Story

Formed December 13, 1846 (42^nd county)

Story County (98,536), Nevada (6,924), Ames (66,426)                

The Modern dark grey brick and cement building was built in 2002 at Fawcett Parkway and B streets.  United States Highway 30 bypasses the city ½ mile south of the courthouse.  Wells, Kastner, & Schipper provided the building designs.  An Administrative Center built in 1968 augments the courthouse.  The building is to the east of downtown.  There was a classier 1876 courthouse also in Nevada following the December 13, 1846 county organizing.  The county was taken from parts of Boone, Jasper, and Polk counties as the 42^nd county.  United States Supreme Court Justice Joseph Story inspired the name for the county.  The county seat gets its name from the Sierra Nevada Mountains. 

Story County government consists of a sheriff and 3 Supervisors.  Thirty-one District Court Judges and Thirty-three Magistrates serve Story, Boone, Bremer, Butler, Calhoun, Carroll, Cerro Gordo, Floyd, Franklin, Greene, Hamilton, Hancock, Hardin, Humboldt, Marshall, Mitchell, Pocahontas, Sac, Webster, Winnebago, Worth, and Wright counties.  Story County is in central Iowa directly north of Des Moines, Iowa.  The geographical center of Iowa is 5 miles northeast of Ames in the county.  The county center is 3.9 miles West of Nevada.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Hardin, Marshall, Jasper, Polk, Boone, and Hamilton counties. 

The county has an area of 573 square miles.  It is 41 of 99 in the state.  It ranks 9 out of 99 in population in the state.  It has a density of 172.0 persons per square mile making it 6 out of 99 in the state.  Story County has 90.7% of its population in its incorporated areas.  Interstate Highway 35 travels north to south in the county from Hamilton County to Polk County.  United States Highway 30 crosses east to west from Marshall County to Boone County.  United States Highway 65 goes north to south from Hardin County to Jasper County.  United States Highway 69 parallels Interstate Highway 35 from Hamilton to Polk counties.  The county is a square.  Nevada is located near the center of the county.  Ames is located on the western border.  Nevada is the county seat and Ames is the largest city.  Nevada is 7.0% of the county population while Ames is 67.4% of the county population.  The county seat is pronounced NE-VAE-DA.  This county is in the Ames Metropolitan Statistical Area.