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Iowa County
Floyd County, Iowa
Charles City's Oliver Farm Equipment heritage and the 1968 tornado - from the Oliver Farm Equipment Company in Charles City (the Oliver Corporation - manufacturer of the iconic green Oliver tractors that equipped Midwestern farms for generations - was headquartered in Charles City, making it one of the most significant agricultural equipment manufacturing communities in Iowa's history) to the June 13, 1968 tornado (the F5 tornado that devastated Charles City - destroying much of the downtown and killing 13 people - prompted one of Iowa's most significant downtown rebuilding efforts and became a defining event in the city's modern history).
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Office: Floyd County Emergency Management – 101 S. Main Street, Suite 108/109, Charles City, IA 50616 | (641) 257-6144 | Email: [email protected]. Governed by an Emergency Management Commission of city mayors, a Board of Supervisors representative, and the Sheriff, per Iowa Code Chapter 29C.
Sheriff: Floyd County Sheriff’s Office – 101 S. Main Street, Suite G132, Charles City, IA 50616 | (641) 228-1821. Primary law enforcement for rural Floyd County and the towns of Colwell, Floyd, Rudd, Rockford, and Marble Rock; also assists Charles City and Nora Springs police. Hours: Mon-Fri 8:30 AM-4 PM (emergency services 24/7).
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-18 and IA-14 serve Charles City, the county seat and largest city, in north-central Iowa. The Cedar River runs through downtown Charles City, home to the first whitewater park developed in Iowa.
Notes: Floyd County was created January 15, 1851, and organized September 4, 1854, named for Sergeant Charles Floyd of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, the only member of that expedition to die during the journey (in 1804, near present-day Sioux City).
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Floyd County Courthouse – Charles City, IA (Veterans Memorial in front).
Notes: Charles City holds a genuinely significant place in American agricultural history. Charles Walter Hart, born in Charles City, met Charles H. Parr while both studied mechanical engineering at the University of Wisconsin; after building working internal-combustion engines together, the pair relocated their growing business to Hart’s hometown in 1900-1901 with backing from Hart’s father. There, the Hart-Parr Company built what is widely considered the first commercially successful gasoline (internal-combustion) farm tractor, and around 1901-1902 Hart and Parr are credited with coining the word “tractor” itself – a blend of “traction” and “power.” Their 1903 Model No. 3, weighing 14,000 pounds, is the oldest surviving internal-combustion tractor in the United States and is preserved at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. By 1907, Hart-Parr commanded roughly a third of global tractor sales; the company was later absorbed into the Oliver Farm Equipment Company (1929) and eventually White Farm-New Idea Equipment Co., with the Charles City plant – at its 1970s peak employing nearly 3,000 workers across 23 acres – operating until 1993. The Floyd County Historical Museum preserves this history. Separately, Charles City is the birthplace of Carrie Chapman Catt, a leading national figure in the women’s suffrage movement whose organizing helped secure passage of the 19th Amendment in 1920 and who founded the League of Women Voters; her childhood-area farm and a visitor center are open to the public today.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Floyd County Veterans Affairs – confirm current contact via floydco.iowa.gov.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Charles City Public Library (Charles City) – confirm current address/phone via the county library system.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: The Floyd County Historical Museum, the Cedar River whitewater park, the Alvin Miller House (a Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Usonian home), and the Carrie Chapman Catt Girlhood Home and Museum are the county’s premier heritage attractions.
Notes: The genuine, well-documented role of Charles City in coining the word “tractor” and building the first commercially successful gasoline farm tractor – alongside its status as Carrie Chapman Catt’s birthplace – make it one of the more historically significant small towns covered in this project.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Floyd County Assessor’s Office – confirm current contact via floydco.iowa.gov.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
PAWS Humane Society (Floyd County Humane Society) – 303 Shaw Avenue, Charles City, IA 50616 | (641) 228-0262. No-kill 501(c)(3) shelter, incorporated July 2000, operating in partnership with the Charles City Police Department for stray intake.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Floyd County Environmental Health – confirm current contact via floydco.iowa.gov.
NOTES: Floyd County is the thirty-fourth county in Iowa’s Round 3 v2 redo, under the A+ sourced standard established for this project. The genuine, well-documented role of Charles City in coining the word “tractor” and building the first commercially successful gasoline farm tractor – alongside its status as Carrie Chapman Catt’s birthplace – make it one of the more historically significant small towns covered in this project. All contact information above was sourced via web search as of early August 2026 and should be reconfirmed directly with the relevant office before a visit, deadline-sensitive filing, or emergency-adjacent decision.
