Pomeroy is a city in

Calhoun County, Iowa Calhoun County is a county located in the U.S. state of Iowa. As of the 2020 census, the population was 9,927. Its county seat is Rockwell City. History Calhoun County was formed on January 15, 1851, from open land originally named ''Fox Co ...

, United States. The population was 526 at the time of the 2020 census.

History

Pomeroy was

plat In the United States, a plat ( or ) (plan) is a cadastral map, drawn to scale, showing the divisions of a piece of land. United States General Land Office surveyors drafted township plats of Public Lands Survey System, Public Lands Surveys to ...

ted in 1870 in anticipation of the railroad being built through the settlement. It was named for Charles Pomeroy, an Iowa politician. On July 6, 1893, Pomeroy was struck by a

tornado A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is in contact with the surface of Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, although the ...

that was later estimated to be F5 on the Fujita scale. With a damage path wide and long, the tornado destroyed about 80% of the homes in Pomeroy. The tornado killed 71 people and injured 200.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the city has a total area of , all land. Pomeroy lies within the western side of Manson crater, an impact structure buried by glacial

till image:Geschiebemergel.JPG, Closeup of glacial till. Note that the larger grains (pebbles and gravel) in the till are completely surrounded by the matrix of finer material (silt and sand), and this characteristic, known as ''matrix support'', is d ...

and

outwash An outwash plain, also called a sandur (plural: ''sandurs''), sandr or sandar, is a plain formed of glaciofluvial deposits due to meltwater outwash at the terminus of a glacier. As it flows, the glacier grinds the underlying rock surface and c ...

Demographics

2020 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2020, there were 526 people, 248 households, and 131 families residing in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was 256.8 inhabitants per square mile (99.2/km²). There were 301 housing units at an average density of 147.0 per square mile (56.7/km²). The

racial Race is a categorization of humans based on shared physical or social qualities into groups generally viewed as distinct within a given society. The term came into common usage during the 16th century, when it was used to refer to groups of va ...

makeup of the city was 93.7%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.4% Black or African American, 0.8% Native American, 0.0% Asian, 0.0%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 1.0% from other races and 4.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino persons of any race comprised 3.2% of the population. Of the 248 households, 22.2% of which had children under the age of 18 living with them, 39.9% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 10.5% were cohabitating couples, 30.6% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present and 19.0% had a male householder with no spouse or partner present. 47.2% of all households were non-families. 41.5% of all households were made up of individuals, 22.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years old or older. The median age in the city was 49.9 years. 21.5% of the residents were under the age of 20; 4.4% were between the ages of 20 and 24; 20.3% were from 25 and 44; 27.0% were from 45 and 64; and 26.8% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.7% male and 51.3% female.

2010 census

As of the

of 2010, there were 662 people, 280 households, and 171 families living in the city. The

was . There were 350 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 96.8%

, 0.5%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 1.1% Native American, 0.3% Asian, 0.9% from other races, and 0.5% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 3.2% of the population. There were 280 households, of which 24.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.3% were

living together, 7.1% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.6% had a male householder with no wife present, and 38.9% were non-families. 35.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 20.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.25 and the average family size was 2.90. The median age in the city was 47 years. 21.5% of residents were under the age of 18; 8.9% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 17.6% were from 25 to 44; 23.4% were from 45 to 64; and 28.4% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 47.3% male and 52.7% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 710 people, 314 households, and 184 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 356 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 99.58%

, 0.14% Native American, 0.14% from other races, and 0.14% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 0.28% of the population. There were 314 households, out of which 25.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.0% were

living together, 7.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.4% were non-families. 39.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 22.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.12 and the average family size was 2.86. In the city, the population was spread out, with 21.5% under the age of 18, 5.8% from 18 to 24, 20.4% from 25 to 44, 23.2% from 45 to 64, and 29.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 47 years. For every 100 females, there were 81.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.4 males. The median income for a household in the city was $24,531, and the median income for a family was $34,028. Males had a median income of $27,083 versus $22,083 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $15,702. About 9.8% of families and 11.5% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 17.5% of those under age 18 and 6.7% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Pocahontas Area Community School District operates public schools.Pocahontas Area
."

Iowa Department of Education The Iowa Department of Education sets the standards for all public institutions of education in Iowa and accredits private as well as public schools. It is headquartered in Des Moines. Organization As of 2020, the Iowa Department of Education c ...

. Retrieved on July 20, 2018. It was in the Pomeroy School District until July 1, 1993, when it consolidated into the Pomeroy–Palmer Community School District; on July 1, 2012, that district consolidated into the Pocahontas Area School District.REORGANIZATION & DISSOLUTION ACTIONS SINCE 1965-66
."

. Retrieved on July 20, 2018.

Notable people

* Gordon Prange, author of ''At Dawn We Slept, The Untold Story Of Pearl Harbor'' * Paul Schell, mayor of

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is the List of municipalities in Washington, most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the List of Unit ...

, lawyer

References

External links

Pomeroy, Iowa

Pomeroy Tornado Museum
{{authority control Cities in Calhoun County, Iowa Cities in Iowa