Butler County, Iowa facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Butler County
U.S. county
Butler County Courthouse
Location within the U.S. state of Iowa
Iowa's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Iowa
Founded	1851
Named for	William Orlando Butler
Seat	Allison
Largest city	Parkersburg
Area
• Total	582 sq mi (1,510 km2)
• Land	580 sq mi (1,500 km2)
• Water	1.6 sq mi (4 km2)  0.3%
Population  (2020)
• Total	14,334
• Density	24.629/sq mi (9.509/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	4th

Butler County is a county located in the state of Iowa, in the United States. As of the 2020 census, about 14,334 people lived there. Its main town, or county seat, is Allison. The county was officially formed in 1854. It was named after General William O. Butler.

History of Butler County

Butler County was created on January 15, 1851. It was named after William Orlando Butler. He was a general and a hero from the Mexican-American War. He also ran for Vice President of the United States in 1848.

Until 1854, other counties managed Butler County. Then, enough people lived there to start their own local government. The first court meetings happened in a small log cabin. In 1858, the first courthouse was finished in Clarksville. Later, it was sold and used as a school from 1863 to 1903.

Clarksville was the first county seat from 1854 to 1860. After that, Butler Center became the county seat. People were not happy with Butler Center. It was hard to reach, especially in winter. So, Allison became the county seat on January 10, 1881. This happened after new train tracks were built there.

Butler County is unique in Iowa. It does not have any four-lane roads or major highways. There is also no hospital or movie theater. You won't find any national fast-food chains here either. It is also one of the only counties in Iowa without a stoplight.

Geography of Butler County

The U.S. Census Bureau says the county covers about 582 square miles. Most of this area, about 580 square miles, is land. The rest, about 1.6 square miles, is water.

Main Roads in Butler County

• Iowa Highway 3
• Iowa Highway 14
• Iowa Highway 57
• Iowa Highway 188

Neighboring Counties

Butler County shares borders with these other counties:

Population of Butler County

Population changes in Butler County from US census data

2020 Census Information

The 2020 census counted 14,334 people living in Butler County. This means there were about 24 people per square mile. Most people, about 97.49%, said they belonged to one race. About 95.19% were non-Hispanic White. Other groups included Black, Hispanic, Native American, and Asian people. There were 6,536 homes in the county, and 5,992 of them were lived in.

This chart shows the age groups of people in Butler County in 2022.

Communities in Butler County

Butler County has several cities and smaller communities.

Cities in Butler County

Smaller Communities (Unincorporated)

These places are not officially cities or towns:

• Austinville
• Kesley
• Packard

Townships in Butler County

Butler County is divided into sixteen areas called townships:

City Populations (2020 Census)

This table shows how many people lived in each city in Butler County in 2020. † county seat

See also

In Spanish: Condado de Butler (Iowa) para niños