Doon, IA

Doon sits on a plateau along the eastern bank of the Rock River in Lyon County, Iowa. The 2020 census counted 619 residents. The Rock River passes north and west of town, the Little Rock River comes in from the south, and U.S. 75 lies about three miles east via Iowa 167. BNSF Railway also passes through Doon, so water, highway, and rail give the city three lines of connection across the northwest Iowa farm country.

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The first permanent settlement began in 1868, when H.D. Rice and L.F. Knight built a cabin near the forks of the Rock, Little Rock, and West Branch streams. Doon took its name from the River Doon in Scotland, made famous by Robert Burns. Central Lyon Community School District serves local students, while the river valley and rail line keep the older layout visible. Doon feels built around a meeting of waters: the town sits above the river, with the school, highway, and railroad filling in the modern pieces.