Dallas County, Iowa

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, and the county was formed in 1846. In 1847 the first pioneers selected a site for the county seat, which was first called Penoach and then later Adel. Once the prairie sod was "broken" by the agricultural plow, settlement was rapid in the 1850s and 1860s, with the population crossing the 12,000 mark by 1870.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 592 square miles (1,530 km²), of which 588 square miles (1,520 km²) is land and 3.3 square miles (8.5 km²) (0.5%) is water.

Adjacent counties

2010 census

The 2010 census recorded a population of 66,135 in the county, with a population density of 112.7698/sq mi (43.5407/km²). There were 27,260 housing units, of which 25,240 were occupied.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 40,750 people, 15,584 households, and 11,173 families residing in the county. The population density was 70 people per square mile (27/km²). There were 16,529 housing units at an average density of 28 per square mile (11/km²). 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.

There were 15,584 households out of which 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 all households were made up of individuals and 8.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.08.

In the county, the population was spread out with 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% who were 65 years of age 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 income for a household in the county was $48,528, and the median income for a family 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, including 6.10% of those under age 18 and 7.10% of those age 65 or over.

Cities

Unincorporated community

Townships

Dallas County is divided into these townships:

Population ranking

The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2010 census of Dallas County.

† county seat