Iowa History
Iowa Guide
Iowa State History
Iowa State Information
| State of Iowa | |
| Iowa Official Language(s) | English |
| Iowa Demonym | Iowan |
| Iowa Capital | Des Moines |
| Iowa Largest City | Des Moines |
| Iowa Largest Metro Area | Des Moines metropolitan area |
| Iowa Area | Ranked 26th in the US |
| - Total | 56,272 sq mi (145,743 km2) |
| - Width | 310 miles (500 km) |
| - Length | 199 miles (320 km) |
| - % water | 0.71 |
| - Latitude | 40° 23′ N to 43° 30′ N |
| - Longitude | 90° 8′ W to 96° 38′ W |
| Iowa Population | Ranked 30th in the US |
| - Total | 3,007,856 (2009 est.) |
| - Density | 53.5/sq mi (20.7/km2) Ranked 35th in the US |
| - Median income | $48,075 (24th) |
| Iowa Elevation | |
| - Highest point | Hawkeye Point 1,670 ft (509 m) |
| - Mean | 1,099 ft (335 m) |
| - Lowest point | Mississippi River at Keokuk 480 ft (146 m) |
| Iowa Before Statehood | Iowa Territory |
| Admission to Union | December 28, 1846 (29th) |
| Iowa Governor | Chet Culver (D) |
| Iowa Lieutenant Governor | Patty Judge (D) |
| Iowa Legislature | General Assembly |
| - Upper house | Senate |
| - Lower house | House of Representatives |
| U.S. Senators | Chuck Grassley (R) Tom Harkin (D) |
| U.S. House delegation | 3 Democrats, 2 Republicans |
| Iowa Time zone | CST=UTC-06, CDT=UTC-05 |
| Iowa Abbreviations | IA US-IA |
| Iowa Website | http://www.iowa.gov |
History of Iowa
Iowa became one of the fifty states of United States of America on the 28th of December in the year 1846 and was recognized as the 29th state of the country.
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The history of Iowa can be traced back to 13,000 years. Around this time the state was originally occupied by the Native Americans. However, the process of recording the history is said to have started when Marquette and Joliet, who were European explorers, came to Iowa in the 1680s to explore this region.
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Till the 19th century, this region was inhabited entirely by the Indians. A small number of European traders of France and Spain who were helped by the political power were also inhibitors of the state.
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The influx of European trade commodities and diseases resulted in vivid population changes, which in turn led to economic and social turmoil in the history of Iowa.
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American Indians who were the first to settle in this region 13,000 years ago were basically hunters and gatherers who resided in a Pleistocene glacial landscape. Steadily they became established farmers amid multifaceted economic, social, and political organization until till the advent of European Explorers.
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Prior to the year of 1673, the state was abode to scores of American Indians with just about seventeen diverse American Indian tribes such as Ioway, Sauk, Meskwaki, Sioux, Potawatomi, Oto, and Missouri who were settled in Iowa.
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The Sauk and the Meskwaki comprised the chief and most dominant tribes in the Upper Mississippi Valley in the history of Iowa.
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In the present day, Iowa is abode to a single American Indian tribe, known as the Meskwaki, who live in the Meskwaki Settlement in the county of Tama. After the Sauk and Meskwaki tribes were detached from the state of Iowa, a few Meskwaki tribal, alongside a few Sauk, came back to east Iowa to hunt and fish for a living.
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In 1833, the official initial American settlement took shape in the state, during this time the migrators arrived from Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Indiana, Kentucky, and Virginia. But at the same point in time, all the settlers did not stay in Iowa as a lot of them shortly migrated to the Dakotas and other regions.
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The history of Iowa states that it was strongly in favor of the Union all through the American Civil War, while voting profoundly for Lincoln and the Republican Party.
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Although there were no battles in Iowa, the state did send huge provisions of food to the armies fighting the Civil War.
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The changeover from a significant agricultural economy into a mixed economy came about rather gradually.
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The World War II and The Great Depression catalyzed the changeover from farms with small holdings to superior farms, and thus embarked on a development of urbanization that has continued even today.
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Despite the fact that agriculture was a prolonged and persistent principal industry throughout the history of Iowa, the farmers furthermore manufactured an extensive range of goods with refrigerators, washing machines, fountain pens, farm equipment etc.
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The Farm Crisis of the 1980s resulted in a major slump in history of Iowa which was the cause of large scale poverty ever since the Great Depression. This lead to the drop in the population of Iowa but after the 1980s the Iowa economy has sprung back as it is no longer dependent only on agriculture.
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From the time when World War II was initiated, the history of the state of Iowa has experienced chief changes socially, economically and in politics.
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Politically, during the Liquor ban, the people of Iowa supported the Prohibition but after the law was revoked nationally, the state government set up a State Liquor Commission.
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The history of Iowa witnessed another vital change when a competitive two-party system was set up which put an end to dominance of the Republican Party.
