Welcome to Content Bash’s latest entry for the 50 Nifty States! Here we present Iowa, the last of the I states of Idaho, Illinois, and Indiana! What is there to know about the 29th state? Lots of things! From Des Moines to Donna Reed, here are 65 awesome and interesting facts and trivia about the state of Iowa.

What is Iowa known for?

1. The Hawkeye State! Just like Indiana folks call themselves Hoosiers, people from Iowa are considered Hawkeyes. This is apparently a homage to Black Hawk, who was the leader of the Native American Sauk tribe that had relocated to Iowa after being chased off their land by settlers. Black Hawk is a pretty influential figure of early Iowa who did not recognize the Indiana Territory and participated in the sieges of Fort Madison. Incidentally, Black Hawk is also the indirect inspiration for the Chicago Blackhawks and Atlanta Hawks.

2. Des Moines! It’s the capital of Iowa and also its most populated city, with about 215,000 people living there. It’s not exactly Brooklyn or Austin, but Des Moines holds its own as a medium-sized midwestern metropolitan. Major financial and insurance corporations are stationed there, as well as being an influential hub of American politics. The last 40 years have seen some serious growth in Des Moines, with the Civic Center of Greater Des Moines, Iowa Events Center, the skywalk, and the botanical gardens all shaping the culture of the city.

3. Colleges! Iowa has like 60 colleges and universities in the state, include a handful of big-shot ones. The University of Iowa has a competitive NCAA Division I football squad, where the Hawkeyes have won 11 Big Ten Championships. The Iowa State Cyclones are a Big 12 Conference team, and the University of Northern Iowa Panthers compete in the Missouri Valley Conference.

What are the official state symbols of Iowa?

4. It should be noted that while many states have an official symbol for a wide range of things — from fossils to foodstuff and aircrafts to amphibians — the state of Iowa is lacking in this regard. We try to curate the most interesting and fun of these symbols among the 50 Nifty States, but what you see below is pretty much the entire list of official Iowa state symbols, as unexciting as some of them may appear. The fact that we are even counting this as a notable Iowa fact should tell you how relatively meager their list of official symbols is.

5. The Iowa state flag was designed in 1917 by Dixie Cornell Gebhardt, who was the secretary of the Daughters of the American Revolution. Iowa made the adoption on March 29, 1921. Here is a picture of the Iowa state flag!

6. The American goldfinch was officially adopted as the state bird of Iowa in 1933, which can be found year-round in Iowa. It’s a good-looking bird! Here is a picture of the American goldfinch.

7. Iowa declared an official state rock in 1967 and it’s the geode. They are pretty abundant in Iowa.

8. Debra Marquart is the current Poet Laureate of Iowa. Appointed in 2019, Debra Marquart has been the recipient of dozens of grants, accolades, and awards for her poetry, including a PEN USA Nonfiction Award, and the Normal Poetry Prize. Debra Marquart is also the author of multiple books of poetry, essays, stories, and a memoir. Her prolific output includes Small Buried Things and we should support our poets and buy their books!

9. The oak tree was designated the official tree of Iowa in 1961. Not only is that relatively uninspiring, they did not bother to specify a specific species of oak.

10. The wild rose was made the official flower of Iowa in 1897. More specifically, the wild prairie rose. Here’s what the wild prairie rose looks like!

11. “The Song of Iowa” is the official state song of Iowa, adopted in 1911 after it was written by S.H.M. Byers in 1867. It’s basically a rip-off of the classic Christmas carol “O Tannenbaum.” That also happens to be the case with the Maryland state song.

12. Iowa has a state seal that was incorporated in 1847 and it contains the state motto: “Our liberties we prize, and our rights we will maintain.”

Fun, Cool & Weird Facts about Iowa

13. The University of Iowa hosts the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, basically the best graduate writing program you’ll find anywhere in the United States. A boatload of graduates and faculty have won the Pulitzer Prize, including John Cheever, Robert Penn Warren, Marilynne Robinson, John Berryman, and Louis Glück. The talent in of the Iowa writing community is absolutely staggering.

14. Pretty much everyone has heard the phrase “the greatest thing since sliced bread,” but you may not have heard that the bread-slicing machine was basically invented in Iowa by this dude named Otto Frederick Rohwedder in Davenport, Iowa. The very first loaves were sliced on July 6, 1928.

15. Le Mars, Iowa claims to be the Ice Cream Capital of the World. The parent corporation that makes Blue Bunny ice cream is headquartered here and the town sure makes a big deal out of it.

16. The Red Delicious apple — which give apples a bad name and are not very delicious at all with their chewy skin and hit-or-miss ripeness — originated in Peru, Iowa. They have a lot to answer for!

