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Iowa is the 26th largest in total area and the 31st most populous of the 50 U.S. states, with a population of 3,190,369, according to the 2020 census. The state's capital, most populous city, and largest metropolitan area fully located within the state is Des Moines.
- Des Moines
Des Moines (/ d ə ˈ m ɔɪ n / ⓘ də-MOYN) is the capital and...
- Iowa (Disambiguation)
Iowa Building, listed on the National Register of Historic...
- Flag of Iowa
Iowa state seal. Cornell Gebhardt assigned meaning to each...
- Kim Reynolds
Kimberly Kay Reynolds (née Strawn; born August 4, 1959) is...
- Bellevue
Bellevue (/ ˈ b ɛ l v j uː / BEL-vew) is a city in eastern...
- Delegations
Since Iowa became a U.S. state in 1846, it has sent...
- Carter Lake, Iowa
History. Carter Lake is an example of the border...
- LGBT Rights in Iowa
Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) rights in the...
- Des Moines
- Overview
- Relief
- Drainage
- Soils
Iowa, constituent state of the United States of America. It was admitted to the union as the 29th state on December 28, 1846. As a Midwestern state, Iowa forms a bridge between the forests of the east and the grasslands of the high prairie plains to the west. Its gently rolling landscape rises slowly as it extends westward from the Mississippi River, which forms its entire eastern border. The Missouri River and its tributary, the Big Sioux, form the western border, making Iowa the only U.S. state that has two parallel rivers defining its borders. Iowa is bounded by the states of Minnesota to the north, Wisconsin and Illinois to the east, Missouri to the south, and Nebraska and South Dakota to the west. Des Moines, in the south-central part of the state, is the capital. The state name is derived from the Iowa Native American people who once inhabited the area.
Iowa is one of the leading U.S. states in number of farms. More than nine-tenths of its land is devoted to agriculture, making it one of the top states in agricultural production. With rich soils, gently rolling hills, and ample precipitation, the state is particularly suitable for mechanized agriculture and has become a national leader in agribusiness. Traditionally most of Iowa’s industrial enterprises were tied to agricultural production; however, economic downswings and the collapse of land values in the 1980s made it essential for the state to diversify its economy as well as its workforce. By the end of the 20th century, more emphasis had been placed on banking, insurance, biotechnology, and research and development.
Most of Iowa’s landscape is gently rolling hills or flat plains. The state’s elevation generally increases from east-southeast to west-northwest. The lowest point is within the city of Keokuk, in extreme southeastern Iowa where the Des Moines River enters the Mississippi, at just 480 feet (146 metres) above sea level. The highest spot, Hawkeye Point, is in northwest Iowa at 1,677 feet (511 metres) in elevation.
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The state’s terrain and rich soils are the products of the continental ice sheets that periodically covered the state during the Pleistocene Epoch (about 2,600,000 to 11,700 years ago). The Illinoian ice sheet covered a small area of southeastern and extreme eastern Iowa, and in so doing it diverted the Mississippi and created a valley along its western front that can still be seen. Some 20,000 to 25,000 years ago the Wisconsin ice sheet moved southward in a lobe that ended at about the site of the present city of Des Moines. The Des Moines lobe began its final retreat about 13,000 to 14,000 years ago. Accompanying the last two stages of glaciation were extensive deposits of windblown silt, or loess. Over the millennia, the prevailing west winds carried the loess from the western plains into Iowa as the glaciers retreated. In extreme western Iowa the loess deposits accumulated to form what are known today as the Loess Hills, a line of bluffs 100 to 200 feet (30 to 60 metres) above the Missouri River valley. Across much of the rest of the state, lesser amounts of loess amassed. The combination of loess and prairie grasses generated an unusually fertile soil across most of Iowa.
The most varied relief anywhere in Iowa is the Driftless Area, a dry upland that was bypassed by glaciers, near the Mississippi River in northeastern Iowa. There tributaries of the Mississippi cut deeply into the underlying bedrock. The Mississippi bluffs stand 300 to 400 feet (90 to 120 metres) above the valley, and the network of tributaries creates a scenic and hilly landscape.
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Most of the state is drained by the Mississippi River; only the extreme western and south-central areas are drained by the Missouri. Both of these rivers flow quite gently, while the upper Iowa and Turkey rivers in the Driftless Area generally have more rapids. Most of the state is underlain by pre-Illinoian drift, which has been eroded for at leas...
Most of the soils of Iowa, formed under prairie vegetation, are thick, dark in colour, and rich in organic matter and minerals. Only in the Driftless Area and along the dissected river valleys of the south and southeast are there lighter-coloured and less-fertile forest soils.
Jan 18, 2024 · With an area of 145,743.8 sq. km, Iowa is the 26 th largest and the 30 th most populous state in the USA. Located in the south-central part of the state, at the confluence of Des Moines and Raccoon River is, Des Moines – the capital, the largest and the most populous city of Iowa.
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- Des Moines (566,004)
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- Field of Dreams. “If you build it, he will come” – a movie quote that, to this day, speaks to dreamers around the world. At the Field of Dreams Movie Site in Dyersville, you’ll recognize the film’s farmhouse (guided tours available), baseball diamond and corn fields.
- Bridges of Madison County. Madison County is indeed known for its collection of picture-perfect covered bridges that served as the idyllic backdrop for the bestselling novel and popular movie.
- Iowa State Fair. This is not your standard fair. With 11 days of unique foods, quirky contests, vendors, agricultural shows and thrill rides for all ages, the Iowa State Fair is considered one of the best in the USA.
- Great River Road. The Mississippi River: It’s possibly the most definitive geographical feature in the USA. To follow its path is to touch the heart of U.S. history and culture.
- Maquoketa Caves State Park. Featuring more caves than any state park in the country, Maquoketa Caves State Park is one of the top places to visit in Iowa.
- Iowa State Capitol. Centrally located in Des Moines Iowa, the Iowa State Capitol building is a beautiful historic site that visitors come from far and wide to see.
- Herbert Hoover National Historic Site. Fun things to do in Iowa are not hard to come by as evidenced by the Herbert Hoover National Historic Site. This unit of National Park systems includes buildings and grounds that commemorate the life of Herbert Hoover, the United States’s 31st president.
- High Trestle Trail. This exciting attraction is a rail trail that runs between Ankeny and Woodward in central Iowa. Running through five towns and four Iowa counties, the trail opened as a recreational attraction in early 2011.
May 23, 2022 · While Iowa can be an underappreciated state, it is worth a visit and should not be ignored. You do not want to miss out on what this great state has to offer! Whether you already live in this Midwest state and are looking for cool Iowa day trips or are planning on coming through sometime soon, you might be searching for some Iowa attractions.
Iowa. USA, North America. The towering bluffs on the Mississippi River and the soaring Loess Hills lining the Missouri River bookend the rolling farmland of this bucolic state. In the middle you'll find the writers' town of Iowa City, the commune dwellers of the Amana Colonies, and plenty of picture-perfect rural towns, including those amid the ...
