Muscatine, Iowa

Geography Muscatine is located at 41°25'26" North, 91°3'22" West (41.424018, -91.056093)¹.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 46.3 km² (17.9 mi²). 43.6 km² (16.8 mi²) of it is land and 2.7 km² (1.0 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 5.87% water.

Demographics As of the census of 2000, there are 22,697 people, 8,923 households, and 6,040 families residing in the city. The population density is 520.4/km² (1,348.1/mi²). There are 9,375 housing units at an average density of 214.9/km² (556.9/mi²). The racial makeup of the city is 90.40% White, 1.08% African American, 0.37% Native American, 0.65% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 6.04% from other races, and 1.44% from two or more races. 12.30% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 8,923 households out of which 33.4% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.7% are married couples living together, 11.0% have a female householder with no husband present, and 32.3% are non-families. 27.4% of all households are made up of individuals and 11.4% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.49 and the average family size is 3.04.

In the city the population is spread out with 26.4% under the age of 18, 9.2% from 18 to 24, 28.6% from 25 to 44, 21.9% from 45 to 64, and 14.0% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 36 years. For every 100 females there are 94.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 90.2 males.

The median income for a household in the city is $38,122, and the median income for a family is $45,366. Males have a median income of $36,440 versus $23,953 for females. The per capita income for the city is $19,483. 10.9% of the population and 8.0% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 13.2% are under the age of 18 and 9.6% are 65 or older.

History Muscatine began as a frontier trading post, founded by Colonel George Davenport. Muscatine was originally called Bloomington when incorporated in 1839, but was changed to reduce mail delivery confusion as there were already too many Bloomingtons in the midwest. The name "Muscatine" is believed by some to be named after the Muscaoutin native american tribe.

A button company was founded in 1884 by a German immigrant named J.F. Boepple, producing buttons by punching them out of clam shells harvested from the Mississippi river. Muscatine was known as the pearl button capital of the world. Hole-punched clam shells can still be found along the riverfront.

Sam Clemens (better known by his pen-name Mark Twain) worked for a while at the local newspaper, the Muscatine Journal. He made a few recollections of Muscatine in his book Life on the Mississippi[?].

"And I remember Muscatine--still more pleasantly--for its summer sunsets. I have never seen any, on either side of the ocean, that equaled them. They used the broad smooth river as a canvas, and painted on it every imaginable dream of color, from the mottled daintinesses and delicacies of the opal, all the way up, through cumulative intensities, to blinding purple and crimson conflagrations which were enchanting to the eye, but sharply tried it at the same time. All the Upper Mississippi region has these extraordinary sunsets as a familiar spectacle. It is the true Sunset Land: I am sure no other country can show so good a right to the name. The sunrises are also said to be exceedingly fine. I do not know."

His other, less flattering recollection of Muscatine is of being acosted by a lunatic who threatened to kill him if he did not proclaim the man the one and only son of Satan.