Emmet County was created by an act of the Iowa Legislature in January 1851, and in 1853 provision was made for its political organization, although this was not effective until six years later. There appears to have been some settlement in the county by 1856, but it was not until the summer of 1857 that settlers arrived on the site of Estherville.
Maine was represented by Robert E. Ridley, his wife Esther, and A. H. Ridley; New York State by the Jenkins brothers, Adolphus, John and George. Also in the group were Jesse Coverdale and George C. Granger.
Mr. R. E. Ridley was elected justice and performed the first marriage ceremony in the county when he married George Jenkins and Adelia Ridley. The following year, 1858, Robert Ridley and Adolphus Jenkins platted the town, naming it for Ridley's wife. That year brought happiness to the Ridleys in the birth of a daughter, Anna, first white child to be born in the community.
The founders were enterprising in developing the village. Two blocks were deeded to the public for a public square, the same plot that is still a feature of the town. Furthermore, until 1859, when Estherville was selected as the county seat, free lots were given to anyone who would erect dwellings on them.
With the organization of the county in that year, a county judge, a clerk, a treasurer, and a sheriff were elected. Places of business at this time were Granger's Frontier Store, McKay's General Store, Ridley and Jenkins Mill, and Amos Ketcham's blacksmith shop.
By 1860 the county population had mounted to 105, with the majority living in Estherville. A crude schoolhouse was built in the Public Square, with seats of split logs. The merchants had not anticipated a demand for slate pencils, but the pupils were not hampered by this lack. They discovered that pieces of slate taken from an outcropping on Central Avenue were sufficient for all the lessons they "did" on their slates.
The first post office was established in George Granger's cabin in 1856, with a fortnightly delivery. It was located on the route between Mankato, Minnesota, and Sioux City, Iowa. Adolphus Jenkins was the first postmaster, appointed in 1860.
Early Estherville was remarkably unified in its political leanings. In the first presidential election held in the county in 1861, Abraham Lincoln received every vote.
Memorable occurrences in Estherville in the year 1868 were a plague of blackbirds, the first formal religious services, and the establishment of the Northern Vindicator. The sleek red winged birds appeared in such hordes during the summer as almost to strip the grain fields. A circuit rider of the Methodist Church, the Rev. Cornelius McClean, began visiting Estherville every three weeks to conduct the religious services so well known to the settlers in their former New England homes.
The establishment of the newspaper, however, was perhaps the most far-reaching event, for it put into print a word that was to perplex etymologist years later. The word was "blizzard". An old Anglo-Saxon term, its first use to denote a heavy snow storm accompanied by a violent wind and extreme cold is often credited to O. C. Bates, editor of the Vindicator. Another version is that Bates adopted the word from "Lightening" Ellis, one of the town characters who congregated in the newspaper office. Whatever the source, "blizzard" in its present usage apparently was employed for the first time in print on April 23, 1870, in an issue of the Vindicator.
Scarcely a decade from its pioneer beginning, life in Estherville had changed greatly by 1870. There was a heavy immigration to this community from the Scandinavian countries, Germany and Ireland. The county was named for the Irish leader Robert Emmet. Frame dwellings and business places had replaced the log structures; the main street presented a row for stores, with hitching posts beyond the porches that extended over the wooden sidewalks. The formation of something so genteel and carefree as a tennis club indicated a severance from the era of square dances, Turkey-in-the-Straw, and other folk recreations such as husking-bees, spelling-bees, and quilting.
In their sailor hats and narrow-waisted, flowing dresses the belles, with their beaux in derby hats and high collars, might have been living in Boston rather than in a frontier settlement.
The Estherville schoolhouse was forced into service as a courthouse. In 1872 the double purpose building was moved from the City Park (Public Square) to North Sixth Street; four years later it was destroyed by fire.
On May 10, 1879, a meteor fell north of Estherville. Weighing 437 pounds and measuring 27 x 22-3/4x 15 inches, its surface was broken with a metallic glitter. Specimens of this meteor are on display in the Estherville Public Library and Chamber of Commerce.
The lack of a county building at Estherville increased agitation to relocate the county seat because the original choice was not centrally situated. By popular vote in 1879 the seat was moved to the northwest shore of Swan Lake. There was, however, scarcely a settlement here and no building to house the officials who, faced with such lack of facilities, refused to move from Estherville when confronted with orders from the Board of Supervisors and even those of the Circuit Court. Finally they acceded to the demand with the exception of Doctor Ballard, the county treasurer who, in spite of pressure, completed his term as treasurer in Estherville. Adherents of Estherville brought action to test the legality of the move to Swan Lake on the grounds that some of the voters had been non-residents. The case was pending in Cerro Gordo County when another election was held. Upon a vote favoring the removal of the seat of government to Estherville, the county officers returned in 1882.
Two years later, the first courthouse of brick was built at a cost slightly under $12,000 on the north half of the Public Square which was deeded to the county by the city. A population of 800 in 1881 found Estherville incorporated under the aldermanic form. The loyal county ex-treasurer, Dr. E. H. Ballard, was elected mayor. The next year the long-awaited rail connection materialized with the coming of the Burlington , Cedar Rapids & Northern Railroad.
Under the new town government one of the first civic institutions organized was the Rescue Fire Company, highlighted by a "bucket brigade" and a hand engine. In 1892 the population had increased 2,185, and the following year Estherville was incorporated as a city of the second class. A firehouse costing $800 gave the Rescue Fire Company its first permanent quarters.
Suggestive of the social development in this period was the formation of the Estherville Driving Association. Composed of 30 horse owners, the group held many racing events with $100 purses. A municipal water works and electrification of the town inaugurated its modern era in 1895.
In a manner characteristic of the rapid development of middle American cities, the turn of the twentieth century saw Estherville already becoming aware of her brief past and with her eyes fixed on the future. In 1882, a public library was established and in 1903 a Carnegie library was built on the south block of the city park.
A telephone franchise was granted Estherville in 1895 to C. W. Crim and others. An exchange was built and placed in operation in the fall of 1896 with about 30 phones in use. In 1911 a $125,000 post office was built.
In 1910, for reasons ranging from lack of water pressure to unsanitary quarters, the Fire Department resigned in a body, leaving the town of 3,401 inhabitants without fire protection for a short time. Bearing this incident in mind, the town council provided adequate quarters for fire apparatus when a city hall was built in 1914. In 1917 the Grand Theater burned scarcely four months after its opening, with damages in the business section estimated at $200,000. Thirteen years earlier, the first major fire had occurred when ten buildings burned at Sixth Street and Central Avenue.
The rebuilding after both conflagrations materially advanced the appearance of the district. Estherville thrived. Businesses grew bigger and had larger inventories, especially supermarkets. Industrial development increased. Job opportunities became available including professional positions. Security improved with better police protection and civil defense systems came into effect. The park system was developed. Schools increased to five in number, with a Junior College established in 1924, now known as Iowa Lakes Community College. The city hall was outgrown and replaced by a quarter block structure in 1930, which is now the college administration office.
The city offices are presently located in the Gardston building on North 7th Street. More and more streets were paved, and the municipalities of the city were improved. Medical care including the hospital, care facilities and pharmacies advanced in quality of care. Several churches were formed. The Ridleys would be proud of Estherville.