Episode

A look at Iowa's environment during the nation's founding

Podcast
River to River
Published
Jun 19, 2026
Duration seconds
2882
Processing state
not_requested
Canonical source
https://www.iowapublicradio.org/podcast/river-to-river/2026-06-19/a-look-at-iowas-history-during-the-nations-founding
Audio
https://traffic.omny.fm/d/clips/4c9587f2-e550-4709-b293-ad0300ce922d/5d200c83-8a20-48a7-ab87-ad51012cafbe/00b1ec33-2a97-4255-b0c7-b46d014ffc95/audio.mp3
JSON
/v1/public/podcasts/river-to-river-1060576/episodes/a-look-at-iowa-s-environment-during-the-nation-s-founding
Markdown
/podcast/river-to-river-1060576/a-look-at-iowa-s-environment-during-the-nation-s-founding.md

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Summary

Our nation is 250 — but 250 years ago, Iowa was a world apart. An ecologist takes us back to a yesteryear’s landscape of endless tallgrass prairie, bison, elk and whooping cranes, and explains why Iowa is now the most ecologically altered state in the nation. A historian discusses the Indigenous nations living here in 1776 and why the American Revolution mattered enormously to people who may not have even known it was happening. And the tribal historic preservation officer of the Meskwaki Nation joins the program to discuss on her people's presence in Iowa.