Cedar Falls, Iowa facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Cedar Falls, Iowa
City
Top left clockwise: Downtown Cedar Falls, Cedar Falls Ice House, Big Woods Lake Recreation Area, and Campanile on the University of Northern Iowa campus
Flag
Location within Black Hawk County and Iowa
Cedar Falls, Iowa Location in Iowa Show map of Iowa Cedar Falls, Iowa Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Country	United States
State	Iowa
County	Black Hawk
Area
• Total	30.29 sq mi (78.44 km2)
• Land	29.43 sq mi (76.23 km2)
• Water	0.85 sq mi (2.21 km2)
Elevation	879 ft (268 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	40,713
• Rank	13th in Iowa
• Density	1,383.24/sq mi (534.07/km2)
Time zone	UTC-6 (CST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP code	50613
Area code	319
FIPS code	19-11755
GNIS ID	455240

Cedar Falls is a city in Black Hawk County, Iowa, United States. In 2020, about 40,713 people lived there. It is home to the University of Northern Iowa, which is a public university.

Cedar Falls and its nearby city, Waterloo, Iowa, are the two main cities in the Waterloo-Cedar Falls area. People often call this area the "Cedar Valley." This is because the Cedar River flows through the region.

History of Cedar Falls

Cedar Falls was first settled in March 1845 by two brothers-in-law, William R. Sturgis and Erasmus D. Adams. At first, the city was called Sturgis Falls. It kept this name until it joined with another city called Cedar City. This merger created the city we know today as Cedar Falls.

Every year, the city honors its founders with a week-long celebration. It is called the Sturgis Falls Celebration.

Before the Civil War, Cedar Falls became a center for milling and industry. This was because it had a lot of water power. After the war, a special home for soldiers' orphans was built in Cedar Falls. This building later became the first part of the Iowa State Normal School. Today, this school is known as the University of Northern Iowa.

Geography of Cedar Falls

Cedar Falls is located in Iowa. It covers an area of about 29.61 square miles (76.7 square kilometers). Most of this area is land, with a small part being water.

Within the city, you can find natural areas. These include forests, prairies, and wetlands. You can explore these at the Hartman Reserve Nature Center.

Population and People

The population of Cedar Falls, Iowa from US census data

Cedar Falls is part of the larger Waterloo-Cedar Falls metropolitan area.

How Many People Live Here?

In 2020, the city had 40,713 people. Most people living in Cedar Falls are White (91.2%). Other groups include Asian (4.5%), African American (1.3%), and Native American (0.3%). About 2.5% of people were from two or more races. Also, 2.7% of the population was Hispanic or Latino.

In 2010, there were 39,260 people living in Cedar Falls. The city had 14,608 households. About 24.8% of these households had children under 18. The average age of people in the city was 26.8 years.

Arts and Culture in Cedar Falls

In 1986, Cedar Falls created the Art and Culture Board. This group helps manage the city's cultural activities. It also oversees the James & Meryl Hearst Center for the Arts.

The Public Library

The Cedar Falls Public Library is a great place to visit. It is located at 524 Main Street. The building is very large, about 47,000 square feet. It opened in 2004.

The library has many things for you to enjoy. In 2016, it had about 124,000 items. These included 104,000 books and magazines. It also had 8,000 audio materials and 12,000 videos. People visited the library 245,000 times that year. They checked out materials and took part in programs for kids, teens, and adults.

The library also offers over 30 public computers. You can use them for internet access, schoolwork, or games. They also have Wi-Fi. You can even borrow digital books and movies through apps like Libby and Hoopla.

The library's main goal is to help people learn and read throughout their lives.

Historical Society and Museums

The Cedar Falls Historical Society works to save the city's history. Its main office is in the Victorian Home and Carriage House Museum. The society runs five museums. These museums help people learn about the past of Cedar Falls.

The society also manages other historical places. These include the Cedar Falls Ice House, the Little Red Schoolhouse, and the Behrens-Rapp Station.

Shopping and Entertainment

The main shopping center in Cedar Falls is College Square Mall. It was built in 1969.

Theatre and Shows

The Oster Regent Theatre is in downtown Cedar Falls. It first opened in 1910 as the Cotton Theatre. Today, it is home to the Cedar Falls Community Theatre. This group started in 1978. They put on about seven to eight shows each year.

The Gallagher-Bluedorn Performing Arts Center is on the University of Northern Iowa campus. Many professional Broadway plays and musicals come to perform here. The main hall can seat 1,680 people.

Education in Cedar Falls

Lang Hall at University of Northern Iowa (UNI)

Cedar Falls is home to one of Iowa's three public universities. This is the University of Northern Iowa (UNI).

