Newton, Iowa
Newton is the county seat of, and most populous city in, Jasper County, Iowa, United States. Located east of Des Moines, Newton is in Central Iowa. As of the 2020 Census, the city population was 15,760. It is the home of Iowa Speedway and Maytag Dairy Farms. History Early history Newton was founded in 1846 as Newton City, then shortened to Newton in 1847 and incorporated as a city in 1857. It was named to pair with Jasper County, following a common American naming scheme at the time in honor of Revolutionary War soldiers John Newton and William Jasper. In the late 19th century, Newton's growth was fueled by the development of coal mines in the region. The first significant mine in the area was the Couch mine of the Jasper County Coal and Railway Company, opened in the 1870s. For a while, it was the largest mine in the county, producing 70 tons per day. William Snooks opened a mine near Newton in 1886. In the early 20th century, large scale mining in the Newton area had declined, but there were still several mines in the area that were worked intermittently. Maytag and the era of growth In the 20th century, Newton was a manufacturing community, much of its growth derived from the washing machine industry. Its most distinctive landmark, the Jasper County Courthouse, was built in 1911. Newton entered the national stage in 1938 when martial law was declared during a strike at the Maytag Washing Machine Company. Iowa governor Nelson Kraschel ordered the Iowa National Guard to protect the company with tanks and machine guns ready against the workers. With the backing of four troops (companies) of the 113th Cavalry Regiment, Maytag company beat the strike and forced workers to return to work with a 10% pay cut. At the conclusion of World War II, the Maytag Washing Machine Company expanded its operations in Newton, becoming the Maytag Corporation. Known for its dependable line of washing machines and clothes dryers, the company later persuaded the town of Newton to change the name of its headquarters address in the city to "One Dependability Square." In 2001, a decision to cut labor costs resulted in a reduction of the labor force at the Newton plant in favor of newer Maytag facilities in Mexico. Layoffs at the Newton plant continued through 2005. Whirlpool's acquisition of Maytag in early 2006 led to speculation over the future of Maytag operations in Newton. On May 10, 2006, Whirlpool announced that it would close the Newton plant and corporate offices in the fall of 2007. The plant employed about 1,000 workers and the corporate offices employed about 800 at the time of the announcement. In January 2007, Whirlpool said in a statement that it sold most of the Maytag headquarters complex to Iowa Telecommunications Services Inc., a Newton-based telephone company which would use the complex to consolidate employees in a single location. Although the company did not disclose financial details, Newton economic development officials