In 1880, the Toledo and Northwestern railroads formed a junction with the Des Moines and Minnesota lines at a site in central Iowa named for David T. Jewell, himself a railroad man. The town of Jewell Junction sprang up and has survived as a center for area pork processing, mink harvesting and, of course, corn growing.

Heartland Co-op, a major ag force in Iowa, recently expanded to Jewell and now operates what was once the Central Iowa Cooperative, an institution that has been part of the town for decades. "After the retirement of their general manager and with the general transitions in agriculture, they just thought it was time to merge," says Tom Hauschel, vice president of grain at Heartland Co-op. Headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, Heartland performs operations and grain sales at more than 30 locations in Iowa. "We sell corn throughout the United States," Hauschel says.

Another change in Jewell within the past year is the production of ethanol. One customer of Heartland Co-op is Horizon Ethanol LLC, a Broin Associates ethanol plant that began producing in April. This facility uses about 21 million bushels of corn to produce 60 MMgy of ethanol. "We've sold corn to the ethanol plant," confirms Heartland's John Mackastad.

Marsha Wheeler, of the Montgomery Memorial Library, says the rural character, the stars that appear over Little Wall Lake just south of Jewell and the slow quiet pace provide a welcome escape from city life. "A lot of people like the small town feel," Wheeler says. "They work in Ames or Des Moines, but they want to live in Jewell." Because of the area's agrarian base, there have not been many industrial enterprises, she says. "The ethanol plant was a welcome boost; many of the workers have moved to town and moved their families here." Horizon Ethanol generated about 40 jobs with an annual bankroll of $1.8 million—a major impact in a town of less than 1,500.

Of course, the agricultural infrastructure already in place—access to rail and highway, as well as a grain cooperative—made Jewell a good site for renewable fuels. "It's mostly a cash grain area, but there are several hog operations," says Gary Anderson, a native of Jewell and a representative of Farmers National Co., a farm management and real estate company based in Omaha, Neb. "We have some turkey producers. The cattle feedlots are almost non-existent now … but it is a large livestock area."

For such a tiny burg, there are several construction firms in Jewell, including an extension of Wanzek Construction, a major player in the ethanol industry. EPM talked with Riley Construction, another Jewell company that serves both residential customers and local businesses. "Most of the [construction firms] are small and provide services for homeowners," says Jim Deimerly, manager of Riley Construction. "We do everything from plumbing to concrete."

When people talk about the weather in Jewell, probably in the back of their minds is the fact that historic area tornado activity is slightly above state average and 139 percent greater than the overall U.S. average. However, for the most part, it's quiet in Jewell. "We're a bedroom town with Grandma June's Café and the Malibu Bar, and that's about it," Deimerly says.