Bettendorf, Iowa
—  City  —
The city of Bettendorf welcome sign. The city of Bettendorf welcome sign.
Location in the State of Iowa
Coordinates: 41°33′0″N 90°29′37″W / 41.55°N 90.49361°W / 41.55; -90.49361Coordinates: 41°33′0″N 90°29′37″W / 41.55°N 90.49361°W / 41.55; -90.49361
Country	USA
State	Iowa
County	Scott
Incorporated	1903
Government
• Type	Mayor-council government
• Mayor	Bob Gallagher[1]
• Senate	Senate list David Hartsuch (R)
• House	House list Phyllis Thede (D) Linda Miller (R)
• U.S. Congress	Bruce Braley (D)
Area
• City	22.4 sq mi (57.8 km2)
• Land	21.4 sq mi (55.0 km2)
• Water	1.1 sq mi (3.0 km2)
Elevation	571 ft (174 m)
Population (2010 United States Census)
• City	33,217
• Rank	15th in Iowa
• Density	1,513.7/sq mi (589.0/km2)
• Metro	381,342(134th)
Time zone	CST (UTC-6)
• Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP code	52722
Area code(s)	563
FIPS code	19-06355
GNIS feature ID	0454588
Website	http://www.bettendorf.org/

Bettendorf is a city in Scott County, Iowa, United States. Bettendorf is the fifteenth largest city in the U.S. state of Iowa and the fourth largest city in the "Quad Cities". As of the 2010 United States Census the population grew to 33,217.^[2] Bettendorf is one of the Quad Cities, along with neighboring Davenport and the Illinois cities of Moline, East Moline and Rock Island. The Quad Cities has a population estimate of 381,342.^[3] In 2011, Bettendorf was named America's 95th Best Town by CNNMoney.^[4]

History[link]

Bettendorf lies in the original Wisconsin Territory, which the United States bought from the Sac and Fox Indians after defeating them in the Black Hawk War. The territory was ceded in the Black Hawk Purchase of 1832. The first European-American settlers established a village which they called Lillienthal, after an early tavern and dance hall. The village of Gilbert developed alongside Lillienthal in 1858, honoring Elias Gilbert, who platted the original site. At that time, the residents were predominantly German immigrants and worked as farmers, skilled laborers, and small business owners. The two villages eventually combined to become the town of Gilbert.

Circa 1900, the town gave William and Joseph Bettendorf 70 acres (280,000 m²) of riverfront land on the condition that they move their iron wagon business from Davenport to Gilbert. In 1903, the town of 440 citizens petitioned for incorporation, requesting to change the town's name to honor the brothers whose factory was a major economic influence in the early development of the city.

In the late 1940s, Aluminum Company of America (A.L.C.O.A.) chose Riverdale, a site adjacent to Bettendorf, for construction of the world's largest aluminum mill. The huge mill, and the attendant developments from it, created thousands of jobs and greatly increased growth in Bettendorf's population, which has continued to the present day.

The first modern-day riverboat casinos in the United States were launched in Bettendorf on April 1, 1991 by local businessman Bernard Goldstein. He went on to found the Isle of Capri Casinos. Goldstein and his family members also operate Alter Companies, which is a scrap metal, barge and towboat company operating on the river waterfront.^[5] The Quad Cities Waterfront Convention Center opened by the casino and hotel in 2009.^[6] It is owned by the city and operated by the Isle of Capri.

Geography[link]

Bettendorf is located at 41°33′0″N 90°29′37″W / 41.55°N 90.49361°W / 41.55; -90.49361 (41.550044, −90.493679).^[7]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 22.4 square miles (58 km²), of which 21.2 square miles (55 km²) is land and 1.1 square miles (2.8 km²) (5.10%) is water.

Climate[link]

Demographics[link]

As of the census^[10] of 2000, there were 31,275 people, 12,474 households, and 8,719 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,472.8 people per square mile (568.5/km²). There were 13,044 housing units at an average density of 614.3 per square mile (237.1/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 95.01% White, 1.58% African American, 0.21% Native American, 1.42% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.68% from other races, and 1.08% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.47% of the population.

There were 12,474 households, of which 34.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.5% were married couples living together, 8.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.1% were non-families. 26.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 3.01.