About Floyd County
Floyd County is north-central Iowa’s Oliver tractor heritage and tornado recovery county – Charles City’s Oliver Farm Equipment manufacturing legacy and the devastating 1968 F5 tornado define a Cedar River community of industrial heritage and resilience.
Charles City (the county seat, population ~7,500) rebuilt after the 1968 tornado that destroyed much of its downtown. The Oliver tractor heritage is preserved in local museums celebrating the green machines that equipped Iowa farms for generations.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Floyd County Assessor at 101 S. Main Street, Charles City, IA 50616, phone 641-257-6152. IA assessed at 100% market value with residential rollback.
Courts & Legal
Floyd County District Court at 101 S. Main Street, Charles City, IA 50616, phone 641-257-6129, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
CLERK OF DISTRICT COURT (Court Records, Marriage Licenses)
101 S. Main St., Charles City, IA 50616
(641) 257-6116
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Floyd County District Court (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Floyd County genealogical society was confirmed in available directories.
Probate & Estate
Losing someone and having to deal with courts and paperwork at the same time is hard. This section won’t make that easier, but it should tell you what to expect, what it costs, and where to go – so at least you’re not walking in blind.
Where to go
Floyd County District Court, 2nd Judicial District 101 South Main Street, Charles City, IA 50616 (641) 228-7777
Floyd County was created January 15, 1851 and organized September 4, 1854, named for Sergeant Charles Floyd, the only member of the Lewis and Clark Expedition to die during the journey. The 1940 Floyd County Court House (PWA Moderne, National Register of Historic Places) is in Charles City.
Step 1: figure out which path applies
Iowa has its own comprehensive probate code (Iowa Code Chapter 633) and has not formally adopted the Uniform Probate Code. Iowa offers several tracks depending on estate size and complexity:
Distribution by Affidavit (“very small estates”) – for estates where the gross value of personal property is $50,000 or less and there is no real estate, available 40 days after death under Iowa Code § 633.356. A sworn affidavit is presented directly to banks and other institutions. No court filing is required.
Small Estate Administration – a simplified probate process under Iowa Code Chapter 635 for estates with a gross value of $200,000 or less, with reduced notice requirements and court costs compared to full administration.
Regular (Full) Probate – standard administration through the district court for larger or more complex estates, which can be independent (unsupervised) or supervised.
Supervised Administration – closer court oversight, typically used for contested estates.
Step 2: filing for formal probate
File a Petition for Probate of Will and Appointment of Executor (if there’s a will) or a Petition for Administration (if intestate) with the Floyd County District Court.
The court admits the will (if any) and issues Letters Testamentary (with a will) or Letters of Administration (intestate) appointing the personal representative.
Publish notice to creditors; under independent administration, creditors generally have 4 months from the date of first publication to file claims.
The personal representative inventories assets, pays valid debts and expenses, and – under independent administration – largely acts without ongoing court check-ins.
After the creditor period closes and debts are paid, the personal representative distributes assets to heirs or beneficiaries.
File a final accounting/final report; the court closes the estate upon approval.
What it costs
Personal representative fees are capped by statute at 3% of the gross value of the probate estate (excluding life insurance) unless services are itemized; attorney fees follow a similar framework.
Recording fees at the county recorder run about $7 for the first page of a document and $5 for each additional page.
Typical timelines: Distribution by Affidavit – a minimum 40-day wait; independent (unsupervised) probate typically closes in 6-12 months, with the 4-month creditor period as the primary timing constraint.
Probate filings, estate administration, and guardianship matters are handled by the following office(s):
Public Safety & Arrests
Arrest records, inmate search, and law enforcement services are handled by the following office(s):
SHERIFF
101 S. Main St., Charles City, IA 50616
(641) 257-6152
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY AUDITOR (Records, Elections, Finance)
101 S. Main St., Charles City, IA 50616
(641) 257-6120
ELECTIONS (County Auditor)
101 S. Main St., Charles City, IA 50616
(641) 257-6120
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Floyd County Health Dept
(641) 257-6120
Iowa DHHS — Region 2
(800) 338-8366
Iowa Medicaid
(800) 338-8366
Floyd County Medical Center
fcmh.us (Charles City — quality community hospital)
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Floyd County Public Health – confirm current contact via floydco.iowa.gov.
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