Muscatine County, Iowa facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Muscatine County
U.S. county
Muscatine County Courthouse in Muscatine
Location within the U.S. state of Iowa
Iowa's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Iowa
Founded	December 7, 1836
Named for	Mascouten tribe
Seat	Muscatine
Largest city	Muscatine
Area
• Total	449 sq mi (1,160 km2)
• Land	437 sq mi (1,130 km2)
• Water	12 sq mi (30 km2)  2.6%
Population  (2020)
• Total	43,235
• Density	96.29/sq mi (37.18/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	2nd

Muscatine County is a county located in the U.S. state of Iowa. As of the 2020 census, the population was 43,235. The county seat is Muscatine. The southeastern border is formed by the Mississippi River.

Muscatine County comprises the Muscatine, IA Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is included in the Davenport-Moline, IA-IL Combined Statistical Area.

History

Muscatine County was formed on December 7, 1836 as a part of Wisconsin Territory, and split off from Des Moines County. One history of the county claims it was named for Muscatine Island in the Mississippi River. The island lies opposite Muscatine County and was believed to be named after the Mascouten tribe, Algonquian-speaking Native Americans who lived in the area before being driven west by settler encroachment and other tribes.

In 1833, Colonel George Davenport of Illinois sent three representatives into the territory to establish a trade post. They were the first European Americans to settle there. In the same year, James W. Casey and John Vanatta came to the area. They opened a supply depot for steamboats on June 1, 1833, and named it Casey’s Woodpile. (The steamboats burned wood.) Muscatine County officially became a part of Iowa Territory on the date the territory was established and split from Wisconsin Territory, on July 4, 1838. The first public land sale was held in November 1838. One year later, the construction of the courthouse and a jail was begun. A second jail, referred to as the "Old Jail", was built in 1857.

On December 23, 1864, the courthouse was complete gutted by a fire and, within two years, a new structure was completed on the same site. The construction of the courthouse still used today was completed on September 26, 1907.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 449 square miles (1,160 km²), of which 437 square miles (1,130 km²) is land and 12 square miles (31 km²) (2.6%) is water.

Adjacent counties

• Cedar County (north)
• Scott County (northeast)
• Rock Island County, Illinois (east), across the Mississippi River
• Louisa County (south)
• Johnson County (northwest)

Transportation

Major highways

• U.S. Highway 6 – enters from Cedar County, west of Wilton, runs south two miles, then continues west and west-northwest to the northwest corner of the county, exiting into Johnson County.
• U.S. Highway 61 – enters from Louisa County, southwest of Fruitland. Runs northeast through the county, passing Muscatine, before turning east to enter Scott County at Blue Grass.
• Iowa Highway 22 – begins at an intersection with Iowa 70, three miles east of Nichols. Runs east and southeast to an intersection with US 61, west of Muscatine.
• Iowa Highway 38 – begins at an intersection with US 6, three miles south of Wilton. Runs south to an intersection with US 61, north of Muscatine.
• Iowa Highway 70 – enters from Louisa County at the southwest corner of Muscatine County. Runs north, northeast and east to Cedar County, passing Nichols and West Liberty.
• Iowa Highway 92 - enters Muscatine County (and state of Iowa), running northwest across the historic Norbert F. Beckey Bridge into central Muscatine. Runs southwest along the Mississippi River to intersection with US 61, southwest of Muscatine.

Other roadway designations

• Great River Road - system of roadways marking north–south routes across the conterminous US, and generally passing through Iowa.

County highways

Demographics

Population of Muscatine County from US census data

2020 census

The 2020 census recorded a population of 43,235 in the county, with a population density of 96.5329/sq mi (37.2716/km²). 92.12% of the population reported being of one race. 62.05% were non-Hispanic White, 2.64% were Black, 17.97% were Hispanic, 0.49% were Native American, 0.94% were Asian, 0.00% were Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander and 15.90% were some other race or more than one race. There were 18,366 housing units, of which 16,908 were occupied.

2010 census

The 2010 census recorded a population of 42,745 in the county, with a population density of 99.7154/sq mi (38.5003/km²). There were 17,910 housing units, of which 16,412 were occupied.

Communities

C.S. Barclay farm illustration in 1875

Cities

Unincorporated communities

• Cranston
• Fairport
• Midway Beach
• Montpelier
• Moscow
• Petersburg

Townships

Population ranking

The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2010 census of Muscatine County.

† county seat

See also

In Spanish: Condado de Muscatine para niños