However, the partners were able to establish a post office, named Coon Rapids; it soon became a stop for stagecoach service to Sioux City.

Returning civil war veterans, William Minnich and his brother-in-law, Michael Shettler, saw potential in the hamlet.

After purchasing land, they submitted a plat for the village of Coon Rapids and built what would become a store-hotel and home for the Shettler family.

When the Chicago, St Paul and Milwaukee started to build a rail line about a half mile southwest of the hamlet, they established a rough and tumble camp for their workers, many of whom were accompanied by their families.

The railroad project provided jobs and good money for local boys and newcomers, from which an economic boom began.

Between 1887 and 1894, a multitude of fires occurred some caused by arson, others by lightning, and others the result of cinders from flues igniting dry, shingled roofs.

During the late 19th century, Coon Rapids developed a modern, fireproof commercial district made up of brick buildings, exhibiting a variety of Victorian facades.

The town installed the amenities of urban life such as theater productions, roller skating, bowling, billiards, restaurants and a variety of shops and services, dray lines and livery barns.

In response to the increased town and rural population and agricultural specialization, Coon Rapids saw the appearance of service industries to support the changing farm economy.

There were carpenters specializing in farm building construction, well diggers, tiling and drainage concerns, dealers in cement and other types of fencing, a creamery to support the burgeoning dairy and poultry industry.

The downtown was filled with two and three storey brick buildings and offered an array of shops, services, and amenities such as an opera house, bowling alley, restaurants, a hotel and other amusements.

From a simple market and trading point, Coon Rapids had become the economic, social, recreational and service center for the four county areas.

The entrepreneurial tradition that marks Coon Rapids was expressed in the twentieth century by businesses that served the diverse agricultural economy of the area.

Garst and Thomas expanded physically, literally taking over many of the downtown buildings in Coon Rapids, converting them to laboratory and office space.

The city's residential areas grew during the late twentieth century, largely due to the employment offered by Garst and Thomas.

Although the range and variety of downtown shops and businesses changed between 1950 and the farm crisis of the 1980s, the town maintained basic services such as a grocery store, hardware store, real estate and insurance agencies, banks, lumber yard, and agricultural service businesses.

[10] In October 2005, Coon Rapids-Whiterock area was elected a "Great Place" of Iowa for its rich history and resources, and creative future vision.

The Great Places program, launched by Governor Tom Vilsack and implemented by the Department of Cultural Affairs, aimed to concentrate state agency resources on high-potential communities.

The Coon Rapids Great Place Program combines natural resource restoration with trails, public park development, elder care, diversity, historic preservation, microenterprise support, and tourism marketing.