Buena Vista County (; ) is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

located in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

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 ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 20,823. Its

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

is Storm Lake. The county is named for the final victory of Field General

Zachary Taylor Zachary Taylor (November 24, 1784 – July 9, 1850) was an American military officer and politician who was the 12th president of the United States, serving from 1849 until his death in 1850. Taylor was a career officer in the United States ...

in the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War (Spanish language, Spanish: ''guerra de Estados Unidos-México, guerra mexicano-estadounidense''), also known in the United States as the Mexican War, and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, ...

. Buena Vista County comprises the Storm Lake, IA Micropolitan Statistical Area.

History

Buena Vista County was formed on January 15, 1851, from open land. It was named in memory of the

Battle of Buena Vista The Battle of Buena Vista (February 22–23, 1847), known as the Battle of La Angostura in Mexico, and sometimes as Battle of Buena Vista/La Angostura, was a battle of the Mexican–American War. It was fought between U.S. forces, largely vol ...

in the Mexican-American War ending in 1848; the victorious United States annexed considerable territory as a result.

Geography

According to the

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

, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.9%) is water. The

North Raccoon River The Raccoon River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed May 26, 2011 tributary of the Des Moines River in central Iowa in the United States. As measured using the long ...

originates in the county, north of

Marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of kilometres ( 26 mi 385 yd), usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There ...

Major highways

U.S. Highway 71 * Circle sign 3

Iowa Highway 3 Iowa Highway 3 (Iowa 3) is a state highway that runs from east to west across the state of Iowa. It is the longest state highway in Iowa, at long. Iowa 3 begins at the South Dakota state line where it continues as South Dakota High ...

Iowa Highway 7 * Elongated circle 10

Iowa Highway 10 * Elongated circle 110

Iowa Highway 110

Adjacent counties

Clay County Clay County is the name of 18 counties in the United States. Most are named for Henry Clay, U.S. Senator and statesman: * Clay County, Alabama * Clay County, Arkansas (named for John Clayton, and originally named Clayton County) * Clay County, Fl ...

(north) * Pocahontas County (east) * Sac County (south) * Cherokee County (west)

Demographics

2020 census

The 2020 census recorded a population of 20,823 in the county, with a population density of . 89.44% of the population reported being of one race. There were 8,141 housing units of which 7,447 were occupied. BuenaVistaCountyIA2022PopPyr

2010 census

The 2010 census recorded a population of 20,260 in the county, with a population density of . There were 8,237 housing units, of which 7,522 were occupied.

2000 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 2000, there were 20,411 people, 7,499 households, and 5,121 families residing in the county. 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 . There were 8,145 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 88.00%

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 ...

, 0.35%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

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 ...

, 0.13% Native American, 4.33% Asian, 0.01%

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 ...

, 5.75% from other races, and 1.42% from two or more races. 12.54% of the population were

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. 2005 Census estimates of the racial origins of Buena Vista County's population indicated it had the lowest percentage of non-Hispanic Whites of any county in Iowa. The non-Hispanic whites constituted 76.1% of the county's population, with African-Americans being 1.3%, Asians 3.9% and Latinos 18.6% of the population. There were 7,499 households, out of which 31.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.50% 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, 7.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.70% were non-families. 27.00% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 3.08. In the county, the population was spread out, with 25.40% under the age of 18, 12.20% from 18 to 24, 25.40% from 25 to 44, 20.20% from 45 to 64, and 16.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 100.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.40 males. The median income for a household in the county was $35,300, and the median income for a family was $41,549. Males had a median income of $29,172 versus $20,252 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 county was $16,042. About 7.60% of families and 10.50% 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 12.60% of those under age 18 and 7.60% of those age 65 or over.

Law enforcement

Law enforcement is the responsibility of the Buena Vista County Sheriff's Office (BVSO). The department provides law enforcement services for all areas of Buena Vista County, as well as providing for courthouse security, operating the county jail, and performing civil procedures. The current Sheriff is Kory Elston. The staff includes a mix of full-time deputies and reserve deputies. The Buena Vista County Sheriff's Office is located at 411 Expansion Blvd in Storm Lake, Iowa. Reserve officers from the Buena Vista County Sheriff's Office received the Donald H. Mackaman Outstanding Unit Award at the 2013 state reserve conference.

Communities

Cities

* Albert City * Alta * Lakeside * Linn Grove *

* Newell *

Rembrandt Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (; ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), mononymously known as Rembrandt was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker, and Drawing, draughtsman. He is generally considered one of the greatest visual artists in ...

* Sioux Rapids * Storm Lake * Truesdale

Townships

Buena Vista County is divided into sixteen townships: * Barnes * Brooke * Coon * Elk * Fairfield * Grant * Hayes * Lee * Lincoln * Maple Valley * Newell * Nokomis *

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

* Providence * Scott * Washington

Population ranking

The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2020 census of Buena Vista County. † ''county seat''

Politics

Buena Vista County has mostly voted Republican throughout its history, only failing to back the party's candidates in a presidential election eight times throughout its history. The first of these instances was in 1912 when the Republican vote was split between incumbent

William Howard Taft William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) served as the 27th president of the United States from 1909 to 1913 and the tenth chief justice of the United States from 1921 to 1930. He is the only person to have held both offices. ...

& former President

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York (state), New York politics, incl ...

, who won a majority of the county's votes as a third-party candidate. Five of the instances were national landslides for the Democratic Party in all four of

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...

's victories as well as

Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), also known as LBJ, was the 36th president of the United States, serving from 1963 to 1969. He became president after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, under whom he had served a ...

's 1964 landslide. The other two Democratic victories were in 1948 as

Harry S. Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. As the 34th vice president in 1945, he assumed the presidency upon the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt that year. Subsequen ...

narrowly won the county & statewide by a similar margin, & 40 years later in 1988 as

Michael Dukakis Michael Stanley Dukakis ( ; born November 3, 1933) is an American politician and lawyer who served as governor of Massachusetts from 1975 to 1979 and from 1983 to 1991. He is the longest-serving governor in Massachusetts history and only the s ...

was boosted statewide by the 1980s farm crisis despite his national landslide loss.

References

External links

Buena Vista County government's website

{{Coord, 42, 44, 06, N, 95, 09, 01, W, region:US-IA_type:adm2nd_source:dewiki, display=title 1851 establishments in Iowa Populated places established in 1851