Dubuque, Iowa

Coordinates: 42°30′N 90°41′W / 42.50°N 90.69°W / 42.50; -90.69
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Dubuque, Iowa
FIPS code
19-22395
GNIS feature ID0456040
Websitewww.cityofdubuque.org

Dubuque (

Wisconsin Glaciation
.

Dubuque is a regional tourist destination featuring the city's unique architecture, casinos and river location. It is home to five institutions of higher education. Dubuque has historically been a center of manufacturing, the local economy also includes health care, publishing, and financial service sectors.[5]

History

An aerial view of the City of Dubuque in 1872 by Alexander Koch.

Spain gained control of the

Meskwaki American Indians to mine the area's rich lead deposits. Control of Louisiana and Dubuque's mines shifted briefly back to France in 1800, then to the United States in 1803, following the Louisiana Purchase. The Meskwaki continued to mine with the full support of the U.S. government until 1830 when the Meskwaki were illegally pushed out of the mine region by American prospectors.[6]

The current City of Dubuque was named after Julien Dubuque, settled at the southern end of a large flat plain adjacent to the Mississippi River. The city was officially chartered in 1833, located in unorganized territory of the United States. The region was designated as the Iowa Territory in 1838 and was included in the newly created State of Iowa in 1846. After the lead resources were exhausted, the city became home to numerous industries. Dubuque became a center for the timber industry because of its proximity to forests in Minnesota and Wisconsin, and was later dominated by various mill working businesses. Also important were boat building, brewing, and later, the railroad industry. In 1874, the Diamond Jo Line moved its company headquarters to Dubuque.[7] Diamond Jo Line established a shipyard at Eagle Point in 1878. Just two years later, the company was the largest employer in Dubuque, putting 78 people to work, 75 of whom worked at the shipyard earning their collective $800–$1,000 per week in wages.[8]

Between 1860 and 1880, Dubuque was one of the 100 largest urban areas in the United States.[9] Iowa's first church was built by Methodists in 1833. Since then, Iowans have followed a variety of religious traditions.[10]

Saint Mary's
, one of 11 Catholic churches in Dubuque

Beginning in the mid-19th century and into the early 20th century, thousands of poor

Archdiocese of Dubuque. Numerous convents, abbeys, and other religious institutions were built. The ethnic German and Irish descendants maintain a strong Catholic presence in the city. Nicholas E. Gonner (1835–1892), a Catholic immigrant from Pfaffenthal in Luxembourg, founded the Catholic Publishing Company of Dubuque, Iowa. His son Nicholas E. Gonner Jr. (1870–1922) took over in 1892, editing two German-language weeklies, an English-language weekly, and the Daily Tribune, the only Catholic daily newspaper ever published in the United States.[11]

Old store

Early in the 20th century, Dubuque was one of several sites of a

Dubuque Packers in 1961, recalled that the town was "about 98 percent Catholic" back then. "Dubuque was the epitome of small-town life," John wrote. "The people were friendly, everyone knew everybody else, and there wasn't a thing to do: no excitement, few restaurants or recreation choices, a decaying slum section. So we spent as much time as we could at the ball park. At certain times of the year, the fish flies fester in hordes like a biblical plague."[12] A series of changes in manufacturing and the onset of the Farm Crisis in the 1980s led to a large decline in the sector and the city's economy as a whole. In the 1990s, the economy diversified rapidly, shifting away from heavy industry.[13] Tourism, technology, and publishing are now among the largest and fastest-growing businesses. Dubuque attracts over 2 million tourists annually.[14] The city has encouraged the development of the America's River Project's tourist attractions in the Port of Dubuque, the expansion of the city's colleges, and the continued growth of shopping centers, such as Asbury Plaza.[citation needed
]

Geography

Aerial view of Dubuque and surrounding area
Fourth Street Elevator
cars

Dubuque is located at 42°30′16″N 90°41′13″W / 42.50444°N 90.68694°W / 42.50444; -90.68694 (42.50, -90.69).[15]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 31.22 square miles (80.86 km2), of which 29.97 square miles (77.62 km2) are land and 1.25 square miles (3.24 km2) are covered by water.[16]

Downtown

Downtown Dubuque contains the city's central business district and many of its government and cultural institutions. It is the center of Dubuque's transportation and commercial sectors and the hub of the various outlying districts and neighborhoods. It is in east-central Dubuque, along the Mississippi River, and includes the area north of Maus Park, south of 17th Street, east of the bluff line, and west of the river.

