DAVENPORT, IOWA

'Davenport' is a city in the American state of Iowa that borders the Mississippi River. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 98,359. A 2006 estimate tells that the city had grown slightly to 99,514.^[1] The city is part of the Quad Cities of Iowa and Illinois. Davenport is the home of Saint Ambrose University and Palmer College of Chiropractic, which is the birthplace of chiropractic medicine and wellness technique. Davenport is the county seat of Scott County, and the partner city of Kaiserslautern, Germany.
Davenport often makes national headlines when the Mississippi River floods. It is the only city over 20,000 people bordering the Mississippi that has no permanent floodwall or levee. Davenport prefers the open access to the river for parks and vistas over having access cut off by dikes and levees. Davenport has adopted ordinances that any new construction in the floodplain must be elevated above the 100 year flood level or protected with walls. As a result, feasibility studies done by the United States Army Corps of Engineers have determined that building a floodwall along Davenport's riverfront is not feasible. Two examples of buildings that are elevated or floodproofed in Davenport are John O'Donnell Stadium and the Figge Art Museum.
Several well-known annual music festivals take place in Davenport. Notable festivals are the Mississippi Valley Blues Festival, The Mississippi Valley Fair, and the Bix Beiderbecke Memorial Jazz Festival, dedicated to Davenport native Bix Beiderbecke. An internationally known seven-mile foot race called the Bix 7 is run during the festival.
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Davenport is based in Davenport. In addition to covering the Iowa portion of the Quad Cities, this diocese also covers the southeast quarter of the state of Iowa. The current Bishop of the Diocese is Bishop Martin John Amos. The Bishop Emeritus of the diocese is William Edwin Franklin. The Cathedral parish for this Diocese is Sacred Heart Cathedral. St. Ambrose University, established in 1882, is affiliated with the diocese. The current president is Dr. Edward Rogalski.

Contents

History

Geography

Education

Demographics

Transportation

Law and government

Events and Festivals

Sports

Notable people

Points of interest

Partner/Sister Cities

References

See also

External links

History

Davenport was established in 1836 and named after the town's first permanent resident, and prominent businessman, Colonel George Davenport. Colonel Davenport arrived in 1816 with the establishment of Fort Armstrong. He acted as a "sutler," or supplier, for the army's Fort Armstrong (1816 - 1845). Fort Armstrong was located on the northwestern tip of Arsenal Island with the purpose of monitoring fur trade traffic in the area and keeping the peace between local Native American tribes. The title of 'Colonel' was actually an honorary title bestowed upon him by the army for his many services. Colonel Davenport was a man of many trades. He was a riverboat pilot who guided ships through the Rock Island Rapids. He contributed to the organization and mapping out of the community, now known as the Quad Cities. He also aided in establishing plans for the first railroad bridge to cross the Mississippi. On July 4, 1845, Colonel Davenport was murdered in his home by a gang of outlaws known as the Prairie Bandits.
The first railroad bridge built across the Mississippi River connected Davenport and Rock Island, IL in 1856, built by the Rock Island Railroad. Steamboaters saw nationwide railroads as a threat to their business. On May 6, 1856, just weeks after it was completed, an angry steamboater crashed the ''Effie Afton'' steamboat into the bridge. The owner of the ''Effie Afton'', John Hurd, filed a lawsuit against The Rock Island Railroad Company. The Rock Island Railroad Company selected Abraham Lincoln as their trial lawyer.
A few decades earlier, Keokuk and General Winfield Scott signed a treaty to end the Black Hawk War in 1832 on the same spot the railroad bridge would later be built. The treaty resulted in the United States gaining 6 million acres (24,000 km²) of land.
In 1872, Phebe Sudlow was appointed principal of Davenport High School. She was the first female principal in the United States. On June 19, 1874, Phebe Sudlow was then unanimously voted to the position of Superintendent of Davenport Schools. She was also the first woman in United States history to be a public school superintendent.
On November 29, 1986, actor Cary Grant suffered a major stroke while performing at Davenport's Adler Theater. He died at 11:22 p.m. while admitted to St. Luke's Hospital (now the east campus of Genesis Hospital).
Davenport made national headlines on August 4, 2004, when both of the main candidates in the 2004 Presidential election held events there. Both John Kerry and George W. Bush made appearances, and the events for both men were only a few city blocks away from each other.

Geography

Davenport is located at (41.542982, -90.590745).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 168.2 km² (64.9 mi²). 162.6 km² (62.8 mi²) of it is land and 5.6 km² (2.2 mi²) of it (3.31%) is water. Davenport has 27 parks with a total of 2,200 acres (8.9 km²) of land.
While situated squarely in the path of 'Tornado Alley,' Davenport is believed to be protected by a blessing going back to the days when the indigenous population (Sauk and Fox tribes) lived in nearby Saukenuk. Only one tornado has touched down within city limits. It happened on July 20, 1854, and killed one person.
The influence of the native Sauk and Fox tribes in the Upper Mississippi region led British immigrant George Davenport, in 1805, to establish a home and trading post on Rock Island (Now the US Army Rock Island Arsenal). The Davenport trading post attracted many entrepreneurs, including part-Native American Antoine Le Claire, who founded a settlement at the bluffs across from "Colonel" Davenport's Trading Post. From a small village of traders, the town became known for transporting cargo up the famous Rock Island Rapids, and became a rough and tumble European community, with heavy German and Flemish settlement late in the 19th Century.
Davenport was located on the longest stretch of the Mississippi river with rapids. At this point, the river also runs east to west. Anyone who has grown up elsewhere along the river is mildly surprised to see the sun rise and set along its path. Part of the native blessing of the Sauk and Fox is that when the "Father of Waters," the spirit of the Mississippi, flowed south between this portion of Iowa and Illinois, he turned to look with wonder at the great beauty of the valley. Thus, the "nose" of the map of Iowa was created, with Davenport its leading town.

