Big Creek Schoolhouse

Polk City is a city in Polk County, Iowa, United States. The population was 5543 in the 2020 census, an increase from 2,344 in 2000. It is part of the Des Moines–West Des Moines Metropolitan Statistical Area. Polk City is located along Saylorville Lake and near Big Creek State Park.

Big Creek is a stream in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is a tributary to the Des Moines River. Big Creek was so named due to its relatively large size compared to other nearby streams.

Crocker is an unincorporated community in Polk County in the U.S. state of Iowa.

Saylorville Lake is a reservoir on the Des Moines River in Iowa, United States. It is located 11 miles (18 km) upstream from the city of Des Moines, and 214 miles (344 km) from the mouth of the Des Moines River at the Mississippi River. It was constructed as part of a flood control system for the Des Moines River as well as to aid in controlling flood crests on the Mississippi, of which the Des Moines is a tributary. The lake and dam is owned and operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Rock Island District. At its normal level of 836 feet (255 m) above sea level, Saylorville Lake covers an area of 5,950 acres (24 km2) or 9.3 square miles (24.1 km2) and reaches some 17 miles (27 km) upstream. At full flood stage the lake can reach 16,700 acres (68 km2) or 26.1 square miles (67.6 km2) and reach 54 miles (87 km) long. At this point any further flow into the lake is channelled over an emergency spillway to the west of the main dam structure. The record high stage for the reservoir was 892.03 feet (271.89 m) above sea level set on July 11, 1993 during the Great Flood of 1993. Construction of the Saylorville Dam was authorized by Congress in 1958. Excavation began at the site in July 1965, becoming fully operational in September 1977. The dam itself is 6,750 feet (2,057 m) long, 105 feet (32 m) tall, and 44 feet (13 m) wide at the top. The lake is utilized for many recreational activities in the central Iowa area as well, as there is a large state park infrastructure surrounding the area of the lake, notably Jester Park and Big Creek State Park. The Corps of Engineers operates several recreation areas, campgrounds, and boat ramp facilities around the lake. Boating and swimming are very popular, as are camping, deer and game bird hunting, fishing, hiking, biking and disc golf. Coast Guard Auxiliary Flotilla 4 provides boating safety education and free vessel safety checks to boaters in the area. Fish species that can be found in the lake include crappie, bluegill, green sunfish, largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, brown trout, northern pike, common carp, white bass, walleye, yellow bass, american eel, flathead catfish, channel catfish, bullheads, and hybrid striped bass.

Big Creek Lake is a lake situated in the Big Creek State Park in Polk County, Iowa. The lake is situated two miles to the north of Polk City, spreads across 814 acres (329 ha), and its mean depth is 17.3 feet (5.3 m) (maximum 51 feet (16 m) deep). The lake's purpose was to protect Polk City from floods. It was a part of the Saylorville project. It provides numerous recreational options including fishing, picnicking, swimming, boating, camping, and others.

Herrold is an unincorporated community in Polk County, Iowa, United States. Herrold is located in Jefferson Township. The state capital and county seat of Des Moines is slightly over 10 miles to the southeast. Since 1990, the town has been part of nearby Camp Dodge and is not open to the public. The historic Herrold Bridge crosses the Beaver Creek to the west of the community.

The Herrold Bridge is a historic structure located near the unincorporated community of Herrold, Iowa, United States. It carried a gravel road for 156 feet (48 m) over Beaver Creek. Completed in 1921, this concrete cantilevered deck girder bridge replaced an earlier timber pile structure. It was designed by the Iowa State Highway Commission the previous year, and the Polk County Board of Supervisors awarded the construction contract to Ben Cole of Ames. The total cost of construction was $24,283.36. The bridge features three arched concrete deck girder spans that are cantilevered from concrete abutments and piers. It is considered one of the most technologically significant of Iowa's concrete girder bridges. The bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1998. While it remains in place, the Herrold Bridge was replaced by a newer span slightly downstream.

KWQW (98.3 FM, "The Vibe") is a contemporary hit radio station licensed to Boone, Iowa and serving the Des Moines area. The station is currently owned by Cumulus Media. KWQW's studios are in Urbandale, along with Cumulus' other stations: KGGO, KJJY, KHKI, and KBGG. Its transmitter is located near Big Creek Lake southwest of Sheldahl.

The Camp Dodge Pool District, also known as the Camp Dodge Swimming Pool Complex, is a nationally recognized historic district located in Johnston, Iowa, United States. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1995. At the time of its nomination it consisted of three resources, which included two contributing buildings and one contributing structure. It consisted of a 2,300,000-US-gallon (8,700,000 L) swimming pool, a bathing pavilion, and a concession stand. The complex was built at Camp Dodge, the headquarters of the Iowa National Guard. When it was completed in 1922, the pool could accommodate between 1,000 and 2,000 people and it may have been the largest in the country. The following year, however, a larger pool was built in San Francisco.

Camp Dodge is a military installation in the city of Johnston, Iowa. Centrally located near the capital of Iowa, it currently serves as the headquarters of the Iowa National Guard.

USS Des Moines (CA-134) was the lead ship of the class of United States Navy heavy cruisers. She was the first ship in the United States Navy to feature the auto loading Mark 16 8-inch/55 caliber gun, the first of its type in the world. She was the second ship of the US Navy to be commissioned with the name of the capital of Iowa. Launched 1946, she was commissioned in 1948. She saw duty around the world until her decommissioning in 1961; she was permanently mothballed. A 1981 survey was done to determine if she was worthy of reactivation for the 600-ship Navy, but the cost was too great so she remained in the reserve. She was struck off the naval reserve in 1993, which was followed by a campaign to turn her into a museum ship. The campaign failed, and in 2005 she was sold for scrapping, and she was broken up by July 7. Parts of the ship have been donated to various places for display, including at the USS Salem museum, which is the only Des Moines-class ship to avoid the scrapyard.

Jefferson Township is a township in Polk County, Iowa, United States.