History of Iowa in Timeline

Iowa is a state located in the upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Mississippi River to the east, and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. Neighboring states include Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the east and southeast, Missouri to the south, Nebraska to the west, South Dakota to the northwest, and Minnesota to the north. Iowa's geography plays a significant role in its primarily agricultural economy.

1971: John Deere Classic Inauguration

Since 1971, the John Deere Classic, a PGA Tour golf event, has been held in the Quad Cities.

1973: RAGBRAI Inauguration

In 1973, Iowa hosted the inaugural Register's Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa (RAGBRAI), a river-to-river bicycle ride that has since attracted thousands of bicyclists and support personnel annually, traversing the state on various routes.

1983: Terry Branstad First Term as Governor

Terry Branstad served as governor from 1983 to 1999.

1990: Increased Wind Turbine Electrical Generation

Since 1990, wind turbine electrical generation increased exponentially in northern and western Iowa.

1999: U.S. Senior Open Hosted

In 1999, the Des Moines Golf and Country Club hosted the U.S. Senior Open.

1999: Terry Branstad End of First Term as Governor

Terry Branstad served as governor from 1983 to 1999.

2001: Principal Charity Classic Inauguration

Since 2001, the Principal Charity Classic, a Champions Tour event, has been held.

2002: Indirect Role of Agriculture in Iowa's Economy

In 2002, the impact of the indirect role of agriculture in Iowa's economy, including agriculture-affiliated business, was calculated at 16.4% in terms of value added and 24.3% in terms of total output.

2003: Iowa's Manufacturing Sector

In 2003, manufacturing was the largest sector of Iowa's economy, with $20.8 billion (21%) of Iowa's gross state product.

2004: Third Parties on the Ballot

Since 2004, Four third parties have had candidates on the ballot in Iowa for various positions: the Constitution Party, the Green Party, the Pirate Party, and the Socialist Workers Party.

2005: Iowa's GDP

In 2005, Iowa's GDP was about $124 billion, or $113.5 billion as measured by gross state product.

2006: Iowa's Per Capita Income

In 2006, Iowa's per capita income was $23,340.

2006: Iowa Speedway Opens

Since 2006, the Iowa Speedway oval track in Newton has hosted auto racing championships such as the IndyCar Series, NASCAR Xfinity Series and NASCAR Truck Series.

2007: Wellmark's Share of Health Insurance

According to the AMA annual report from 2007 Wellmark Blue Cross Blue Shield had provided 71% of the state's health insurance.

2007: Contribution of Agriculture to Iowa's Gross State Product

As of 2007, the direct production and sale of conventional agricultural commodities contributed only about 3.5% of Iowa's gross state product.

2007: Presidential Campaign Spending

In 2007 presidential campaign spending in Iowa was the seventh highest in the country.

2008: Iowa Agricultural Production Statistics

In 2008, the 92,600 farms in Iowa produced 19% of the nation's corn, 17% of the soybeans, 30% of the hogs, and 14% of the eggs.

July 2, 2009: Iowa's Credit Rated AAA

On July 2, 2009, Standard & Poor's rated Iowa's credit as AAA, the highest of its credit ratings.

2009: Major Iowa Agricultural Product Processors

As of 2009, major Iowa agricultural product processors included Archer Daniels Midland, Cargill, Inc., Diamond V Mills, and Quaker Oats.

2009: Ethanol Production in Iowa

In 2009, a total of 39 ethanol plants in Iowa produced 3.1 billion US gallons of fuel.

2010: Iowa Loses Congressional Seat

After the 2010 United States census and the resulting redistricting, Iowa lost one seat in Congress, falling to four seats in the U.S. House of Representatives.

2010: Party Control of Iowa General Assembly

As a result of the 2010 elections, each party controlled one house of the Iowa General Assembly: the House had a Republican majority, while the Senate had a Democratic majority. Incumbent Democratic governor Chet Culver was defeated in 2010 by Republican Terry Branstad.

2010: Iowa Ranked Sixth Best State for Business

In 2010, CNBC's list of "Top States for Business in 2010" recognized Iowa as the sixth best state in the nation.

2010: Drop in Health Insurance Competition Levels

Iowa was fourth out of ten states with the biggest drop in competition levels of health insurance between 2010 and 2011, per the 2013 annual report on the level of competition in the health insurance industry by the American Medical Association using 2011 data from HealthLeaders-Interstudy.

