Council Bluffs, Iowa

Council Bluffs is a small city in Pottawattamie County in western Iowa. It covers 39.7 sq mi (102.7 sq km) and has a population of 62,000 people (2011 estimate). The city is across the Missouri River from Omaha, Nebraska.

Old Pottawattamie County Jail, Council Bluffs
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:dako.jpg
Author: Muka


The area that becomes present-day Council Bluffs was first settled in 1838 by Sauganash, who is of an Irish father and a Mohawk mother. He had led a band of Pottawatomie Native Americans to the east side of the Missouri River. At that time, encroachment by European-Americans into the area forced more and more Native Americans to resettle in the Council Bluffs area.

Coming to minister to the natives was Father Pierre-Jean De Smet, who witnessed the many social ills of the Native Americans. He tried with little success to convert them to Christianity.

In 1948, the town was given the name Kanesville, after benefactor Thomas L. Kane. It was only renamed Council Bluffs in 1852. The city was the starting point of the Emigrant Trail. Mormons also left from here on their march to Utah.

Thomas E Cavin House, Council Bluffs
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cavin_150_Park_C_Bluffs_IA.jpg
Author: Smallbones


Today Council Bluff is a grain transportation hub for the surrounding agricultural land. To prop up its economy, the state of Iowa liberalized its gambling laws, enabling Council Bluffs to be the 19th largest casino market in the country.

Visiting Council Bluffs

Interstate 80 and 29 are the main highways connecting Council Bluff with the rest of the country. The I-80 runs east-west, connecting it with Omaha to the west and Des Moines to the east. The I-29 runs north-south, connecting it with Sioux City to the north and St Joseph to the south.

O.P. Wickham House, Council Bluffs
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:OP_Wickham_616_C_Bluffs_IA.jpg
Author: Smallbones

Places of Interest in Council Bluffs

 Latest updates on Penang Travel Tips

Songs about Penang

About this website

Hello and thanks for reading this page. My name is Timothy and my hobby is in describing places so that I can share the information with the general public. My website has become the go to site for a lot of people including students, teachers, journalists, etc. whenever they seek information on places, particularly those in Malaysia and Singapore. I have been doing this since 5 January 2003, for over twenty years already. You can read about me at Discover Timothy. By now I have compiled information on thousands of places, mostly in Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore, and I continue to add more almost every day. My goal is to describe every street in every town in Malaysia and Singapore.