Wayfarrow

Bethel

Ghost town · Louisa County, Iowa

Cotter quadrangle, USGS topographic map (1970, 1:24,000)
Cotter quadrangle, USGS topographic map (1970, 1:24,000) · U.S. Geological Survey, Historical Topographic Map Collection · Public domain

Bethel is a ghost town in Louisa County, Iowa. It is one of 4 former communities in Louisa County on the federal names register. That ranks the county 15th among the 79 Iowa counties with a vanished settlement on record.

The U.S. Geological Survey lists Bethel as a historical populated place on the Cotter topographic quadrangle: the name is no longer in official use for a community, whether the settlement was abandoned, absorbed into a neighbouring town or renamed. The recorded location is 41.3731° N, 91.4835° W.

Key facts

USGS quadrangleCotter
Elevation622 ft
Nearest living townCotter, IA
Distance to it5.7 miles
GNIS feature ID464280
Coordinates41.37308, -91.48349

Open the location on a map

What's there now

Bethel is no longer a community in its own right. The nearest living town is Cotter, IA (population 23), about 5.7 miles away in a straight line, and the site sits at roughly 622 feet above sea level. Much of the land around former townsites is private; check access before you visit.

Nearby places

Questions

Where is Bethel?

Bethel is in Louisa County, Iowa, at 41.3731, -91.4835.

How many ghost towns are in Louisa County?

Louisa County, Iowa has 4 ghost towns on record at Wayfarrow.

Sources and licences

Facts marked "approximately" carry an uncertain date in the source. Text on this page is generated from the sources above; no encyclopedia prose is copied. Last updated 2026-11-05.