Grant will spark renovation of historic jail in Muscatine Follow Us
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By ANDREA GRUBAUGH - Associated Press - Sunday, February 14, 2021
MUSCATINE, Iowa (AP) - The old Muscatine County Jail has sat uninhabited and unused since the day it closed in 1996. The Muscatine County Historic Preservation Commission wants to bring new life into the old building.
Last week, the commission received a $9,600 grant from the Cultural Affairs for the State of Iowa. With this grant, the commission plans to start the renovation process for the 164-year-old building.
“We applied for that grant to do plans and specifications for the old jail, which was built in 1857,” Chairperson Bill Koellner told the Muscatine Journal. “The idea is to refurbish the inside. It’s a wonderful, old facility.”
February 10, 2021
Anamosa, Ia- The man at the center of a complex double murder case in Muscatine County in February of 1979 has died in prison.
Radio Iowa’s Dar Danielson reports that the Iowa Department of Corrections reports 69-year-old Bryan Kirby Barrett died after an “unexpected medical emergency” at the Anamosa State Penitentiary. Barrett was serving a life sentence in the shooting deaths of Cindy Walker of Muscatine and Carol Willits of Illinois.
Walker’s body was found in the middle of a county road, and Willits’ body was found nearby in a car. Willits was blindfolded and left what appeared to be a suicide note. Investigators found a 100-thousand dollar insurance policy for Walker with Barrett as the beneficiary and then convinced a jury he staged the murder-suicide scene involving the two women.
Man convicted of two Muscatine County murders dies in prison radioiowa.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from radioiowa.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Man faces multiple charges after high-speed chase
Milan, Illinois (Quad Cities Times) A Milan, Ill., man was arrested early Thursday after leading police on a high-speed chase and then attempting to flee on foot, according to a press release from the Muscatine County Sheriff’s Office.
The release says that James A. Taets Jr. of Milan was taken into custody and he is charged with a number of crimes, including felony eluding and possession of an incendiary/explosive device. He is being held in the Muscatine County Jail under a $13,300 cash only bond.
At about 2:15 a.m. Thursday, a deputy attempted to make a traffic stop near Highways 38 and 61 on a vehicle that had no license plates. The vehicle did not yield to the officer and attempted to flee, increasing speed greatly. It is reported the vehicle reached speeds of up to 95MPH in a 45 MPH zone on Highway 61 before turning south on Isett and travelling south in the northbound lane with speeds reaching 70 MPH in a 25 MPH
Nine Iowa communities receive historic preservation grants
BY BUSINESS RECORD STAFF
The historic Muscatine County Jail. Submitted photo
Nine Iowa communities have been selected to receive a total of $108,284 in grants for historic preservation projects. The State Historic Preservation Office, a bureau of the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs, awarded the grants through its Certified Local Government program for historic preservation. The projects and grant amounts are:
•Des Moines Historic Preservation Commission, $25,000 to revise its citywide historic preservation plan.
•Sioux City Historic Preservation Commission, $15,000 to survey its downtown for potential sites to be listed on the National Register of Historic Places.