In the city, the population was spread out with 26.2% under the age of 18, 6.7% from 18 to 24, 28.0% from 25 to 44, 26.6% from 45 to 64, and 12.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 94.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $54,217, and the median income for a family was $66,620. Males had a median income of $48,524 versus $28,564 for females. The per capita income for the city was $28,053. About 3.3% of families and 4.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.3% of those under age 18 and 4.9% of those age 65 or over.

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Top Employers[link]

According to the City's 2010 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report,^[11] the top employers in the city are:

Government[link]

Bettendorf's city hall, police station,
and one of its fire departments.

Bettendorf has a mayor and city council form of government with seven city council members. Two council members are elected at-large, while the other five are elected by each of the city's five wards.

Education[link]

Bettendorf School District[link]

The Bettendorf School District covers most areas of central, northern and western Bettendorf. Elementary students are assigned to one of six elementary schools: named in honor of Neil Armstrong, Herbert Hoover, Thomas Jefferson, Paul Norton, Mark Twain and Grant Wood. The district also has a middle and high school. The Neil Armstrong School, most recently built, is the only one in the district to operate on a "balanced calendar" of year-round, full-time use. A seven-member board of education represents district residents; they meet on the first and third Monday of each month at the Ray Stensvad Administration Center.

Pleasant Valley School District[link]

Pleasant Valley High School
is one of the two high schools in Bettendorf.

The Pleasant Valley School District encompasses areas of eastern Bettendorf, as well as the outlying communities of Pleasant Valley, Riverdale and LeClaire. Located inside the city limits are three of the district's 5 elementary schools (Pleasant View, Riverdale Heights, and Hopewell), Pleasant Valley High School and the administrative center. Junior high students are bussed to Pleasant Valley Junior High School, on the outskirts of LeClaire, while LeClaire elementary students go to either Cody or Bridgeview Elementary Schools. Board members are elected from seven director districts, five within Bettendorf's city limits and two others serving LeClaire-area residents. The high school has 1,232 students, the junior high 501 students, and the four combined elementary schools 1,821 students. The total district has 3,454 students.^[12]

Both high schools are part of the Mississippi Athletic Conference for sports.

Private schools[link]

Also located within the city limits are Rivermont Collegiate, a nonsectarian, independent, multicultural, college-preparatory school for preschool through 12th-grade students; and Morning Star Academy, a Christian school for preschool through 12th-grade students. Rivermont Collegiate operates in the former mansion of J.W. Bettendorf, the founder of the city.

Post-secondary Education[link]

Scott Community College, part of the Eastern Iowa Community College District, is located in Bettendorf.

Landmarks[link]

The graves of Joseph Bettendorf (left) and William P. Bettendorf, the two brothers for whom the city is named.

Media[link]

Sports[link]

See also

• Mississippi Athletic Conference for high school sports.

Notable people[link]

• Chris Anthony, arena football player^{[citation needed] relationship to Bettendorf}
• Pat Angerer, linebacker, drafted in the 2010 NFL Draft by the Indianapolis Colts^[13][14]
• Tavian Banks, (born 1974) NFL Football player, Big Ten Conference player of the year, first-team All-American^[15]
• Jack Fleck, (born 1921) Professional golfer who won the 1955 U.S. Open.^[16][17]
• Michael Grumley, (1942–1988) writer^{[citation needed] relationship to Bettendorf}
• Hazel Keener, actress
• Mark Kerr, (born 1968) Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighter and subject of the HBO documentary entitled The Smashing Machine,^{[citation needed] relationship to Bettendorf}
• Robbie Lawler, (born 1982) MMA fighter^{[citation needed] relationship to Bettendorf}
• Johnny Lujack, (born 1926) 1947 Heisman Trophy winner, member of the College Football Hall of Fame, and was an analyst for NFL on CBS^{[citation needed] relationship to Bettendorf}
• Rory Markham, MMA fighter^{[citation needed] relationship to Bettendorf}
• Drew McFedries, MMA fighter^{[citation needed] relationship to Bettendorf}
• Pat Miletich, MMA fighter and trainer, the first Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Welterweight Champion in 1998^{[citation needed] relationship to Bettendorf}
• David Nelson, (born 1993) software developer who developed the Muziic media player system^[18]
• Eric Christian Olsen, (born 1977) actor, Dumb and Dumberer 2^[19]
• Robert Smallwood, writer^{[citation needed] relationship to Bettendorf}
• Tim Sylvia, (born 1976) former Ultimate Fighting Championship Heavyweight champion^{[citation needed] relationship to Bettendorf}

