Riceville is a

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

Howard Howard is a masculine given name derived from the English surname Howard. ''The Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names'' notes that "the use of this surname as a christian name is quite recent and there seems to be no particular reason for ...

and Mitchell counties in the U.S. state of

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

. The population was 806 at the time of the 2020 census.

History

Riceville 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 1855 by three of the Rice brothers, Leonard, Dennis, and Gilbert. Riceville was incorporated as a town in 1892.

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 , of which is land and is water.

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 806 people, 351 households, and 195 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 761.1 inhabitants per square mile (293.9/km²). There were 385 housing units at an average density of 363.6 per square mile (140.4/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 92.3%

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 ...

, 0.0% Black or African American, 0.5% Native American, 0.5% 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 ...

, 3.8% from other races and 2.9% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino persons of any race comprised 5.0% of the population. Of the 351 households, 24.2% of which had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.6% 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, 8.3% were cohabitating couples, 28.5% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present and 21.7% had a male householder with no spouse or partner present. 44.4% of all households were non-families. 38.7% of all households were made up of individuals, 20.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years old or older. The median age in the city was 42.8 years. 24.3% of the residents were under the age of 20; 3.8% were between the ages of 20 and 24; 24.9% were from 25 and 44; 22.2% were from 45 and 64; and 24.7% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 49.9% male and 50.1% female.

2010 census

As of the

of 2010, there were 785 people, 298 households, and 166 families living in the city. The

was . There were 379 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 97.7%

, 0.1% Native American, 0.8% from other races, and 1.4% 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 2.2% of the population. There were 341 households, of which 25.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.4% were

living together, 8.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.1% had a male householder with no wife present, and 38.7% were non-families. 36.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 18.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.22 and the average family size was 2.84. The median age in the city was 45.7 years. 21.9% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.3% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 19.3% were from 25 to 44; 25.8% were from 45 to 64; and 25.6% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 47.9% male and 52.1% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 840 people, 369 households, and 225 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 401 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 99.88%

, and 0.12% from two or more races. There were 325 households, out of which 23.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.7% were

living together, 6.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.0% were non-families. 35.5% 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 2.80. In the city, the population was spread out, with 21.8% under the age of 18, 7.1% from 18 to 24, 21.1% from 25 to 44, 21.5% from 45 to 64, and 28.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.5 males. The median income for a household in the city was $30,982, and the median income for a family was $41,786. Males had a median income of $29,091 versus $19,904 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 $20,661. About 4.7% of families and 4.1% 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 1.8% of those under age 18 and 8.0% of those age 65 or over.

Population change

Up until mid-2013, the 2010 census stated that the Riceville population was listed as 502. The population is now listed at 756, which is the correct number. The Mayor of Riceville stated that there was confusion of paperwork done by the city clerk.

Economy

Link Energy, a family owned and operated farm, uses a 2 M gallon methane digester to generate 600KW of electricity. The digester runs on manure, waste egg products, and meat packing and meat locker waste. It also makes

biogas Biogas is a gaseous renewable energy source produced from raw materials such as agricultural waste, manure, municipal waste, plant material, sewage, green waste, Wastewater treatment, wastewater, and food waste. Biogas is produced by anaerobic ...

, dairy cattle bedding and biosolids for fertilizer.

Notable people

*One of the most famous natives of Riceville is Jane Elliott, an

elementary school A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...

teacher A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. w ...

who developed a famous and controversial exercise about the nature of

prejudice Prejudice can be an affect (psychology), affective feeling towards a person based on their perceived In-group and out-group, social group membership. The word is often used to refer to a preconceived (usually unfavourable) evaluation or classifi ...

and

racism Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one Race (human categorization), race or ethnicity over another. It may also me ...

in the wake of the

assassination Assassination is the willful killing, by a sudden, secret, or planned attack, of a personespecially if prominent or important. It may be prompted by political, ideological, religious, financial, or military motives. Assassinations are orde ...

Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister, civil and political rights, civil rights activist and political philosopher who was a leader of the civil rights move ...

*Riceville is also the home of the first siblings to rise through the career ranks of the United States Foreign Service to become ambassadors: John and Larry Dinger. * Ray Conger was an Olympic athlete, born and raised in Riceville. He held the world record for the 1,000 yards and American record for the 1,500 meters, and competed in the 1928 Olympic Games in Amsterdam.

References

External links

City-Data
Comprehensive statistical data and more about Riceville {{authority control Cities in Iowa Cities in Howard County, Iowa Cities in Mitchell County, Iowa Populated places established in 1855 1855 establishments in Iowa