17. Swimming fans would enjoy learning that the butterfly stroke was invented by University Iowa swim team head coach Dave Armbruster — a significant milestone as the butterfly stroke is now accepted in international competition.

18. You’ve probably heard about the famous Ozzy Osbourne bat-biting incident. That took place in Iowa! In 1982, a fan threw a bat onstage at a Black Sabbath show in Des Moines and Ozzy bit into it, thinking it was just a fake. But it was real! And he bit it! Ozzy Osbourne went to the hospital after the show.

19. Iowa State University was where the first electronic digital computer was built in the 1930s by professor John Vincent Atanasoff and his pet pupil Clifford Berry. It was over 750 pounds! John Vincent Atanasoff is the subject of Jane Smiley’s The Man Who Invented the Computer.

20. You’ve probably seen the iconic American Gothic (1930) painting by Grant Wood. Instantly recognizable, the house the man and woman are standing in front of is located in Eldon, Iowa.

21. The Iowa State Fair has been an (almost) annual event since the inaugural fair in October 1854. It’s a really big deal in the state — with over 1 million visitors attending annually.

22. Riverside, Iowa is the birthplace of famous Star Trek commander Captain James T. Kirk. Though he will not be born until 2228, his birthday is still celebrated with a stone commemorating the occasion.

23. There is an island in Iowa! Sabula, Iowa, is the only island town in the state, as hard it is to believe that Iowa even has islands at all. It’s home to 500-some people and it’s located on the Mississippi River. The construction of a dam in the 1930s left some parts of the state permanently flooded, thus forming the island city of Sabula, Iowa.

Early History of Iowa Facts Timeline

24. The first white people that we know about who came to Iowa were French explorers Louis Jolliet and Jacques Marquette in 1673. They claimed the area of Iowa for France, where it remained French territory for 90 years until 1763.

25. In 1763, the area of Iowa was transferred to Spain right before the French lost the French and Indian War. During this time, traders and trading posts were established along the Mississippi River, Des Moines River, and Missouri River.

26. In 1800, Napoleon Bonaparte traded Tuscany to Spain in exchange for the Louisiana territory that included Iowa.

27. In 1803, Napoleon sold the Louisiana territory to the United States for about $15 million — or $2.6 billion dollars in today’s money. This is known as the Louisiana Purchase and it was a serious acquisition that included all of Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, and South Dakota. It also included parts of Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, Colorado, New Mexico, Texas, and of course, Louisiana, including New Orleans.

28. After the Louisiana Purchase happened, Congress split all that land into two parts: the District of Louisiana and the Territory of Orleans. Iowa became a part of the District of Louisiana under the jurisdiction of the Indiana Territory that had been established in 1800.

29. Fort Madison was built in 1808 in an attempt to dominate and control the area, but it fell to the Indigenous people supported by the British in the War of 1812. The Army burned it on their way out of town and not much was made of Fort Madison until settlers came back a couple decades later.

30. In 1832, the Sauk defeat in the Black Hawk War lead to them selling off much of Iowa in the Black Hawk Purchase.

31. Congress established the Territory of Iowa on July 4, 1838.

32. The Honey War of 1839 was a dispute between Missouri and Iowa Territory over where their shared border began and ended. The incident did not see any bloodshed or casualties, but did result in a few beehives being knocked over.

33. Iowa was admitted to the union on December 28, 1846 as the 29th state by President James K. Polk.

34. The Great Flood of 1851 in Des Moines was the result of over 74 inches of rainfall — still an Iowa record — and major flooding saw towns devastated, including Des Moines. The town had to be rebuilt.

Topography & Geography of Iowa

35. The size of Iowa in terms of area is about the median of the 50 Nifty States, ranking 26th with 55,857 square miles.

36. If you were to drive across Iowa from east to west at the widest point, it would be 240 miles. If you were to drive through Iowa from north to south, that would be 310 miles.

37. Hawkeye Point is the highest point in Iowa, at 1,671 feet above sea level.

38. The lowest point in Iowa is 480 feet above sea level at the confluence of the Des Moines River and the Mississippi River.

39. In addition to Des Moines, other big Iowa cities with more than 100,000 people include Cedar Rapids, Iowa and Davenport, Iowa.

40. Iowa borders 6 states: Wisconsin, Illinois, Missouri, Nebraska, South Dakota, and Minnesota.

41. There are 99 counties in Iowa. There are 100 county seats because Lee County has two for some reason.

42. The Mississippi River borders Iowa on the east, while the Big Sioux River and Missouri River borders it on the west.

43. Iowa used to have some serious wetlands — about 11% of the land. Almost all of it, like 95%, has been drained, a lot of it by the European settlements.

44. A significant part of Iowa — like 60% — is for farming and agriculture. Grasslands and forests cover about 37%. The rest is water and cities.