The area is made up of several distinct neighborhoods, each of which has a unique history and character. These include Cable Car Square/Cathedral Square, the Central Business District, Jackson Park/Upper Main, Lower Main, and the Millwork District, which has in particular been the focus of revitalization efforts downtown.[17] Another area of note downtown is the Port of Dubuque, which since 2002 has seen the opening of the Grand Harbor Resort and Waterpark, the Alliant Energy Amphitheater, and Grand River Conference Center.[18] The downtown area includes a number of significant buildings, many of them historic, such as the Shot Tower,[19] St. Raphael's Cathedral,[20] and the Dubuque County Courthouse,[21] reflecting the city's early and continuing importance to the region.

North End

Eagle Point Park
in Dubuque's North End

Dubuque's North End area was first settled in the late 19th century by working-class German immigrants. The German-American community sought to establish German Catholic churches separate from the

Irish Catholic
churches downtown and in the South End. The area retains its working-class roots and is home to some of Dubuque's largest factories.

The North End is roughly defined, but generally includes the territory north of 17th Street and east of North Grandview Avenue and Kaufmann Avenue. The area is made up of two main hills (west of Central Avenue, and west of Lincoln Avenue), and two main valleys, the

Catholics
).

Other important sites in the North End include:

South End

The South End was traditionally the

St. Raphael's Cathedral.[citation needed
]

The South End is now much larger, including all the land south of Dodge Street, east of Fremont Avenue, and north of the Key West area. It has many of the city's "old money" neighborhoods, especially along South Grandview and Fremont Avenues. Many South End neighborhoods have a more spacious and park-like appearance, contrasting with the more urban North End.[citation needed]

Other important sites in the South End include:

West End

Dubuque's West End is a large, mostly

shopping centers were built, including Plaza 20, and the then-largest enclosed shopping mall in Iowa, Kennedy Mall
.

The area continues to expand rapidly, with new subdivisions and shopping centers stretching out for miles from downtown. The West End is not clearly defined, but is generally considered to include all the suburban-style growth west of North Grandview Avenue, the University of Dubuque, and the Valentine Park neighborhood. The area is home to a wide variety of mostly middle-class neighborhoods and city parks, but also includes many of the city's largest schools, industrial parks, and all its large shopping centers. The area's expansion has also led to rapid growth in suburban Asbury and exurban Peosta, Iowa, both of which adjoin the West Side.[citation needed]

Other important sites in the West End include:

  • Redstone Bed & Breakfast
    Redstone Bed & Breakfast
  • Old Cable elevator
    Old Cable elevator
  • Mississippi River
    Mississippi River
  • The Washington Park Gazebo
    The Washington Park Gazebo

Climate

Dubuque has a humid continental climate (Köppen Dfa), which gives it four distinct seasons.[22] The weather is not as extreme as that in other parts of the Midwest, such as Minnesota or Wisconsin. Spring is usually wet and rainy, summers are sunny and warm, autumn is mild, and winters are typically cloudy and snowy.[22]