Iowa Sister States
- Hebei Province, People's Republic of China (1983)
- Stavropol Krai, Russia (1989)
- Taiwan, Republic of China (1989)
- Terengganu, Malaysia (1987)
- Veneto Region, Italy (1997)
- Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan (1960)
- Yucatán, Mexico (1964)
List of Colleges and Universities in Iowa
Iowa Public Colleges and Universities
- Iowa State University
- University of Iowa
- University of Northern Iowa
Iowa Private Liberal Arts Colleges
- Ashford University
- Briar Cliff University (Sioux City, Iowa)
- Buena Vista University (Storm Lake, Iowa)
- Central College (Pella, Iowa)
- Coe College (Cedar Rapids, Iowa)
- Cornell College (Mount Vernon, Iowa)
- Dordt College (Sioux Center, Iowa)
- Grand View University (Des Moines, Iowa)
- Grinnell College (Grinnell, Iowa)
- Loras College (Dubuque, Iowa)
- Luther College (Decorah, Iowa)
- Morningside College (Sioux City, Iowa)
- Mount Mercy College (Cedar Rapids, Iowa)
- Northwestern College (Orange City, Iowa)
- Simpson College (Indianola, Iowa)
- Wartburg College (Waverly, Iowa)
Iowa Private Colleges and Universities
- Buena Vista University (Storm Lake, Iowa)
- Clarke College (Dubuque, Iowa)
- Des Moines University (Des Moines, Iowa)
- Divine Word College (Epworth, Iowa)
- Drake University (Des Moines, Iowa)
- Emmaus Bible College (Dubuque, Iowa)
- Faith Baptist Bible College and Theological Seminary (Ankeny, Iowa)
- Graceland University (Lamoni, Iowa)
- Iowa Wesleyan College (Mount Pleasant, Iowa)
- Kaplan University (Cedar Falls, Iowa, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Council Bluffs, Iowa, Davenport, Iowa, Mason City, Iowa, Urbandale, Iowa)
- Maharishi University of Management (Fairfield, Iowa)
- Saint Ambrose University (Davenport, Iowa)
- University of Dubuque (Dubuque, Iowa)
- Upper Iowa University (Fayette, Iowa)
- Waldorf College (Forest City, Iowa)
- Wartburg Theological Seminary (Dubuque, Iowa)
- William Penn University (Oskaloosa, Iowa)
Iowa Community Colleges
- AIB College of Business
- Clinton Community College
- Des Moines Area Community College
- Ellsworth Community College
- Hawkeye Community College
- Indian Hills Community College
- Iowa Central Community College
- Iowa Lakes Community College
- Iowa Western Community College
- Kirkwood Community College
- Marshalltown Community College
- Muscatine Community College
- North Iowa Area Community College
- Northeast Iowa Community College
- Northwest Iowa Community College
- Scott Community College
- Southeastern Community College
- Southwestern Community College
- Western Iowa Tech (Sioux City, Iowa)
Iowa Fictitious Institutions
- University of Okoboji
Iowa Defunct institutions
- Algona College
- Charles City College
- Des Moines College
- Highland Park College
- Western College (1857-1905) / Leander Clark College (1906-1919)
- Lenox College
- Marycrest International University
- Midwestern College
- Ottumwa Heights College
- Parsons College
- Sioux Empire College
- Tabor College (Iowa)
- Westmar University
- Vennard College (University Park, Iowa)
Sports Teams From Iowa
Sport and team, League
Baseball
- Burlington Bees - Midwest League (ML)
- Cedar Rapids Kernels - ML
- Clinton LumberKings - ML
- Dubuque Packers - Mississippi-Ohio Valley League (1954-55); ML (1956-67 and 74-76)
- Des Moines Bruins - Western League (1947-1958)
- Des Moines Demons - Three-I League (1959-1961)
- Iowa Cubs - American Association (1969-70); Pacific Coast League (1998-present)
- Sioux City Explorers - American Association
- Quad City River Bandits - ML
- Waterloo Indians/Diamonds - ML (1977-93)
Basketball
- Cedar Rapids Silver Bullets
- Cedar Valley Jaguars IBL 2005-2006
- Des Moines Dragons IBA 1997-2001
- Des Moines Heat IBL 2005-2006
- Frontier City River Dogz MBA
- Iowa Cornets WBL 1978-1980
- Iowa Energy NBA D-League 2007-present
- Tri-Cities Blackhawks, NBL, NBA (now the Atlanta Hawks)1946–1951
- Waterloo Kings IBL 2005-2006
- Waterloo Hawks NBL, NBA 1948-1951
College
- Drake Bulldogs College
- Iowa State Cyclones College
- Northern Iowa Panthers College
- Iowa Hawkeyes College
Football
- Iowa Thunder WFA
- Iowa Crush IWFL
- Iowa Barnstormers AFL (Arena)
- Iowa Barnstormers af2 (Arena)
- Sioux City Bandits UIFA
- Des Moines Blaze WFL
- Bridge City Knights NAFL
- Iowa Eagles WFL
- Iowa Lightning NAFL
- Cedar Valley Vikings NAFL
- Iowa Sharks WFL
Ice Hockey
- Cedar Rapids RoughRiders USHL
- Dubuque Fighting Saints USHL
- Dubuque Fighting Saints USHL
- Dubuque Thunderbirds CSHL
- Des Moines Buccaneers USHL
- Des Moines Capitols IHL
- Des Moines Ice Hawks CHL
- Des Moines Oak Leafs USHL
- Des Moines Oak Leafs IHL
- Iowa Stars AHL
- Iowa Stars CHL
- North Iowa Huskies USHL
- North Iowa Outlaws NAHL
- River City Lancers USHL
- Sioux City Musketeers USHL
- Sioux City Sunhawks AAHL
- Waterloo Blackhawks USHL
Soccer
- Des Moines Menace PDL
Volleyball
- Iowa Blizzard NVA
Mixed Martial Arts
- Quad City Silverbacks IFL (International Fight League)
Wrestling (RPW)
- Iowa Stalkers
Iowa State Symbols
- Iowa State Nickname: The Hawkeye State
- Iowa State Bird: Eastern Goldfinch
- Iowa State Flower: Wild Rose
- Iowa State Grass: Bluebunch Wheatgrass
- Iowa State Tree: Oak
- Iowa State Motto: "Our liberties we prize and our rights we will maintain."
- Iowa State Rock: Geode