45. Iowa is only like 1% water but its natural lakes include West Okoboji Lake and Spirit Lake.

What Should I Visit in Iowa?

46. Strawberry Point, Iowa happens to be the location of the world’s largest strawberry statue. At 15 feet tall and made of fiberglass, this fun roadside attraction was erected at the Strawberry Point City Hall in the late 1960s.

47. Located at Reiman Gardens in Ames, Iowa is Elwood, the largest concrete garden gnome in the world. Like the fiberglass strawberry, he is 15 feet tall and being made of concrete and all, he is about 3,500 pounds. Created by sculpture artist couple Andy and Connie Kautza, the big-ass gnome made its debut on Earth Day, April 22, 2010.

48. Heralded in 2017 by the folks at Ripley’s Believe It or Not! as their #1 Odd Spot, Snake Alley in Burlington, Iowa and has been called the “Crookedest Street in the World.” Some of the turns are even sharper than what you’ll find in San Francisco.

49. The Bullhead Fish Statue in Crystal Lake, Iowa boasts to be the world’ largest and at 12 feet long, they’re probably right! It was built in 1958.

50. The Museum of Natural History at the University of Iowa is a great place to learn about the biological diversity, environment, and cultural history of Iowa. Found in 1958 in Iowa City, Iowa, the museum has an astonishing collection of artifacts that will pique anyone’s curiosity. The museum was also responsible for supporting the excavations of four Tarkio Valley giant sloths — the first found in Iowa.

51. The largest truck stop in the world is in Walcott, Iowa. It’s called the Iowa 80 Truck Stop and with enough parking for 900 trucks, the space also has the Iowa 80 Trucking Museum that features antique road signs, trucks, and truck parts.

52. Albert the Bull is said to be the largest bull in the world, and he is stationed in Audubon, Iowa. Erected in 1964, Albert is a big deal in Audubon at 30 feet tall and 33 feet wide. His testicles are prominent, much to the delight of many giggling young visitors.

53. Many roadside landmarks in Iowa claim to be the largest, and the Largest Frying Pan in Brandon, Iowa is yet another example. It’s 15 feet tall and weighs like 1,200 pounds — but was unfortunately built a mere 3 inches smaller than the actual largest frying pan in Washington state.

54. The Matchstick Marvels Museum in Gladbrook, Iowa is a marvel, indeed. Local artist Pat Acton has created scale models of dozens of objects and buildings, including the Millennium Falcon and the Challenger space shuttle.

What famous people are from Iowa?

55. John Wayne was born in Winterset, Iowa in 1907. John Wayne’s real first name is Marion lol. We don’t want to participate in any kind of gender-based name-shaming but we still find that endlessly funny.

56. Johnny Carson was born in Coming, Iowa in 1925. The legendary talk show host grew up in southwest Iowa before moving to Nebraska when he was 8 years old.

57. Actor Elijah Wood is probably best known for his role as Frodo Baggins in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Elijah Wood was born in Cedar Rapids, Iowa in 1981 to parents who ran a deli.

58. Ed Yost is considered the “Father of the Modern Day Hot-Air Balloon” by the people who decide such things. Ed Yost was born in Bristow, Iowa in 1919, and developed the very first prototype of a modern hot-air balloon in 1955.

59. Eppie Lederer is known to many generations of newspaper readers as Ann Landers, the influential advice columnist. Born in Sioux City, Iowa along with her twin sister Dear Abby, Ann Landers was once referred to as the most influential woman in the country.

60. Big band leader, arranger, and composer Glenn Miller was born in Clarinda, Iowa on March 1, 1904. The dude actually had more #1 hit records than The Beatles and Elvis Presley did in their day.

61. Actor George Reeves played the title character in the 1950s television show Adventures of Superman. He was born in Woolstock, Iowa. For some reason, we thought he was Christopher Reeve’s father but that’s not true. They don’t even have the same last name!

62. Game of Thrones actor Jason Momoa was born in Hawaii, but was raised in Norwalk, Iowa, where he probably stuck out like a big fat sore thumb.

63. Hall-of-Fame baseball players who were born in Iowa include Cleveland Guardians pitcher Bob Feller (born in Van Meter, Iowa), and Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Fred Clarke (born in Winterset, Iowa).

64. Grant Wood is the painter behind the famous American Gothic image. Grant Wood was born in Anamosa, Iowa in 1891 and his iconic image can be found at the Art Institute of Chicago.

65. Donna Reed — born Donna Mullenger — was born in Denison, Iowa. Donna Reed is perhaps best known for her role in Frank Capra’s It’s a Wonderful Life (1946).

Cover Image Credit: Image by David Mark from Pixabay

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