[2] Wilton got its start when the Mississippi and Missouri Railroad, later the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific, was surveyed through this area in 1853.

Architecturally, the buildings tend to favor the vernacular forms with influences from the Victorian and revival styles.

Civic buildings include the WPA-funded city hall (1939), and the mid-century modern post office (1960).

The Wilton Candy Kitchen (1856), the oldest building in the district, and the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Depot (1898) are individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

This article about a property in Muscatine County, Iowa on the National Register of Historic Places is a stub.