The Archdiocese of Dubuque — which covers thirty counties, including Franklin County — recently announced its plans to reorganize its 160 parishes into 24 pastorates. 
 
Through the restructuring, churches within the Archdiocese will be grouped together to build bigger and stronger communities, said Father Kevin Earleywine, who will be transferred to serve the Waterloo congregations.
 

Nearly 170 students stopped by H-D-CAL’s afterprom party on Saturday evening, April 18.
 

A Dumont man was arrested after he was found in possession of a methamphetamine pipe during a traffic stop in rural Ackley Tuesday evening.

The Hampton-Dumont Community School Board approved a transportation director agreement with Belmond-Klemme Community School District during their April 15 meeting.
This comes after the resignation of H-D Transportation Director Dan Schipper, which was also approved during the meeting, along with other staff updates.

A Rockwell man is facing felony and misdemeanor charges following an investigation by the Iowa Insurance Division’s Fraud Bureau.
 
Authorities say 39-year-old Joseph Starr was charged on March 24 with two counts of acting as a public adjuster without a license and one count of insurance fraud—presenting false information, a Class D felony.

Sisters Macala Donnelly and Alexa Hoeltermann of Dumont are excited to share that they will be running the Boston Marathon together this year.
Macala, who ran the marathon last year, said getting to run such a prestigious race alongside her sister will make it much more special.

The Franklin County Republican Party held its annual fundraiser event at the Franklin County Convention Center Thursday evening, April 9.

Democratic candidates Ashley WolfTornabane, who’s running for Iowa’s 4th Congressional District, and Cynthia Oppedal Paschen, who’s running for Iowa's State House District 55, held a town hall at 805 Pizza and Chicken in Hampton on Sunday, April 12. 
The candidates covered a number of topics, including voting rights, appealing to independent voters and healthcare.

The Hampton city council passed the second reading of their revised chicken ordinance during their April 9 meeting. 
 
The changes to the old ordinance include allowing chicken owners to sell their eggs and setting the maximum height for coops at six feet, along with striking the portion about written consent from councilors to have livestock within city limits. 

The weather didn't stop the Sheffield Community Club from holding their annual Easter egg hunt on Saturday, April 4.
Shortly before noon, around 100 children stopped by the West Fork Wellness Center, where they found thousands of eggs stuffed with candy.

A Minnesota man was arrested on drug charges last Tuesday morning, March 31, after getting pulled over for speeding on 135, near the 176 mile marker. 
Josiah Tamba, 21, of New Hope, Minnesota, is now facing charges for operating a vehicle while intoxicated, along with possession of cocaine, marijuana and drug paraphernalia, according to the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office. 

Hampton, Iowa -- OnTheGoMedia, Inc., parent company of 104.9 KLMJ-FM and 99 The Wave (98.9 KQCR-FM), officially completed the acquisition of the Hampton Chronicle on April 2, 2026. This move ensures the continuation of the community’s print edition, with the first issue under new ownership arriving April 8th.
 

Tommy Baltes was recently named Police Officer of the Year for 2025 in Cedar Falls.
The 2015 graduate of Hampton-Dumont High School told the Chronicle that he was inspired to pursue a career in law enforcement by former Hampton Police Chief Bob Schaefer.

The Franklin County Board of Supervisors approved an ordinance authorizing a moratorium on new permit applications for development of data center projects within the unincorporated area of Franklin County during their March 31 meeting.
The supervisors voted to waive the first two readings of the ordinance to expedite the process of approving it.

Possible solutions for a dangerous intersection were discussed during the Franklin County Supervisor's March 17 meeting.
During the meeting, the County Supervisors, Secondary Roads Engineer Jay Waddingham and others discussed safety measures that could be taken at the intersection of County Road 25 and Highway 65, where a number of accidents (some fatal) have taken place in recent years.