Howard County, Iowa

Howard County, Iowa
Location in the state of Iowa
Iowa's location in the U.S.
Founded	1851
Seat	Cresco
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	473.76 sq mi (1,227 km²) 473.40 sq mi (1,226 km²) 0.36 sq mi (1 km²), 0.08%
Population  - (2010)  - Density	9,566 20/sq mi (8/km²)
Time zone	Central: UTC-6/-5
Website	www.howard-county.com
Footnotes: Population

Howard County is a county located in the US state of Iowa. The population was 9,566 in the 2010 census, a decline from 9,932 in the 2000 census. The county seat is Cresco.

History

Howard County was founded in 1851. It was named after General Tilghman Ashurst Howard, a Representative of Indiana.

Geography

According to the 2000 census, the county has a total area of 473.76 square miles (1,227.0 km²), of which 473.40 square miles (1,226.1 km²) (or 99.92%) is land and 0.36 square miles (0.93 km²) (or 0.08%) is water.

Major highways

• U.S. Highway 63
• Iowa Highway 9
• Iowa Highway 139

Adjacent counties

• Mower County, Minnesota (northwest)
• Fillmore County, Minnesota (north)
• Winnesheik County (east)
• Chickasaw County (south)
• Mitchell County (west)
• Floyd County (southwest)

Festivals and parades

The Mighty Howard County Fair is held annually in Cresco every June, traditionally the last full week. As of 2011 it will be the 118th year that the fair will be held.

Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1860	3,168		—
1870	6,282		98.3%
1880	10,837		72.5%
1890	11,182		3.2%
1900	14,512		29.8%
1910	12,920		−11.0%
1920	13,705		6.1%
1930	13,082		−4.5%
1940	13,531		3.4%
1950	13,105		−3.1%
1960	12,734		−2.8%
1970	11,442		−10.1%
1980	11,114		−2.9%
1990	9,809		−11.7%
2000	9,932		1.3%
2010	9,566		−3.7%
Iowa Data Center

2010 census

The 2010 census recorded a population of 9,566 in the county, with a population density of 20.207/sq mi (7.8020/km²). There were 4,367 housing units, of which 3,944 were occupied.

2000 census

2000 Census Age Pyramid for Howard County

As of the census of 2000, there were 9,932 people, 3,974 households, and 2,650 families residing in the county. The population density was 21 people per square mile (8/km²). There were 4,327 housing units at an average density of 9 per square mile (4/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 99.06% White, 0.11% Black or African American, 0.15% Native American, 0.17% Asian, 0.08% from other races, and 0.42% from two or more races. 0.55% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 3,974 households out of which 31.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.8% were married couples living together, 6.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.3% were non-families. 29.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 3.03.

In the county the population was spread out with 26.30% under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 25.4% from 25 to 44, 21.3% from 45 to 64, and 20.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 97.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.3 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $34,641, and the median income for a family was $43,284. Males had a median income of $28,856 versus $21,367 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,842. About 5.6% of families and 9.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.7% of those under age 18 and 8.8% of those age 65 or over.

Cities and towns

Chester Cresco

Elma Lime Springs

Protivin Riceville

Unincorporated communities

• Florenceville

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Howard County, Iowa
• Norman Borlaug (1914–2009) A Nobel Peace Prize winner raised and went to school in the county.

External links

• Howard County Development Commission's website
• Howard County Government website