Keokuk County was opened for white people to live in, in 1843. The town got its start in 1844 when S.A. James built the first cabin there. Other families began to settle there as well, and in 1844, the town was named by county commissioner Dr. George H. Stone, in honour of a popular poet named Lydia Sigourney. A large oil-painted portrait of Lydia is still in the foyer of the county courthouse.