Editing West Liberty, Iowa (section)

== Arts and culture ==
West Liberty is a historical town with many cultural events. West Liberty has a movie theater built in 1910,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.newstrand.com/History/index.html |author=The New Strand Theatre |title=New Strand History |access-date=18 June 2014}}</ref> an internationally known puppet theater that hosts several events throughout the year and gives frequent performances,<ref name=Eulenspiegel>{{cite web |url=http://www.puppetspuppets.com/about/ |title=About us - Eulenspiegel Puppets |author=Eulenspiegel Puppet Theatre |access-date=18 June 2014}}</ref> two dance studios, an arts council which organizes community art lessons during the winter months and concerts during the summer,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wlaac.org/archives/category/information |title=Information West Liberty Area Arts Council |author=West Liberty Area Arts Council |access-date=18 June 2014}}</ref> and various local artists. West Liberty has a historical downtown, a train depot built in 1897,<ref>{{cite web |title=Rock Island Depot |url=http://wlheritagefoundation.org/rock-island-depot-2/ |publisher=West Liberty Heritage Foundation |access-date=17 June 2014}}</ref> and a public library constructed in 1904.<ref>{{cite book |title=Sesquicentennial Rolling into the Future West Liberty, Iowa 150 Years 1838-1988 |author=The West Liberty Heritage Foundation |year=1988 |page=18}}</ref>

=== Festivals and events ===
West Liberty is home to the Muscatine County Fairgrounds that hosts the Muscatine County Fair, its biggest annual event, every year in July.<ref>{{cite book |title=Sesquicentennial Rolling into the Future West Liberty, Iowa 150 Years 1838-1988 |author=The West Liberty Heritage Foundation |year=1988 |page=144}}</ref> The fair features grandstand entertainment, a  carnival, a talent show, a fair queen contest, pet shows, and judging of exhibits of livestock, arts and crafts, cooking, flowers and plants, photography, and antiques.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.muscatinecountyfair.com/fairbook.html |title=Fairbook 2014 |author=The Muscatine County Fair |year=2014 |page=1&ndash;129}}</ref> More than half of the fairground buildings are original, an exceptionally large number compared to other fairgrounds.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.westlibertyindex.com/article.php?viewID=5691 |title=Fairground kicks off fundraiser |author=Anna Anderson |publisher=The West Liberty Index |date=June 12, 2014 |page=12}}</ref>

As a prelude to the fair every year, West Liberty holds the Fair Parade followed by Picnic in the Park, on the Sunday immediately preceding the fair. The Fair Parade features floats made by the community in keeping with that year's theme. The parade winds through town and is immediately followed by the Picnic in the Park. The Picnic in the Park is held in Kimberly Park and features a free swim, food sold by local vendors, and entertainment.<ref>{{cite news |title=Upcoming Events |author=The West Liberty Index |date=June 12, 2014 |pages=5}}</ref>

Another annual summertime event is Summer Music in the Park. This summer concert series is organized by West Liberty Area Arts Council (WLAAC) and is free to the public. Every Friday evening for about a month in the summer a concert is given by local groups in Ron-de-Voo Park. Music styles vary from blues to classic rock to Latin American folk music.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wlaac.org/ |title=Summer Music in the Park |author=West Liberty Area Arts Council |access-date=17 June 2014}}</ref>

The West Liberty Children's Festival is held every year in September. A daylong event held downtown on Third Street, it is sponsored and organized by Eulenspiegel Puppet Theatre<ref name=Eulenspiegel/> with lots of volunteer help. It includes puppet shows, crafts, activities, strolling performers, performances from the local dance studios, food from local vendors, and more. The performances and puppet shows are given by both local and out of state performers. In recent years it has coordinated with the Latino Festival, which includes several hours of live Latino music as well as Mexican food and craft vendors. The 10 AM to 10 PM event is known as Fiesta West Liberty <ref>{{cite web |url=http://puppetspuppets.com/events/west-liberty-childrens-festival/ |title=West Liberty Children's Festival |author=Eulenspiegel Puppet Theatre |access-date=17 June 2014}}</ref>

From April through August the West Liberty Raceway hosts races nearly every Saturday night.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.simmonspromotionsinc.com/calendar.php |title=Simmons Promotions Inc News Calendar |author=Simmons Promotions Inc |access-date=18 June 2014}}</ref> According to their website, the raceway is a "1/2 mile, slightly banked, dirt track".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.simmonspromotionsinc.com/track.php?trackid=8 |title=West Liberty Raceway |author=Simmons Promotions Inc |access-date=18 June 2014}}</ref> The [[IMCA Sport Compact]], iWireless IMCA Late Models, and Performance Concepts are hosted at the raceway.

=== Museum ===
The historical [[Rock Island Railroad]] Depot, built in 1897, now serves as a [[museum]]. It contains displays of artifacts pertaining to the history of West Liberty and the history of the railway.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://wlheritagefoundation.org/rock-island-depot-2/ |title=Rock Island Depot |author=The West Liberty Heritage Foundation |access-date=18 June 2014}}</ref> Heritage Park, or the Depot Campus as it is commonly known, serves as a museum of sorts. The area immediately surrounding the depot has become the final resting place for many local pieces of history. There is a restored Rock Island Lines Caboose,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://wlheritagefoundation.org/rock-island-caboose/ |title=Rock Island Caboose |author=The West Liberty Heritage Foundation |access-date=18 June 2014}}</ref> a local barn known as the Heritage Barn along with antique farm equipment,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://wlheritagefoundation.org/heritage-barn/ |title=Heritage Barn |author=The West Liberty Heritage Foundation |access-date=18 June 2014}}</ref> a tourist cabin that used to form part of the North Point complex, which in addition to the nine cabins also consisted of a diner and a service station,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://wlheritagefoundation.org/motor-motel/ |title=Tourist Cabin |author=The West Liberty Heritage Foundation |access-date=18 June 2014}}</ref> a [[one-room school]]house also known as the Swamp School,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://wlheritagefoundation.org/one-room-school-house/ |title=One-Room School House |author=The West Liberty Heritage Foundation |access-date=18 June 2014}}</ref> and the newest addition, a [[steam locomotive]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Train engine floats down to final resting place |author=Jacob Lane |publisher=The West Liberty Index |date=12 June 2014}}</ref>

=== Library ===
The West Liberty Public Library building was constructed in 1904 with the help of a $7500 grant from [[Carnegie library|Andrew Carnegie]]. Before that, the [[library]] can be traced back to its beginning as a [[Temperance movement in the United States|temperance]] library. After the Reading Room was closed{{when|date=January 2022}}, seven women continued circulating the books until they left the handling of the library to the Peoples Library Association 5 years later. The association opened a reading room and later, in the year 1900, the community voted to approve the establishment of a [[public library]]. The West Liberty Public Library building is listed as a State Historical Building and has been renovated and expanded various times over the years<ref>{{cite book |title=Sesquicentennial Rolling into the Future West Liberty, Iowa 150 Years 1838-1988 |author=The West Liberty Heritage Foundation |year=1988 |pages=18&ndash;19}}</ref>  with the latest repairs and renovations occurring in 2012–2013.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.westlibertyindex.com/article.php?viewID=5366 |title=Welcome back, Library |author=Jacob Lane |publisher=The West Liberty Index |date=4 December 2013 |access-date=18 June 2014}}</ref> The library holds a host of activities throughout the year including [[summer reading programs]], screenings of educational movies, toddler story times, a morning coffee book club, and much more.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://wlpl.org/calendar/event/month |title=West Liberty Public Library Calendar |author=West Liberty Public Library |access-date=18 June 2014}}</ref>