When was iowa founded

On December 28, , President James K. Polk signed a law making Iowa the 29th state. Almost 60 years after the passage of the Northwest Ordinance of , Iowa completed all the requirements for statehood. Iowa citizens could vote for president. They could elect senators and representatives to Congress. They had a state legislature. They could elect their own governor and judges. American settlers knew that they were not leaving their citizenship behind when they moved into the western territories.

Before an area can become a state, it must first be designated as a district and then a territory. What are the benefits of statehood? Navigation Tip: What is a Quest? Investigate the people, places, events, and ideas that have made Iowa what it is today. Iowa PBS is Iowa's statewide public broadcasting network.

Iowa PBS provides quality, innovative media and services that educate, inform, enrich and inspire Iowans throughout the state. A noncommercial, public-service mission enables Iowa PBS to present an unequaled array of programs of lasting value to Iowans regardless of where they live or what they can afford. More than two million viewers each month turn to Iowa PBS for programming that reflects a range of interests for Iowans in all demographic categories.

Box Johnston, IA Email Us: contact form. Skip to main content. Iowa PBS Home. The Path to Statehood. The Northwest Ordinance Early in its history the U. Iowa Territory and Slavery During these years the issue of slavery was deeply dividing the United States. The State of Iowa Iowans wrote and approved a state constitution. Sources: Sage, Leland.

A History of Iowa. Ames, Iowa: Iowa State Press, Wall, Joseph. Iowa: A Bicentennial History. New York, New York: Norton, Schwieder, Dorothy. Iowa: The Middle Land.

Written for Iowa Pathways by Tom Morain. Pathways Early Explorers. The Iowa Pioneer Experience. Boundaries for Iowa. Iowa's Southern Boundary. Iowa's Western Boundary.

The Brick Capitol in Des Moines. A Permanent Statehouse. The next day they chose a site on bluffs above the Iowa River and by June of , the town had been platted and surveyed from Brown Street in the north to Burlington Street in the south, and from the Iowa River eastward to Governor Street.

Today, the downtown district makes up the majority of this area, where businesses share buildings with those established alongside the city itself.

While Iowa City was selected as the territorial capitol in , it did not officially become the capitol city until , after construction of the capitol building had begun. The capitol building was completed in , and the last four territorial legislatures and the first six Iowa General Assemblies met there until , when the state capitol relocated to Des Moines.

By , all of the mills had closed and the Iowa City Electric Company had acquired all the waterpower of the dam. After this economic decline, Coralville began to grow again in the late s and boomed after World War II, when a large number of students arrived to attend the University of Iowa. Coralville offered inexpensive housing, lower taxes and close proximity to campus.

It came to be known as Dubuque when it was chartered in Iowa later became a state in , 13 years after the treaty. Dubuque truly is WhereIowaStarted!

Molten lead was poured through a grate at the top of the tower. Then, the relatively uniform drops that fell from the grate would land in the water below which cooled the lead into its solid state. The tower has been burned interior only , hit by a train, repaired and renovated to its current state. Back in , everything closed for an hour and a half over the lunch hour.