References[link]

External links[link]

• City of Bettendorf, Official Website
• QCTimes – newspaper
• QConline.com – Local information
• Bettendorf.k12.ia.us – Bettendorf School District
• pleasval.k12.ia.us – Pleasant Valley School District
• City Data Detailed Statistical Data and more about Bettendorf, Iowa

v t e Municipalities and communities of Scott County, Iowa, United States County seat: Davenport Cities Bettendorf Blue Grass‡ Buffalo Davenport Dixon Donahue Durant‡ Eldridge Le Claire Long Grove Maysville McCausland New Liberty Panorama Park Princeton Riverdale Walcott‡ Townships Allens Grove Blue Grass Buffalo Butler Cleona Hickory Grove Le Claire Liberty Lincoln Pleasant Valley Princeton Sheridan Winfield CDP Park View Unincorporated community Big Rock Footnotes ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties

v t e  State of Iowa Des Moines (capital) Topics Index Geology Environment Archaeology Native Americans History Historic Places Iowans Visitor Attractions State Parks Delegations Demographics Governors Legislature Flag Seal Education Sports Area codes Regions Coteau des Prairies Des Moines metropolitan area Dissected Till Plains Driftless Area Great River Road Honey Lands Iowa Great Lakes Loess Hills Omaha-Council Bluffs metropolitan area Quad Cities Siouxland Largest cities Ames Ankeny Bettendorf Burlington Cedar Falls Cedar Rapids Clinton Council Bluffs Davenport Des Moines Dubuque Fort Dodge Iowa City Marion Marshalltown Mason City Muscatine Ottumwa Sioux City Urbandale Waterloo West Des Moines Counties Adair Adams Allamakee Appanoose Audubon Benton Black Hawk Boone Bremer Buchanan Buena Vista Butler Calhoun Carroll Cass Cedar Cerro Gordo Cherokee Chickasaw Clarke Clay Clayton Clinton Crawford Dallas Davis Decatur Delaware Des Moines Dickinson Dubuque Emmet Fayette Floyd Franklin Fremont Greene Grundy Guthrie Hamilton Hancock Hardin Harrison Henry Howard Humboldt Ida Iowa Jackson Jasper Jefferson Johnson Jones Keokuk Kossuth Lee Linn Louisa Lucas Lyon Madison Mahaska Marion Marshall Mills Mitchell Monona Monroe Montgomery Muscatine O'Brien Osceola Page Palo Alto Plymouth Pocahontas Polk Pottawattamie Poweshiek Ringgold Sac Scott Shelby Sioux Story Tama Taylor Union Van Buren Wapello Warren Washington Wayne Webster Winnebago Winneshiek Woodbury Worth Wright

State of Iowa
Flag Seal
Nickname(s): The Hawkeye State[1]
Motto(s): Our liberties we prize and our rights we will maintain.
Official language(s)	English
Demonym	Iowan
Capital (and largest city)	Des Moines
Largest metro area	Des Moines metropolitan area
Area	Ranked 26th in the U.S.
- Total	56,272 sq mi (145,743 km2)
- Width	310 miles (500 km)
- Length	199 miles (320 km)
- % water	0.70
- Latitude	40° 23′ N to 43° 30′ N
- Longitude	90° 8′ W to 96° 38′ W
Population	Ranked 30th in the U.S.
- Total	3,062,309 (2011 est)[2]
- Density	54.8/sq mi  (21.2/km2) Ranked 36th in the U.S.
- Median household income	$48,075 (24th)
Elevation
- Highest point	Hawkeye Point[3][4] 1,671 ft (509 m)
- Mean	1,100 ft  (340 m)
- Lowest point	Confluence of Mississippi River and Des Moines River[3][4] 480 ft (146 m)
Before statehood	Iowa Territory
Admission to Union	December 28, 1846 (29th)
Governor	Terry E. Branstad (R)
Lieutenant Governor	Kim Reynolds (R)
Legislature	General Assembly
- Upper house	Senate
- Lower house	House of Representatives
U.S. Senators	Chuck Grassley (R) Tom Harkin (D)
U.S. House delegation	3 Democrats, 2 Republicans (list)
Time zone	Central: UTC -6/-5
Abbreviations	IA US-IA
Website	www.iowa.gov

