Dallas 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 99,678, making it the seventh-most populous county in Iowa. Between 2010 and 2020, it was the fastest growing county in Iowa and one of the fastest growing in the country. 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 Adel, and its largest city is Waukee. The county was named for George M. Dallas,

Vice President of the United States The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest ranking office in the Executive branch of the United States government, executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks f ...

under

James K. Polk James Knox Polk (; November 2, 1795 – June 15, 1849) was the 11th president of the United States, serving from 1845 to 1849. A protégé of Andrew Jackson and a member of the Democratic Party, he was an advocate of Jacksonian democracy and ...

, the namesake of neighboring Polk County. Dallas County is included in the

Des Moines Des Moines is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Iowa, most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is the county seat of Polk County, Iowa, Polk County with parts extending into Warren County, Iowa, Wa ...

– West Des Moines, IA Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

The land that now forms Dallas County was ceded by the Sac and Fox nation to the United States in a treaty signed on October 11, 1842. On January 13, 1846, the legislative body of the

Iowa Territory The Territory of Iowa was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from July 4, 1838, until December 28, 1846, when the southeastern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the state of Iowa. The remai ...

authorized the creation of twelve counties in the Iowa Territory, with general descriptions of their boundaries. Dallas County's name referred to United States Vice President George M. Dallas, who served from 1845 to 1849. In 1847 the county residents voted to designate ''Penoch'' as the county seat (the name was changed to ''Adel'' in 1849). The county's population grew rapidly, with settlers coming to claim homesteads. By 1870, the population had crossed the 12,000 mark.

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 county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.5%) is water.

Major highways

Interstate 80 Interstate 80 (I-80) is an east–west transcontinental freeway that crosses the United States from San Francisco, California, to Teaneck, New Jersey, in the New York metropolitan area. The highway was designated in 1956 as one of the ori ...

– runs east-northeast across the southern portion of the county, passing

Dexter Dexter may refer to: People * Dexter (given name) * Dexter (surname) * Dexter (singer), Brazilian rapper Marcos Fernandes de Omena (born 1973) * Famous Dex, also known as Dexter, American rapper Dexter Tiewon Gore Jr. (born 1993) Places United ...

and De Soto on its way to

U.S. Highway 6 – from its starting point in Adel, runs east across the midsection of the county on its way to Des Moines * US 169

U.S. Highway 169 – runs north–south through the center of the county, from Bouton to Adel to De Soto * Elongated circle 17

Iowa Highway 17 – from its starting point (intersection with Iowa 141) at Granger, runs north along the county's eastern boundary, into Boone County * Elongated circle 44

Iowa Highway 44 – runs east–west through the center of the county, through Dallas Center * Elongated circle 141

Iowa Highway 141 Iowa Highway 141 (Iowa 141) is an east–west highway in the western and central portions of the state. It is the most direct link between Sioux City, Iowa, Sioux City and Des Moines, Iowa, Des Moines. It also serves as an limited-access r ...

– runs east across northern portion of county, through Dawson,

Perry Perry or pear cider is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented pears, traditionally in England (particularly Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, and Worcestershire), parts of South Wales, France (especially Normandy and Anjou), Canada, Austral ...

, Bouton and Woodward, then southeast to exit into Polk County at Granger * Elongated circle 144

Iowa Highway 144 - from its starting point (intersection w Iowa 141) at Perry, runs north into Boone County * Elongated circle 210

Iowa Highway 210 – from its starting point (intersection w Iowa 141), runs north to Woodward and continues into Boone County

Adjacent counties

* Adair County – southwest * Boone County – north * Greene County – north and northwest * Guthrie County – west * Madison County – south * Polk County – east * Warren County – southeast

Demographics

2020 census

The 2020 census recorded a population of 99,678 in the county, with a population density of . 94.19% of the population reported being of one race. There were 41,125 housing units of which 38,291 were occupied.

2010 census

The 2010 census recorded a population of 66,135 in the county, with a population density of . There were 27,260 housing units, of which 25,240 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 40,750 people, 15,584 households, and 11,173 families in the county. The population density was . There were 16,529 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 94.75% White, 0.74% Black or African American, 0.15% Native American, 0.69% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 2.79% from other races, and 0.84% from two or more races. 5.40% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. Of the 15,584 households, 37.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.60% were married couples living together, 8.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.30% were non-families. 23.60% of households were one person and 8.20% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.08. The age distribution was 28.20% under the age of 18, 6.90% from 18 to 24, 32.10% from 25 to 44, 21.60% from 45 to 64, and 11.10% 65 or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.80 males. The median household income was $48,528 and the median family income was $58,293. Males had a median income of $37,243 versus $27,026 for females. The per capita income for the county was $22,970. About 4.00% of families and 5.60% 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 6.10% of those under age 18 and 7.10% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

* Adel * Bouton * Clive ‡ * Dallas Center * Dawson * De Soto *

* Granger‡ *

Grimes Claire Elise Boucher (; born March 17, 1988), known professionally as Grimes, is a Canadian musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. Her lyrics often touch on science fiction and feminist themes. The visuals in her videos are elabora ...

‡ * Linden * Minburn *

* Redfield * Urbandale ‡ * Van Meter * Waukee * West Des Moines ‡ * Woodward :‡ partly in Polk County

Unincorporated communities

* Booneville

Townships

* Adams * Adel *

Beaver Beavers (genus ''Castor'') are large, semiaquatic rodents of the Northern Hemisphere. There are two existing species: the North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') and the Eurasian beaver (''C. fiber''). Beavers are the second-large ...

* Boone * Colfax *

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

* Grant * Lincoln * Linn * Spring Valley * Sugar Grove * Union * Van Meter *

Walnut A walnut is the edible seed of any tree of the genus '' Juglans'' (family Juglandaceae), particularly the Persian or English walnut, '' Juglans regia''. They are accessory fruit because the outer covering of the fruit is technically an i ...

* Washington

Population ranking

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

Politics

Prior to 1932, Dallas County was strongly Republican in presidential elections. From 1932 to 1996, it was a swing county, having a Republican lean until 1960 & a Democratic lean from 1964 to 1996, especially after 1980. Since 2000, it has been consistently Republican, though no Republican presidential candidate has won over 58% of the vote nor has a Democrat won less than 41% since then.

References

External links

Dallas County government's website
()

Online book {{Authority control 1846 establishments in Iowa Territory Des Moines metropolitan area George M. Dallas Populated places established in 1846