Humboldt, Iowa

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Humboldt, Iowa
Humboldt Municipal Building
Humboldt Municipal Building
Location of Humboldt, Iowa
Location of Humboldt, Iowa
Coordinates: 42°43′25″N 94°13′17″W / 42.72361, -94.22139
Country United States
State Iowa
County Humboldt
Area
 - Total 4.8 sq mi (12.4 km²)
 - Land 4.6 sq mi (12.0 km²)
 - Water 0.2 sq mi (0.4 km²)
Elevation 1,083 ft (330 m)
Population (2000)
 - Total 4,452
 - Density 957.7/sq mi (369.8/km²)
Time zone Central (CST) (UTC-6)
 - Summer (DST) CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP code 50548
Area code(s) 515
FIPS code 19-37560
GNIS feature ID 0457717

Humboldt is a city in Humboldt County, Iowa, United States. The population was 4,452 at the 2000 census.

Contents

[edit] History

The founder Stephen Harris Taft laid out the plans for Springvale, which was later renamed to Humboldt, in 1863. It was named Springvale because of the several natural springs found near the Des Moines River. Springvale was renamed Humboldt in hope of a merger between Springvale and Dakota City, but no merger took place.[1]

Humboldt is named after the German explorer and naturalist Alexander von Humboldt.[2]

In July 1955, when contacts between Americans and Soviets were rare, Humboldt hosted a delegation of Soviet officials (and national and international reporters) for an overnight glimpse of rural American life.[3]

On March 27, 1972, ABC-TV broadcast a half-hour documentary on Humboldt entitled "A Small Town in Iowa." The program was written and produced by Andy Rooney and narrated by Harry Reasoner.[4] The documentary portrayed Humboldt as a kind of paradise that struggled to keep its most talented youth from leaving for larger cities, and asked, "what is it about paradise that's turning the bright kids off?"[5] The answer, according to Reasoner and Rooney, was that "what seems to be missing is more a shortcoming of ours, than of the small town. It is that those of us with ego and ambition are not usually happy performing in front of an audience the size a small town provides."[4]

The First National Bank of Humboldt and its shareholders were the primary victims of what the Des Moines Register described as “one of the most spectacular white-collar crimes in state history.”[6] In 1982 Humboldt native Gary Vance Lewellyn, then a Des Moines stockbroker, attempted to pump up the value of the stock of a high-tech company by singlehandedly creating phony market demand for it. [7] To carry out the scheme, he illegally obtained access to bonds of the First National Bank of Humboldt valued at $16.7 million, and secretly pledged the Bank’s bonds as security for his personal orders of the company’s stock through Wall Street investment firms. [8] When Lewellyn missed margin calls on his stock purchases, the firms obtained the bonds. [9] Suspicious federal regulators closed the Humboldt Bank when it could not account for its missing bonds (and considered, but rejected, the idea of liquidating it). [7] Its accountholders were protected by federal insurance but the shares in the bank became worthless. For his crime, Lewellyn was sentenced to twenty years in prison,[10] but served only five years.[6]

[edit] Geography

Humboldt is located at 42°43′25″N, 94°13′17″W (42.723631, -94.221520)[11].

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 4.8 square miles (12.4 km²), of which, 4.7 square miles (12.0 km²) of it is land and 0.2 square miles (0.4 km²) of it (3.12%) is water.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census[12] of 2000, there were 4,452 people, 1,965 households, and 1,202 families residing in the city. The population density was 957.7 people per square mile (369.7/km²). There were 2,090 housing units at an average density of 449.6/sq mi (173.5/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 98.41% White, 0.20% African American, 0.04% Native American, 0.25% Asian, 0.65% from other races, and 0.45% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.50% of the population.

There were 1,965 households out of which 24.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.3% were married couples living together, 6.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.8% were non-families. 35.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 21.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.18 and the average family size was 2.84.

In the city the population was spread out with 21.8% under the age of 18, 6.7% from 18 to 24, 22.9% from 25 to 44, 22.0% from 45 to 64, and 26.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 86.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.1 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $39,338, and the median income for a family was $49,526. Males had a median income of $32,438 versus $22,586 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,656. About 4.4% of families and 7.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.0% of those under age 18 and 4.0% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Humboldt sports

In 2006, Humboldt High School's football team won the state championship title for its division.[13]

[edit] Notable natives

[edit] References

  1. ^ City of Humboldt Iowa, Humboldt, August 2007. Accessed 2007-08-24.
  2. ^ Helferich, Gerard (2004). Humboldt's Cosmos. Penguin Group, 345-46. ISBN-10: 1592401066.
  3. ^ "Good for the Corn," TIME, 1955-8-01, and "Russians Learning Wonders of America," Long Beach Press-Telegram, 1955-7-26, p. A-4 (retrieved from Newspaperarchive.com).
  4. ^ a b Linda Johnson, "Why are people leaving Utopia? Utopia is Humboldt, Ia., the residents of which were filmed for an ABC documentary last January, March 26, 1972," Des Moines Register, 1972-03-26, at 3-TV.
  5. ^ Editorial, "Paradise is Humboldt, Ia.," Des Moines Register, 1972-03-29, at 6.
  6. ^ a b Mariam Rosen, “Hot Product: World-class Embezzler Gary Lewellyn Rebounds With a Fast-Selling Treatment for A.D.D.,” Dallas Observer, 1996-6-27.
  7. ^ a b "Catch Me If You Can: A Stockbroker’s Get-Rich-Quick Scheme Goes Sour," TIME, 1982-4-26.
  8. ^ Federal Deposit Ins. Corp. v. First Interstate Bank of Des Moines, N.A., 885 F.2d 423, 428-29 (8th Cir. 1989); Federal Deposit Ins. Corp. v. National Ass'n of Securities Dealers, Inc., 582 F.Supp. 72, 73 (S.D. Ia. 1984).
  9. ^ In re Lewellyn & Co., Inc., 929 F.2d 424, 426 (8th Cir. 1991).
  10. ^ ”Lewellyn Gets 20-Year Term,” New York Times, 1982-11-18.
  11. ^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
  12. ^ American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
  13. ^ "Male Prep Athlete of the Year: Tyler Nielson," http://iowaparent.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070815/SPORTS08/708150375, Des Moines Register, 2007-08-15, accessed 2007-09-05.
  14. ^ Obituary: "George Bauman, 91, Newspaper Publisher," New York Times, 2003-04-16 (accessed 2007-09-21).
  15. ^ http://www.judicial.state.ia.us/wfdata/frame1773-1463/pressrel67.asp. (Justice Jerry Larson surpassed Justice Garfield's 28-year tenure in 2006.)
  16. ^ "Sees Fighting Chance for Smith in Iowa and the Defeat of Gov. Hammill," The Davenport Democrat and Leader, 1928-11-1, and Iowa State Register 1933-34.

[edit] External links

v • d • e
Municipalities and communities of
Humboldt County, Iowa
County seat: Dakota City
Cities
Map of Iowa highlighting Humboldt County