Earling is a city in Shelby County,

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 ...

, United States. The population was 397 at the time of the 2020 census.

History

Earling had its start 1881-1882 by the building of the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway through that territory. The town was platted in 1882 by the Milwaukee Land Company and was first known as Marthan. However, there was already a town called Marathon in Iowa, so the name of the town was soon changed to Earling, in honor of Albert J. Earling who in 1882 was division superintendent of the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway. (Earling became president of said Railroad on September 23, 1899.) Earling is well known in

paranormal Paranormal events are purported phenomena described in popular culture, folk, and other non-scientific bodies of knowledge, whose existence within these contexts is described as being beyond the scope of normal scientific understanding. Not ...

circles for being the site of the 1928 exorcism of Anna Ecklund. Over 23 days in 1928, a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

Capuchin named Theophilus Riesinger worked to exorcise demons from Emma Schmidt at the local

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

convent A convent is an enclosed community of monks, nuns, friars or religious sisters. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The term is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican ...

. One of the priests involved wrote an account several years later in which he made a variety of supernatural claims, including that Ecklund flew threw the air during the exorcism and clung to the wall over a door, that locals noticed strange noises and odors, and that the 23 day exorcism resulted in the expulsion of several demons from Ecklund.

Geography

According to the

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, the city has a total area of , all of it land. The city straddles the boundary line between southeast Union Township and northeast Westphalia Township. Mosquito Creek rises near Earling.

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 397 people, 176 households, and 105 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 629.3 inhabitants per square mile (243.0/km²). There were 186 housing units at an average density of 294.8 per square mile (113.8/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 95.5%

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, 0.8% 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 ...

, 0.0% from other races and 3.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino persons of any race comprised 1.8% of the population. Of the 176 households, 33.0% of which had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.0% 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, 5.1% were cohabitating couples, 26.7% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present and 22.2% had a male householder with no spouse or partner present. 40.3% of all households were non-families. 38.1% of all households were made up of individuals, 22.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years old or older. The median age in the city was 41.6 years. 25.4% of the residents were under the age of 20; 6.5% were between the ages of 20 and 24; 21.9% were from 25 and 44; 25.4% were from 45 and 64; and 20.7% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 50.1% male and 49.9% female.

2010 census

As of the

of 2010, there were 437 people, 175 households, and 102 families residing in the city. The

was . There were 185 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 97.9%

, 0.2%

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 ...

, 1.4% Native American, 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 1.1% of the population. There were 175 households, of which 24.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.3% were

living together, 9.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 2.3% had a male householder with no wife present, and 41.7% were non-families. 36.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 21.2% 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 2.89. The median age in the city was 50.1 years. 21.1% of residents were under the age of 18; 5% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 18.5% were from 25 to 44; 23.1% were from 45 to 64; and 32.3% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 50.3% male and 49.7% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 471 people, 181 households, and 114 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 186 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 99.36%

, 0.21% Native American, and 0.42% from two or more races. There were 181 households, out of which 23.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.4% were

living together, 8.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.5% were non-families. 30.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 18.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.29 and the average family size was 2.86. In the city, the population was spread out, with 19.5% under the age of 18, 7.2% from 18 to 24, 21.9% from 25 to 44, 15.5% from 45 to 64, and 35.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 46 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.6 males. The median income for a household in the city was $29,702, and the median income for a family was $40,417. Males had a median income of $25,417 versus $21,250 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 $15,866. About 5.9% of families and 7.5% 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 7.7% of those under age 18 and 13.8% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The Harlan Community School District operates local public schools. The district serves the towns of Harlan, Defiance, Earling,

Panama Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...

and

Westphalia Westphalia (; ; ) is a region of northwestern Germany and one of the three historic parts of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It has an area of and 7.9 million inhabitants. The territory of the region is almost identical with the h ...

, the unincorporated communities of

Jacksonville Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...

and Corley, and the surrounding rural areas.

References

External links

Earling, Iowa
Comprehensive statistical data and more about Earling {{authority control Cities in Iowa Cities in Shelby County, Iowa