Freeborn County is home to pioneers from many different nations. Their
common denominator was the rich farmland and the related businesses that
promised a good life for their families. When Lt. Albert Miller Lea
surveyed the area in 1835 with the Dragoons of Fort Des Moines, he
described sparkling lakes encircled by gently sloping woodlands, smooth
prairies interspersed with shady groves and rich with the melody of
feathered songsters--one of the most beautiful lands ever witnessed.