Iowa (ⁱ/ˈaɪ.əwə/) is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration.^[5] Iowa was a part of the French colony of New France. After the Louisiana Purchase, settlers laid the foundation for an agriculture-based economy in the heart of the Corn Belt.^[6] Iowa is often known as the "Food Capital of the World".^[7]

In the latter half of the 20th century, Iowa's agricultural economy transitioned to a diversified economy of advanced manufacturing, processing, financial services, biotechnology, and green energy production.^[7][8] Iowa is the 26th most extensive and the 30th most populous of the 50 United States. Its capital and largest city is Des Moines. Iowa has been listed as one of the safest states to live in.^[9]

Geography[link]

Boundaries[link]

Topography of Iowa, with counties and major streams.

Iowa is bordered by the Mississippi River on the east; the Missouri River and the Big Sioux River on the west; the northern boundary is a line along 43 degrees, 30 minutes north latitude.^{[10][note 1]} The southern border is the Des Moines River and a not-quite-straight line along approximately 40 degrees 35 minutes north, as decided by the U.S. Supreme Court in Missouri v. Iowa^[11] after a standoff between Missouri and Iowa known as the Honey War.^[12]

Iowa is the only state whose east and west borders are formed entirely by rivers. Source: http://www.50states.com/facts/iowa.htm

Iowa has 99 counties, but 100 county seats because Lee County has two. The state capital, Des Moines, is located in Polk County.^[13]

DeSoto lake at DeSoto National Wildlife Refuge, Iowa

Fountain Springs Park in Delaware County, Iowa.

Geology and terrain[link]

Iowa's bedrock geology generally increases in age from west to east. In northwest Iowa Cretaceous bedrock can be 74 million years old, in eastern Iowa Cambrian bedrock dates to ca. 500 million years ago.^[14]

Iowa is generally not flat; most of the state consists of rolling hills. Prior^[15] divides Iowa into eight landforms based on glaciation, soils, topography, and river drainage. Loess hills lie along the western border of the state, some of which are several hundred feet thick.^[16] In the northeast, along the Mississippi River, is a section of the Driftless Zone, which in Iowa consists of steep hills and valleys which appear almost mountainous.

There are several natural lakes in the state, most notably Spirit Lake, West Okoboji Lake, and East Okoboji Lake in northwest Iowa (see Iowa Great Lakes). To the east lies Clear Lake. Man-made lakes include Lake Odessa,^[17] Saylorville Lake, Lake Red Rock, Coralville Lake, Lake MacBride, and Rathbun Lake. The northwest part of the state also contains a considerable number of remnants of the once common wetland areas such as Barringer Slough.

Ecology and environment[link]

Iowa's natural vegetation is tallgrass prairie and savanna in upland areas, with dense forest and wetlands in floodplains and protected river valleys, and pothole wetlands in northern prairie areas.^[18] Most of Iowa is used for agriculture, crops cover 60% of the state, grasslands (mostly pasture and hay with some prairie and wetland) cover 30%, and forests cover 7%; urban areas and water cover another 1% each.^[19] The explosion in the number of high-density livestock facilities in Iowa has led to increased risk of rural water contamination and a perceived decline in air quality.^[20] Other factors negatively affecting Iowa's environment include the extensive use of older coal-fired power plants,^[21] fertilizer and pesticide runoff from crop production,^[22] and diminishment of the Jordan Aquifer.^[23]

There is a dearth of natural areas in Iowa; less than 1% of the tallgrass prairie that once covered most of Iowa remain intact, only about 5% of the state's prairie pothole wetlands remain, and most of the original forest has been lost.^[24] Iowa ranks 49th of U.S. states in public land holdings.^[25] Threatened or endangered animals in Iowa include the Interior Least Tern, Piping Plover, Indiana Bat, Pallid Sturgeon, the Iowa Pleistocene Land Snail, Higgins' Eye Pearly Mussel, and the Topeka Shiner.^[26] Endangered or threatened plants include Western Prairie Fringed Orchid, Eastern Prairie Fringed Orchid, Mead's Milkweed, Prairie Bush Clover, and Northern Wild Monkshood.^[27]