Keokuk, Iowa

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Keokuk is a city in Lee County, Iowa, United States. The population was 11,427 at the 2000 census. The city is named after Sauk Chief Keokuk, who is buried in Rand Park. It is located in the extreme southeast corner of Iowa where the Des Moines River meets with the Mississippi. It is located at the junction of US Highways 61, 136 and 218. Just across the river are the small towns of Hamilton and Warsaw, Illinois, and Alexandria, Missouri. The tourist destination of Nauvoo, Illinois, IL is located just minutes across the river and many tourists seek accommodations in Keokuk, since hotels in Nauvoo are often booked all through summer, and there are many hotels in Keokuk.

The town is the birth place of the famous American film actor Conrad Nagel, who was born here in 1897. Former NASCAR driver Dick Hutcherson was from Keokuk, as was United States Supreme Court Justice Samuel Freeman Miller and gossip columnist Elsa Maxwell. In 1885 Bud Fowler became one of the earliest African Americans to play for an integrated professional baseball team when he played second base for Keokuk's team in the Western League, an upper level minor league. At the time Keokuk's population was more than ten percent African American due to the migration of former slaves during and after the Civil War. Roger Maris played for the Keokuk minor league team in 1954.

In an episode of The Simpsons, Krusty the Klown mentioned this town, along with Walla Walla, Cucamonga, and Seattle, as funny place names. It was also mentioned in an episode of Nickelodeon's All Grown Up in which a class project involved family trees with ancestors originating in Keokuk as well as an episode of M*A*S*H in a story line involving Radar O'Reilly. The town was also mentioned in one of W. C. Fields films and was also used in a joke on Johnny Carson's The Tonight Show.

Home of Mario "Mo" Weber, former vocalist for rock band After All, and current frontman of the popular Cincinnati metal band Seven Orchids.

Home of the popular Indie/Alternative band "The In Betweens". They are known for such hit songs as "Reality Song" and "Billy Corgan, Jesus Christ and the candy bar".^{[citation needed]}

The only hydroelectric plant on the Mississippi is located here. The locks and dam along with the hydroelectric power plant was built in 1913 and still uses most of the original equipment. It is part of the Keokuk Lock & Dam, both of which are visible from a park at the foot of the commercial district.

The Keokuk National Cemetery is located here and many Civil War soldiers are buried there.

A few miles north of Keokuk is the Galland School, a replica of the first schoolhouse in Iowa.

The tap water produced for the city at the Keokuk Waterworks Plant has been awarded the "Best Tasting Water In Iowa" by the Iowa Water Council.

1 Geography
2 Demographics
3 Further reading
4 External links

[edit] Geography

Keokuk is located at 40°24′9″N, 91°23′40″W (40.402525, -91.394372)^GR1. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 27.4 km² (10.6 mi²). 23.7 km² (9.2 mi²) of it is land and 3.7 km² (1.4 mi²) of it (13.42%) is water.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there are 11,427 people, 4,773 households, and 3,021 families residing in the city. The population density is 481.7/km² (1,247.5/mi²). There are 5,327 housing units at an average density of 224.5/km² (581.6/mi²). The racial makeup of the city is 92.87% White, 3.90% African American, 0.27% Native American, 0.52% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.45% from other races, and 1.99% from two or more races. 1.09% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 4,773 households out of which 29.9% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.8% are married couples living together, 13.2% have a female householder with no husband present, and 36.7% are non-families. 32.4% of all households are made up of individuals and 16.2% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.35 and the average family size is 2.97.

Population spread: 25.4% under the age of 18, 8.6% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 22.9% from 45 to 64, and 17.7% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 38 years. For every 100 females there are 88.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 83.9 males.

The median income for a household in the city is $31,586, and the median income for a family is $39,574. Males have a median income of $31,213 versus $21,420 for females. The per capita income for the city is $17,144. 11.9% of the population and 8.1% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 15.7% of those under the age of 18 and 13.4% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.

[edit] Further reading

For a depiction of Keokuk during its early boom years see: Michael A. Ross, “Cases of Shattered Dreams: Justice Samuel Freeman Miller and the Rise and Fall of a Mississippi River Town,” Annals of Iowa, 57 (Summer 1998): 201-239.