Our History

The Johnson County Historical Society was organized in 1967 as the Mormon Trek Memorial Foundation. Its purpose was to commemorate the Mormon Handcart Expeditions, which departed Johnson County for Salt Lake City in 1856 and 1857. The Foundation identified the site of the Handcart Expedition Campground, created a park and monument and renamed a street (Mormon Trek Boulevard). The Foundation resolved to create a local history museum. To reflect this new purpose, the name was changed to the Johnson County Historical Society.

The Historical Society found a permanent home when a lease was signed for the Old Coralville Public School, a badly deteriorated two-story brick schoolhouse built in 1876. Restoration of the building began in 1977 and on July 4, 1983 the building opened to the public as the Johnson County Heritage Museum.

Today, the Johnson County Historical Society is a private, non-profit group still committed to serving the public by furthering an appreciation of the historical and cultural heritage of the Johnson County community through education, preservation and interpretation.