Editing Nora Springs, Iowa (section)

==History==

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Nora Springs was founded in 1857 and was incorporated in 1875. It was first called Woodstock, but community pioneer Edson Gaylord, managed to persuade wealthy pioneer Edward Greeley of nearby Woodbridge (later Nashua) to come to town. Greeley agreed to buy and improve the gristmill, and to purchase 20 acres of land from Gaylord, if the town would change its name from Woodstock to Elnora, in honor of a former lady love from Vermont. Gaylord had wanted the town to be named "Springs" and as a result of a compromise, Woodstock became Elnora Springs, quickly shortened to Nora Springs. Shortly thereafter, Greeley made a trip to Vermont; upon his return, he sold the land back to Gaylord, returned to Woodbridge, and never visited Nora Springs again.

At its founding, the town's business district was located near the millpond and nearby gristmill, at the western end of present day Sixth Street NW. Two competing railroads began laying track several blocks to the south; as a result, the downtown gradually moved nearer to the rail lines, and the former business district became known to locals as Old Town. The gristmill went out of business, and stood empty for many years. It was demolished in the late 1950s. The millrace and dam still exist, and in recent years, the city has developed the area into a scenic park. A footbridge over the Shell Rock River dam was constructed in 2019,