Tag: Larchwood

Larchwood is a city in Lyon County, Iowa, United States. The population was 788 at the 2000 census. Its main employer is the Novartis Animal Health plant located 3 miles (4.8 km) southwest of the city.
Larchwood was founded about 1872 by a group of McLean County, Illinois land developers Jesse W. Fell (10 November 1808 – 25 February 1887) and Charles W. Holder (25 September 1819 – 10 April 1900). Fell was born in Pennsylvania, had settled in Bloomington, Illinois, in 1831 and had played an active role in founding many Illinois towns including Clinton, Normal, Pontiac, and Towanda. He was a close friend of Abraham Lincoln, and with his brother Kersey Fell had persuaded Lincoln to write his famous autography. He was nationally known for his love of trees. Holder was a partner in many of Fell’s projects including Towanda and Normal. Holder, Illinois was named in his honor. In the summer of 1869 Fell traveled to northwestern Iowa and selected a tract of about forty sections, more than 25…