searches, and to find photographs and maps that helped direct Molony’s “next steps.”
Many of the videos include specific mentions and reviews of local businesses such as restaurants, museums, historical societies, local parks and other community opportunities. The videos also provide next steps for viewers to tour or otherwise extend their learning opportunities by linking the content to official organizations and articles.
Since publishing the series, some businesses became the topic of important reviews shared with historical organizations such as the Wild West History Association and the Oregon-California Trails Association, both in print and online publications. Marion County pioneer history has also been highlighted in a recent feature piece in the national newspaper, The Tombstone Epitaph.
These types of collaborations promote further interest in Iowa history and tourism from a new and broad audience. Fanfare generated from this program will promote additional tourism at the state and city level; something that the organizations featured can appreciate for years to come.
Want to Come Along for the Ride?
We’re starting in Marion County and heading west to Council Bluffs, the “Jumping Off” point for the Old Oregon Trail / Council Bluffs Road / Mormon Road. Fair warning: in-between some must-see historical sites, you may run into a torrential summer storm, end up in the middle of a cornfield or get zapped by the no-see-ums!
About Janelle Molony
Janelle Molony, M.S.L. is an award-winning freelancer and nonfiction author from Phoenix, Arizona. She has a particular interest in women-centric stories and local history. Her writing has been featured in magazines and journals such as History Nebraska, The Michigan Historical Review, Minnesota Genealogist, Annals of Wyoming, the Tombstone Epitaph, and more.
She hosts the interview series, “Women of Wyoming: Then & Now,” a special project of the Wyoming Historical Society and of the State Parks & Cultural Resources. Her lively storytelling and vibrant YouTube content has earned her the official moniker as the “Hottie Historian.”
See recent articles from the author on Medium and on social media. More publications by Molony can be found on her official author webpage.
Socials: @RousseauHistory
Socials: @AuthorJanelleMolony