Climate data for Dubuque Regional Airport, 1991–2020 normals,[a] extremes 1873–present
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °F (°C) 63
(17)
71
(22)
86
(30)
93
(34)
104
(40)
104
(40)
110
(43)
107
(42)
99
(37)
90
(32)
78
(26)
69
(21)
110
(43)
Mean maximum °F (°C) 46.0
(7.8)
50.6
(10.3)
67.6
(19.8)
78.8
(26.0)
85.4
(29.7)
90.1
(32.3)
91.0
(32.8)
89.4
(31.9)
87.2
(30.7)
80.2
(26.8)
64.5
(18.1)
50.7
(10.4)
92.5
(33.6)
Mean daily maximum °F (°C) 26.5
(−3.1)
30.9
(−0.6)
44.1
(6.7)
57.7
(14.3)
69.2
(20.7)
78.5
(25.8)
81.5
(27.5)
79.6
(26.4)
72.9
(22.7)
59.9
(15.5)
44.8
(7.1)
31.8
(−0.1)
56.4
(13.6)
Daily mean °F (°C) 18.8
(−7.3)
22.9
(−5.1)
35.2
(1.8)
47.4
(8.6)
58.8
(14.9)
68.5
(20.3)
71.7
(22.1)
69.8
(21.0)
62.3
(16.8)
49.9
(9.9)
36.4
(2.4)
24.5
(−4.2)
47.2
(8.4)
Mean daily minimum °F (°C) 11.1
(−11.6)
15.0
(−9.4)
26.3
(−3.2)
37.2
(2.9)
48.5
(9.2)
58.6
(14.8)
62.0
(16.7)
60.0
(15.6)
51.8
(11.0)
39.9
(4.4)
28.1
(−2.2)
17.2
(−8.2)
38.0
(3.3)
Mean minimum °F (°C) −12.7
(−24.8)
−6.0
(−21.1)
5.5
(−14.7)
22.4
(−5.3)
33.4
(0.8)
45.7
(7.6)
51.7
(10.9)
50.0
(10.0)
37.0
(2.8)
23.5
(−4.7)
10.7
(−11.8)
−4.5
(−20.3)
−17.0
(−27.2)
Record low °F (°C) −32
(−36)
−31
(−35)
−20
(−29)
10
(−12)
21
(−6)
36
(2)
40
(4)
40
(4)
24
(−4)
10
(−12)
−17
(−27)
−25
(−32)
−32
(−36)
Average precipitation inches (mm) 1.32
(34)
1.57
(40)
2.25
(57)
4.06
(103)
4.30
(109)
5.19
(132)
4.80
(122)
3.95
(100)
3.82
(97)
2.93
(74)
2.21
(56)
1.80
(46)
38.20
(970)
Average snowfall inches (cm) 10.7
(27)
10.6
(27)
5.7
(14)
1.9
(4.8)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.5
(1.3)
2.8
(7.1)
10.3
(26)
42.5
(108)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) 9.1 8.9 10.1 11.4 13.0 12.2 9.7 9.0 8.7 8.9 8.3 9.1 118.4
Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) 7.8 6.9 4.2 1.3 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.5 2.4 6.3 29.4
Source:
Notes
  1. ^ Mean monthly maxima and minima (i.e. the expected highest and lowest temperature readings at any point during the year or given month) calculated based on data at said location from 1991 to 2020.

Demographics

The population of Dubuque, Iowa from US census data
The population of Dubuque, Iowa from U.S. census data
Historical population
YearPop.±%
18503,108—    
186013,000+318.3%
187018,434+41.8%
188025,254+37.0%
189030,311+20.0%
190036,297+19.7%
191038,494+6.1%
192039,141+1.7%
193041,679+6.5%
194043,892+5.3%
195049,671+13.2%
196056,606+14.0%
197062,309+10.1%
198062,374+0.1%
199057,538−7.8%
200057,686+0.3%
201057,637−0.1%
202059,667+3.5%
Source: "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 29, 2020.
Source: U.S. Decennial Census[25][4]

2020 census

As of the

Non-Hispanic White
.

2010 census

As of the

Latino
people of any race were 2.4% of the population.

There were 23,505 households, of which 27.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.6% were married couples living together, 11.1% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.3% had a male householder with no wife present, and 40.9% were non-families. 33.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.28 and the average family size was 2.92.

The median age in the city was 38 years. 21.4% of residents were under the age of 18; 13% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 23.3% were from 25 to 44; 25.9% were from 45 to 64; and 16.5% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.4% male and 51.6% female.

2000 census

As of the

Latino
of any race.

There were 22,560 households, out of which 30.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.3% were married couples living together, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.6% were non-families. 31.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 2.99.

Age spread: 23.6% under the age of 18, 11.8% from 18 to 24, 26.5% from 25 to 44, 21.6% from 45 to 64, and 16.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.2 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $36,785, and the median income for a family was $46,564. Males had a median income of $31,543 versus $22,565 for females. The

poverty line
, including 9.3% of those under age 18 and 12.5% of those age 65 or over.

Dubuque metropolitan area

Dubuque is the primary city in the Dubuque Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). It is at the junction of four major highways and two major railroads. Its location along the river has formed the city into a regional hub. The Dubuque area is the general area encompassing Dubuque, Iowa. The MSA proper includes the entirety of Dubuque County. The official population of the Dubuque County was 93,653 as of the 2010 population estimates.[29]

Religion