Kossuth 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 ...

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 14,828. The

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 Algona.

History

Kossuth County was founded on January 15, 1851. It was named after

Lajos Kossuth Lajos Kossuth de Udvard et Kossuthfalva (; ; ; ; 19 September 1802 – 20 March 1894) was a Hungarian nobleman, lawyer, journalist, politician, statesman and governor-president of the Kingdom of Hungary during the Hungarian Revolution of 1848, r ...

, Regent-President of

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

who went into exile to America following the

war of independence Wars of national liberation, also called wars of independence or wars of liberation, are conflicts fought by nations to gain independence. The term is used in conjunction with wars against foreign powers (or at least those perceived as foreign) ...

from the

Habsburg Dynasty The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout Europe d ...

. The county was enlarged northward in 1857 by the inclusion of the former Bancroft County. Crocker County was another county created out of the same area of Kossuth County as Bancroft County but was reverted due to not being larger than . Another attempt to create a new county called Larrabee County failed in 1914.

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 an area of , of which is land and (0.2%) is water. It is Iowa's largest county by area.

Major highways

U.S. Highway 18 * US 169

U.S. Highway 169 * Circle sign 9

Iowa Highway 9 * Elongated circle 15

Iowa Highway 15 * Elongated circle 17

Iowa Highway 17

Adjacent counties

Martin County, Minnesota Martin County is a List of counties in Minnesota, county in Minnesota, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 20,025. Its county seat is Fairmont, Minnesota, Fairmont. History The county was created ...

(north) * Faribault County, Minnesota (north) * Winnebago County (northeast) * Hancock County (southeast) * Humboldt County (south) * Palo Alto County (southwest) * Emmet County (northwest)

National protected area

* Union Slough National Wildlife Refuge

Demographics

2020 census

The 2020 census recorded a population of 14,828 in the county, with a population density of . 96.53% of the population reported being of one race. There were 7,216 housing units, of which 6,438 were occupied.

2010 census

The 2010 census recorded a population of 15,543 in the county, with a population density of . There were 7,486 housing units, of which 6,697 were occupied.

2000 census

At the 2000 census there were 17,163 people, 6,974 households, and 4,791 families in the county. The population density was . There were 7,605 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 98.76%

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 ...

, 0.11%

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 ...

, 0.15% Native American, 0.35% 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 ...

, 0.29% from other races, and 0.34% from two or more races. 0.81%. 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. Of the 6,974 households, 30.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.40% were married couples living together, 5.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.30% were non-families. 28.70% of households were one person and 15.50% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.98. The age distribution was 25.80% under the age of 18, 6.10% from 18 to 24, 24.30% from 25 to 44, 23.60% from 45 to 64, and 20.10% 65 or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.00 males. The median household income was $34,562 and the median family income was $41,159. Males had a median income of $30,191 versus $20,184 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,598. About 7.50% of families and 10.20% 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 12.40% of those under age 18 and 8.60% of those age 65 or over.

Census-designated places

For use by 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 ...

in population analysis, some of the rural population of Kossuth County has been grouped together as a

Census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

. * Irvington * Sexton * St. Benedict * St. Joseph

Population ranking

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

Communities

Cities

* Algona (County seat) * Bancroft * Burt * Fenton *

Lakota Lakota may refer to: *Lakota people, a confederation of seven related Native American tribes *Lakota language Lakota ( ), also referred to as Lakhota, Teton or Teton Sioux, is a Siouan languages, Siouan language spoken by the Lakota people of ...

* Ledyard * Lone Rock * Lu Verne * Swea City * Titonka * Wesley * West Bend * Whittemore

Villages and Hamlets

German Valley German Valley is a village in Stephenson County, Illinois, United States. German Valley is located four miles south of U.S. Route 20 between Freeport and Rockford. German Valley had a population of 433 at the 2020 census, with a 2023 estimate ...

Government

Townships

* Buffalo * Burt * Cresco *

Eagle Eagle is the common name for the golden eagle, bald eagle, and other birds of prey in the family of the Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of Genus, genera, some of which are closely related. True eagles comprise the genus ''Aquila ( ...

* Fenton *

Garfield ''Garfield'' is an American comic strip created by Jim Davis (cartoonist), Jim Davis. Originally published locally as ''Jon'' in 1976 (later changed to ''Garfield'' in 1977), then in nationwide Print syndication, syndication from 1978, it chro ...

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

* Grant * Greenwood * Harrison *

Hebron Hebron (; , or ; , ) is a Palestinian city in the southern West Bank, south of Jerusalem. Hebron is capital of the Hebron Governorate, the largest Governorates of Palestine, governorate in the West Bank. With a population of 201,063 in ...

* Irvington * Ledyard * Lincoln * Lotts Creek * Lu Verne * Plum Creek *

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: *Portland, Oregon, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon *Portland, Maine, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine *Isle of Portland, a tied island in the English Channel Portland may also r ...

Prairie Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the ...

* Ramsey * Riverdale * Seneca * Sherman * Springfield * Swea * Union * Wesley * Whittemore

Politics

Education

School districts include:
Text list
/ref> * Algona Community School District * North Union Community School District * North Iowa Community School District * North Kossuth Community School District * Twin Rivers Community School District * West Bend-Mallard Community School District Former school districts: * Corwith-Wesley Community School District,
Text list
/ref> dissolved on July 1, 2015. *

Lu Verne Community School District Lu Verne Community School District was a rural state school, public school district headquartered in Lu Verne, Iowa. The district, which occupied sections of Kossuth County, Iowa, Kossuth, Hancock County, Iowa, Hancock, and Humboldt County, ...

, consolidated into Algona CSD on July 1, 2023. * Sentral Community School District, consolidated into North Union CSD on July 1, 2014. * Titonka Consolidated School District, consolidated into Algona CSD on July 1, 2014.

References

External links

County website
*North Sentral Kossuth
schools Structure of school districts in the county is not clear, but there appear to be more than one. --> {{Coord, 43, 12, 18, N, 94, 12, 20, W, region:US-IA_type:adm2nd_source:dewiki, display=title 1851 establishments in Iowa Iowa counties Populated places established in 1851