Iowa

Iowa Travel Guide: sunset at Five Island Lake, Emmersburg, Iowa
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Emmetsburg,_Iowa_-_Five_Island_Lake_at_sunset.jpg
Author: David Morris


Iowa is a landlocked state in Midwestern United States. It covers an area of 56,272 sq miles (145,743 sq km) in the American Heartland. Iowa is bordered by Minnesota to the north, Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the northwest, Missouri to the south, Nebraska to the west and South Dakota to the northwest. The state has a population of just over 3 million people. Its capital and largest city is Des Moines.

Iowa was originally part of the French colony of New France. It was first documented by European explorers Jacques Marquette and Louis Jolliet who arrived there when they travelled up the Mississippi River in 1673.

Sunrise at Five Island Lake, Emmetsburg, Iowa
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lake_morning_%28hdr%29_%281759580544%29.jpg
Author: David Morris


Des Moines, capital and biggest city in Iowa
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Des_Moines_skyline.jpg
Author: Tim Kiser


Iowa was brought into the United States through the Louisiana Purchase, and became the 29th state in the Union on 28 December, 1846, when President James K. Polk signed Iowa's admission bill. From the mid 19th to the early 20th century, Iowa grew rapidly as a major agricultural state. The Great Depression and the Second World War were catalysts in transitioning Iowa's economy from agriculture to include manufacturing, so much the better, as the Farm Crisis of the 1980's brought a major recession to the state, with widespread poverty not seen since the Great Depression.

The result of the Farm Crisis is that the economy of Iowa continued to metamorphose, becoming less dependent on agriculture as it embraces other sectors such as biotechnology, finance and insurance services. Surprisingly, Iowa now has a predominantly urban population.

First Baptist Church, Davenport, Iowa
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:First_Baptist_Church_%28Davenport,_Iowa%29.jpg
Author: Ctjf83

Travel to Iowa

The main highway into Iowa is Interstate-80 that cuts across the state from east to west. Interstate-35 cuts through the state from north to south. Both highways pass through Des Moines, the capital

Travel within Iowa

Many parts of Iowa are rural, so it is best to have a car at your disposal if you intend to explore the state extensively.

Bear Creek, Story county, Iowa
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Riparian_buffer_on_Bear_Creek_in_Story_County,_Iowa.jpg
Author: USDA

Cities in Iowa

Cities in Iowa sorted by population, according to 2009 estimate, rounded to the nearest thousand.

Places of Interest in Iowa

National Monuments in Iowa

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Dear visitor, thank you so much for reading this page. My name is Timothy Tye and my hobby is to find out about places, write about them and share the information with you on this website. I have been writing this site since 5 January 2003. Originally (from 2003 until 2009, the site was called AsiaExplorers. I changed the name to Penang Travel Tips in 2009, even though I describe more than just Penang but everywhere I go (I often need to tell people that "Penang Travel Tips" is not just information about Penang, but information written in Penang), especially places in Malaysia and Singapore, and in all the years since 2003, I have described over 20,000 places.

While I try my best to provide you information as accurate as I can get it to be, I do apologize for any errors and for outdated information which I am unaware. Nevertheless, I hope that what I have described here will be useful to you.