The
first Europeans to visit the area were the French explorers Jacques Marquette
and Louis Joliet in 1673. The U.S. obtained control of the area in 1803 as part
of the Louisiana Purchase, and during the first half of the 19th century, there
was heavy fighting between white settlers and Indians. Lands were taken from the
Indians after the Black Hawk War in 1832 and again in 1836 and 1837.
When
Iowa became a state in 1846, its capital was Iowa City; the more centrally located
Des Moines became the new capital in 1857. At that time, the state's present boundaries
were also drawn.
Although
Iowa produces a tenth of the nation's food supply, the value of Iowa's manufactured
products is twice that of its agriculture. Major industries are food and associated
products, non-electrical machinery, electrical equipment, printing and publishing,
and fabricated products.
Iowa
stands in a class by itself as an agricultural state. Its farms sell over $10
billion worth of crops and livestock annually. Iowa leads the nation in all corn,
soybean, and hog marketings, and comes in third in total livestock sales. Iowa's
forests produce hardwood lumber, particularly walnut, and its mineral products
include cement, limestone, sand, gravel, gypsum, and coal.
Tourist
attractions include the Herbert Hoover birthplace and library near West Branch;
the Amana Colonies; Fort Dodge Historical Museum, Fort, and Stockade; the Iowa
State Fair at Des Moines in August; and the Effigy Mounds National Monument, a
prehistoric Indian burial site at Marquette.
Coming
Soon!
See
more on Iowa: Encyclopedia: Iowa Encyclopedia: Geography Encyclopedia:
Economy Encyclopedia: Government Encyclopedia: History Monthly Temperature
Extremes
Accredited
Colleges and Universities
Selected
famous natives and residents:
Bix Beiderbecke jazz musician; Norman
Borlaug plant pathologist, geneticist, and Nobel Peace Prize winner; William
“Buffalo Bill” F. Cody scout; Johnny Carson TV entertainer; Gardner
Cowles, Jr. publisher; Simon Estes bass-baritone; William Frawley actor;
George H. Gallup poll taker; Susan Glaspell writer; Herbert Hoover
president; MacKinlay Kantor novelist; Charles A. Kettering inventor; Ann
Landers columnist; Cloris Leachman actress; John L. Lewis labor leader;
Glenn L. Martin aviator and manufacturer; Elsa Maxwell writer; Frederick
L. Maytag inventor and manufacturer; Glenn Miller bandleader; Kate Mulgrew
actress; Harriet Nelson actress; Nathan M. Pusey educator; David Rabe
playwright; Harry Reasoner TV commentator; Donna Reed actress; Lillian
Russell soprano; Robert Schuller evangelist; Wallace Stegner novelist
and critic; Billy Sunday evangelist; James A. Van Allen space physicist;
Abigail Van Buren columnist; Henry A. Wallace statesman and vice president;
John Wayne actor; Andy Williams singer; Meredith Willson composer;
Grant Wood painter.
Capital:
Des Moines
State
abbreviation/Postal code: Iowa/IA
Governor:
Tom Vilsack, D (to Jan. 2007)
Lieut.
Governor: Sally Pederson, D (to Jan. 2007)
Senators:
Chuck Grassley, R (to Jan. 2011); Tom Harkin, D (to Jan. 2009)
U.S.
Representatives: 5
Secy.
of State: Chet Culver, D (to Jan. 2007)
Treasurer:
Michael L. Fitzgerald, D (to Jan. 2007)
Atty.
General: Tom Miller, D (to Jan. 2007)
Organized
as territory: June 12, 1838
Entered
Union (rank): Dec. 28, 1846 (29)
Present
constitution adopted: 1857
Motto:
Our liberties we prize and our rights we will maintain
State
symbols: flower wild rose (1897) bird eastern goldfinch (1933) colors
red, white, and blue (in state flag) song “Song of Iowa”
Nickname:
Hawkeye State
Origin
of name: Probably from an Indian word meaning “this is the place”
or “the Beautiful Land”
10
largest cities (2003 est.): Des Moines, 196,093; Cedar Rapids, 122,542; Davenport,
97,512; Sioux City, 83,876; Waterloo, 67,054; Iowa City, 63,807; Council Bluffs,
58,656; Dubuque, 57,204; Ames, 53,284; West Des Moines, 51,699
Land
area: 55,869 sq mi. (144,701 sq km)
Geographic
center: In Story Co., 5 mi. NE of Ames
Number
of counties: 99
Largest
county by population and area: Polk, 393,184 (2004); Kossuth, 973 sq mi.
State
forests: 10 (43,917 ac.)
State
parks: 83 (53,000 ac.)
Residents:
Iowan
2004
resident population est.: 2,954,451
2000
resident census population (rank): 2,926,324 (30). Male: 1,435,515 (49.1%);
Female: 1,490,809 (50.9%). White: 2,748,640 (93.9%); Black: 61,853 (2.1%); American
Indian: 8,989 (0.3%); Asian: 36,635 (1.3%); Other race: 37,420 (1.3%); Two or
more races: 31,778 (1.1%); Hispanic/Latino: 82,473 (2.8%). 2000 percent population
18 and over: 74.9; 65 and over: 14.9; median age: 36.6.
