Looking for Green Plain and Newbern

Today we tried to find Green Plain, Iowa -- the starting point of Grandmother Ann's diary. She writes, "Green Plain. 10th Mo. 3rd. [October 3, 1867] In a real bustle loading up to start to Indiana." When we asked some locals in Lacona, IA for the location, we got directions that included driving a significant distance on gravel roads. There is no longer a community of Green Plain, so I took some photos of the general area. In Lacona, we found a historic cabin dating from 1846, the year Iowa became a state. Did Ann & Henry Way live in a cabin like this when they came to Iowa in 1855?

"Seventh day. morning 5th. [October 5, 1867] Had an affectionate and solemn parting with the children about 11 o'clock yesterday. David came with us to Newbern. We
bought Eddie a cap for a dollar & a quarter and a couple of watering buckets for 55 cts. Came on to L. Chance's about 1 and had a good warm dinner prepared for us. Then we took leave of our kind friends and came to the Knoxville road to camp. Had a good fire, & all slept in the wagon."

Newbern was another mystery we were not able to solve today. After driving several miles on a different gravel road, we decided to turn around and get back on paved roads to towns that actually exist on a map. Here's where we pick up the rest of Ann's entry:

"Got to Marysville about 11 and bought a coal oil lantern for a dollar & a horse brush for seventy five cts & a plug of tobacco for twenty. Went on about half a mile & fed where Elma cut her dress out on the ground as we went to Henry Co. 4 years ago. Then came 3 miles to Hamilton & watered."

Marysville is on the map, but not much of a town exists. It's pretty much one paved street and several gravel roads. A peaceful hilltop cemetery overlooks a handful of houses. We didn't see any businesses or even a post office.

Hamilton turned out to be another very small community. We saw a few houses, a post office and a church that was founded in 1869.

Since leaving Omaha this morning, we have logged over 220 miles
and crossed nearly the entire state of Iowa. As my cousins and I drove, we reflected on how our great-great grandparents traveled. If they got in 20 miles, it was a good day. We have gone 10 times as far in only a few hours. More adventures are ahead tomorrow as we meander toward the Mississippi River.