2011: Drop in Health Insurance Competition Levels

2012: Boswell vs. Latham Congressional Race

Incumbent U.S. representatives Leonard Boswell (D) and Tom Latham (R) ran against each other in 2012 in the third congressional district which had new boundaries; Latham won.

2013: Health Insurance Competition Levels Reported

Per the 2013 annual report on the level of competition in the health insurance industry by the American Medical Association using 2011 data from HealthLeaders-Interstudy, Iowa was fourth out of ten states with the biggest drop in competition levels of health insurance between 2010 and 2011.

November 2014: Iowa Insurance Division Annual Report

The Iowa Insurance Division's November 2014 "Annual report to the Iowa Governor and the Iowa Legislature" examined the 95% of health insurers by premium, which are 10 companies.

2014: Health Insurance Providers in Iowa

As of 2014, there were 16 organizations offering health insurance products in Iowa, per the State of Iowa Insurance Division.

2014: Tom Latham Retirement

Tom Latham retired after the 2014 elections.

December 14, 2015: Branstad Becomes Longest Serving Governor

On December 14, 2015, Branstad became the longest serving governor in U.S. history, serving (at that time) 20 years, 11 months, and 3 days.

2015: Transportation Spending in Rural School Districts

As of 2015 transportation spending is a significant part of the budgets of rural school districts as many are geographically large and must transport students across vast distances.

2016: Republicans Gain Control of Senate

As a result of the 2016 elections, Republicans gained control of the Iowa Senate.

2016: Iowa Headquarters for Top Companies

In 2016, Iowa was the headquarters for three of the top 2,000 companies for revenue, including Principal Financial, Rockwell Collins, and American Equity Investment.

2016: State Employment Statistics

In 2016, the total employment of the state's population was 1,354,487, and the total number of employer establishments was 81,563.

2016: Organic Farming in Iowa

In 2016, there were about 732 organic farms in Iowa, an increase of about 5% from the previous year, and 103,136 organic acres, an increase of 9,429 from the previous year.

2016: Gary Johnson Vote Percentage

In the 2016 general election, Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson received 3.8% of the Iowa vote.

May 24, 2017: Kim Reynolds Becomes Governor

On May 24, 2017, Lieutenant Governor Kim Reynolds succeeded Terry Branstad as governor, following Branstad's appointment as U.S. Ambassador to China.

2017: Solheim Cup Hosted

In 2017, the Des Moines Golf and Country Club hosted the Solheim Cup.

2017: High School Graduation Rate

In 2017, the four-year graduation rate for high schoolers was 91.3%.

2017: Libertarian Party Obtains Official Status

The Libertarian Party obtained official political party status in 2017 as a result of presidential candidate Gary Johnson receiving 3.8% of the Iowa vote in the 2016 general election.

March 2018: Iowa Hog Population

In March 2018, Iowa had approximately 22.6 million hogs in 8,000 facilities large enough to require manure management plans.

2019: Wind Power in Iowa

In 2019, wind power in Iowa accounted for 42% of electrical energy produced, and 10,201 megawatts of generating capacity had been installed at the end of the year.

2019: Highest Graduation Rate

Iowa's schools are credited with the highest graduation rate in the nation as of 2019.

2020: Ease of Voting Ranking

In a 2020 study, Iowa was ranked as the 24th easiest state for citizens to vote in.

September 2021: Iowa Unemployment Rate

As of September 2021, the state's unemployment rate is 4.0%.

2021: Iowa Heartlanders Inaugural Season

In the 2021-22 season, Coralville welcomed a new ECHL team, the Iowa Heartlanders, affiliated with the Minnesota Wild.

2021: Life Expectancy in Iowa

The life expectancy of Iowa is 77.7 years in 2021.

2022: Kim Reynolds as Governor

As of 2022, the 43rd and current governor of Iowa is Kim Reynolds (R).

2024: Republican Party Dominance

By 2024, the two parties in Iowa became dominated by the Republican Party.

2025: Data Centers in Iowa

As of 2025, Iowa had 64 data centers; Google in Council Bluffs and Cedar Rapids, Apple in Waukee, Meta in Altoona, Iowa and Microsoft has six data centers in West Des Moines.