Camanche, Iowa

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Camanche is a city in Clinton County, Iowa, United States on the Mississippi River. The population was 4,215 at the 2000 census.

1 History
2 Geography
3 Demographics
4 Education
5 External links
6 Reference

[edit] History

Camanche was founded by 12 families who migrated from New Hampshire in 1818.

On June 3, 1860, Camanche was struck by an intense tornado. With a damage path 1000 yards wide and 80 miles long, this tornado killed 92 people and injured 200. But estimates vary widely some ranging from 300 people killed to less than 50 killed in the tornado.

Among the walkers in 1835 was Dr. George Peck. When he came upon a high bluff on the west river bank, he thought it ideal for a great city and set about platting it. He named his town after an Indian tribe, but misspelled it. Camanche, with its erroneous "a" was born.

[edit] Geography

Camanche is located at 41°47′11″N, 90°15′36″W (41.786470, -90.259898)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 24.4 km² (9.4 mi²). 22.6 km² (8.7 mi²) of it is land and 1.8 km² (0.7 mi²) of it (7.53%) is water.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 4,215 people, 1,781 households, and 1,241 families residing in the city. The population density was 186.6/km² (483.1/mi²). There were 1,870 housing units at an average density of 82.8/km² (214.3/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 97.96% White, 0.55% African American, 0.21% Native American, 0.21% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.21% from other races, and 0.83% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.69% of the population.

There were 1,781 households out of which 28.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.6% were married couples living together, 9.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.3% were non-families. 26.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.1% 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 2.85.

In the city the population was spread out with 22.9% under the age of 18, 7.9% from 18 to 24, 26.5% from 25 to 44, 28.7% from 45 to 64, and 14.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 97.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.5 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $42,078, and the median income for a family was $51,583. Males had a median income of $38,324 versus $20,904 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,456. About 4.3% of families and 5.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.0% of those under age 18 and 6.3% of those age 65 or over.

Camanche is considered a Bedroom community, which is a community that is primarily residential in character, with most of its residents commuting to a nearby town or city to earn their livelihood.