Iowa is a Midwest state of the United States. It is the 29th state of the United States, having joined the Union on December 28, 1846. The official name of the state is the "State of Iowa". The state is named for the Native American Iowa people.
Adair Algona Altoona Ames Anamosa Ankeny Arnolds Park Atlantic Bettendorf Boone Brooklyn Burlington Carroll Carter Lake Cedar Falls Cedar Rapids Centerville Chariton Charles City Cherokee Clarinda Clear Lake Clinton Clive Colfax Coralville Council Bluffs Cresco Creston Davenport De Witt Decorah Denison Des Moines Dubuque Dyersville Eldridge Elk Horn Emmetsburg Estherville Evansdale Fairfield Forest City Fort Dodge Fort Madison Grimes Grinnell Grundy Center Humboldt Ida Grove Independence Indianola Iowa City Iowa Falls Jefferson Johnston Kalona Keokuk Knoxville Lamoni Le Claire Le Mars Manchester Maquoketa Marion Marshalltown Mason City Milford Missouri Valley Mount Pleasant Mount Vernon Muscatine New Hampton Newton North Liberty Oelwein Okoboji Onawa Orange City Osage Osceola Oskaloosa Ottumwa Pella Peosta Percival Perry Pleasant Hill Red Oak Riverside Rock Valley Sheldon Shenandoah Sibley Sioux Center Sioux City Spencer Spirit Lake Storm Lake Story City Stuart Toledo Urbana Urbandale Walcott Walnut Washington Waterloo Waverly Webster City West Bend West Branch West Des Moines West Liberty West Union Williams Williamsburg Winterset
Iowa is bordered by Minnesota on the north; Nebraska and South Dakota on the west; Missouri on the south; and Wisconsin and Illinois on the east.
The Mississippi River forms the eastern boundary of the state. The boundary along the west is formed by the Missouri River south of Sioux City and by the Big Sioux River north of Sioux City. There are several natural lakes in the state, most notably Spirit Lake, West Okoboji Lake, and East Okoboji Lake in northwest Iowa. Man-made lakes include Lake Odessa, Saylorville Lake, Lake Red Rock, and Rathbun Lake.
The topography of the state is gently rolling plains. Loess hills lie along the western border of the state. Some of these are several hundred feet thick. In the northeast along the Mississippi River is a section of the Driftless Zone, which in Iowa consists of low rugged hills covered with conifers—a landscape not usually associated with this state.
The point of lowest elevation is Keokuk in southeastern Iowa, at 480 feet (146 m). The point of highest elevation, at 1,670 feet (509 m), is Hawkeye Point, located in a feedlot north of Sibley in northwest Iowa. The mean elevation of the state is 1,099 feet (335 m). Considering the size of the state at 56,271 square miles (145,743 km²), there is very little elevation difference.
Iowa has 99 counties. The state capital, Des Moines, is located in Polk County (#60).
Areas controlled and protected by the National Park Service include:
* Effigy Mounds National Monument near Harpers Ferry * Herbert Hoover National Historical Site in West Branch * Lewis & Clark National Historic Trail * Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail
Iowa experiences a continental climate with extremes of both heat and cold. The average annual temperature at Des Moines is 50.0°F (10.0°C); for some locations in the north the figure is under 45°F, while Keokuk, on the Mississippi River, averages 52.1°F. Winters are brisk and snowfall common, the capital receiving an average of 36.3 inches per season. Spring ushers in the beginning of the severe weather season, as well as bringing increased precipitation and warming temperatures. The Iowan summer is known for heat and humidity, with daytime temperatures sometimes exceeding 100°F (37.8°C).Going on a trip? Why not browse some of the luggage at eBags.com (external source)
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