The Cedar Falls Community Schools serve most of the city. This school district includes Cedar Falls High School. There are also two junior high schools and seven elementary schools. A small part of Cedar Falls is served by the Waterloo Community School District.

For private education, there is Valley Lutheran High School. There is also a private Catholic elementary school. It is part of St. Patrick Catholic Church.

The Malcolm Price Lab School was a K-12 school run by the university. It closed in 2012.

Utilities and Internet Access

The city of Cedar Falls owns its own power, gas, water, and cable TV services. This is managed by Cedar Falls Utilities. Because of this, residents can get very fast internet speeds, called gigabit speeds. This service became available on January 14, 2015.

Cedar Falls can offer this because Iowa allows city-owned internet services. This is different from some other states. In 2020, PC Magazine said that Cedar Falls Utilities had the fastest internet in the country.

Transportation in Cedar Falls

Cedar Falls has public transportation. It is provided by the Metropolitan Transit Authority of Black Hawk County. This helps people get around the city.

Media in Cedar Falls

Cedar Falls has many ways to get news and entertainment. You can listen to various FM and AM radio stations. There are also several broadcast television channels available.

For reading, you can find local newspapers. These include The Courier, which is a daily newspaper. There is also The Cedar Falls Times, a weekly newspaper.

Music Scene

Cedar Falls has a rich history of local music. This includes bands, record labels, and music venues. A special exhibit once showed this history from 1977 to 2007. This effort continues online as "The Secret History of the Cedar Valley."

Notable People from Cedar Falls

Many interesting people have come from Cedar Falls:

Actors

• Annabeth Gish – an actress.
• Gary Kroeger – an actor who was on Saturday Night Live.
• Michael Mosley – an actor known for Scrubs.
• Mark Steines – a TV host for Entertainment Tonight.

Athletes

• Trev Alberts – a football player and athletic director.
• Isaac Boettger – an NFL player.
• Jack Campbell – an NFL player for the Detroit Lions.
• Don Denkinger – a Major League Baseball umpire.
• Travis Fulton – a UFC fighter.
• A. J. Green – an NBA player for the Milwaukee Bucks.
• David Johnson – a running back for the NFL's Arizona Cardinals.
• Bryce Paup – an NFL player.
• Ross Pierschbacher – an NFL player.
• Chad Rinehart – an NFL player.
• Nick Ring – a UFC fighter.
• Edgar Seymour – an Olympic bobsledder.
• Terry Stotts – an NBA player and coach.
• Dedric Ward – an NFL wide receiver.
• Kurt Warner – a Super Bowl champion NFL quarterback.

Military

• Robert Hibbs – received the Medal of Honor.

Musicians

• House of Large Sizes – an alternative rock band.
• Karen Holvik – a classical singer and music professor.
• Nilo Hovey – a famous music teacher and author.
• Bonnie Koloc – a folk singer and songwriter.
• Tracie Spencer – a singer.
• Spirit of the Stairway – a mathcore band.
• Bill Stewart – a jazz drummer and composer.

Politicians

• Marv Diemer – an Iowa state legislator.
• Charles Grassley – a U.S. Senator.
• Gil Gutknecht – a former Minnesota congressman.
• Roger Jepsen – a former U.S. Senator.

Scientists

• Gerald Guralnik – a physicist who helped discover the "Higgs Mechanism."

Writers

• Bess Streeter Aldrich – a novelist.
• R.V. Cassill – a novelist and short story writer.
• James Hearst – a poet and professor.
• Helen Markley Miller – a writer of historical stories for children.
• Ferner Nuhn – a literary critic and artist.
• Ruth Suckow Nuhn – an author of short stories and novels.
• Nancy Price – author of Sleeping with the Enemy.
• Leland Sage – a professor and historian.
• Robert James Waller – author of The Bridges of Madison County.

Other Notable People

• Marc Andreessen – co-founder of Netscape Corporation.
• Raja Chari – an astronaut.
• Tim Dodd – a science communicator known as the "Everyday Astronaut" on YouTube.
• Adelia M. Hoyt – a Braille librarian at the Library of Congress.
• John H. Livingston – an aviator and air racer.

Sister Cities

Cedar Falls has a special connection with another city in the world. This is called a "sister city" relationship.

Images for kids

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  Top left clockwise: Downtown Cedar Falls, Cedar Falls Ice House, Big Woods Lake Recreation Area, and Campanile on the University of Northern Iowa campus

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  Flag of Cedar Falls

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  Location within Black Hawk County and Iowa

• 

  The population of Cedar Falls, Iowa from US census data

• 

  Lang Hall at University of Northern Iowa (UNI)

See also

In Spanish: Cedar Falls (Iowa) para niños