Education

Davenport public schools serve nearly 17,000 students in the communities of Davenport, Blue Grass, Buffalo, and Walcott. The Davenport Community School District is the second largest school district in Iowa.[1] Davenport has three public high schools: Central, West, and North and one private high school: Assumption. There are six public intermediate schools: Smart, Sudlow, Walcott, Williams, Wood, and Young. There are 22 public elementary schools: Adams, Blue Grass, Buchanan, Children's Village at Buchanan, Hayes, Hoover, and West, Eisenhower, Fillmore, Garfield, Harrison, Hayes, Jackson, Jefferson, Lincoln, Madison, McKinley, Monroe, Truman, Walcott, Washington, and Wilson. The high schools are part of the Mississippi Athletic Conference for sports.

Demographics

'Davenport Population by decade'
1860	11,267
1870	20,038
1880	21,831
1890	26,872
1900	35,254
1910	43,028
1920	56,727
1930	60,751
1940	66,039
1950	74,549
1960	88,981
1970	98,469
1980	103,264
1990	95,333
2000	98,359
2006	99,514 (est.)

As of the census of 2000, there were 98,359 people, 39,124 households, and 24,804 families residing in the city. The population density was 604.8/km² (1,566.5/mi²). There were 41,350 housing units at an average density of 254.3/km² (658.5/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 83.68% White, 9.24% Black or African American, 0.37% Native American, 2.00% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 2.32% from other races, and 2.36% from two or more races. 5.36% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 39,124 households out of which 31.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.0% were married couples living together, 13.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.6% were non-families. 29.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 3.03.
In the city the population was spread out with 26.2% under the age of 18, 10.7% from 18 to 24, 30.1% from 25 to 44, 20.9% from 45 to 64, and 12.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 94.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.9 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $37,242, and the median income for a family was $45,944. Males had a median income of $34,153 versus $24,634 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,828. About 10.5% of families and 14.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.2% of those under age 18 and 6.4% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation

Three interstate highways serve Davenport: Interstate 80, Interstate 280 and Interstate 74.
U.S. Highway 61, U.S. Highway 6 and U.S. Highway 67 also go through Davenport; U.S. 67 crosses over to Illinois via the Centennial Bridge. Davenport is connected to the Illinois side of the Quad Cities by a total of four bridges across the Mississippi River.
Other highways include Iowa Highway 22 (on the city's southwest side) and Iowa Highway 130, along Northwest Boulevard on Davenport's north edge.
For air travel, Davenport Municipal Airport – located adjacent to the city's northern city limits – serves smaller aircraft, while the Quad City International Airport across the river in Moline, Illinois is the closest commercial airport.
CitiBus is the local transit system. The web site can be found here.
Major railroads include the Iowa Interstate Railroad and the Iowa, Chicago & Eastern.
Two national U.S. recreation trails intersect in Davenport: the Mississippi River Trail and the American Discovery Trail.

Law and government

Davenport currently uses the mayor-council form of local government consisting of a mayor and a ten-person council, all duly elected officials. Elections are non-partisan. A list of mayors of Davenport has been compiled, spanning the period 1839 to the present.

Events and Festivals

Bix Beiderbecke Memorial Jazz Festival - a three-day music festival with many traditional jazz bands held in tribute to internationally renowned jazz cornetist, pianist, composer, and Davenport native Bix Beiderbecke. Organized and produced by the Bix Beiderbecke Memorial Society, 2006 saw its 34th consecutive festival.
Sturgis on the River - annual motorcycle festival
Mississippi Valley Blues Festival
River Roots Live
Last year, River Roots Live was September 22-23, 2006, and featured The Black Crows, Susan Tedeschi, Martin Sexton, Bo Ramsey, and many more.

Sports

Notable people

★ Matthew Ashford - Actor (Days of our lives)

★ Patricia White Barry - Actress.

★ Bix Beiderbecke - Jazz musician.

★ Isabel Bloom - Artist.

★ Lara Flynn Boyle - Actress.

★ Samuel Cody - Aviation pioneer.

★ Roger Craig - NFL football Pro Bowl running back for the San Francisco 49ers.

★ Ricky Davis - NBA basketball player for the Minnesota Timberwolves.

★ Eugene Ely - Aviation pioneer.

★ Susan Glaspell - Author and playwright (Trifles). Founder of Provincetown Players

★ James Grant - Lawyer and business leader.

★ Hawkeye Harold - Prominent talkshow radio guest, Iowa Hawkeye song writter and singer

★ Anne Marie Howard - actress and spokeswoman for Ditech.com

★ Elmer Layden - Former commissioner of the NFL and University of Notre Dame football coach.

★ Johnny Lujack - Football quarterback for Notre Dame and the NFL Chicago Bears, Heisman Trophy winner in 1947.

★ Sue Lyon - Actress.

★ Pat Miletich - Former champion of Ultimate Fighting Championship, and founder of Miletich Fighting Systems.

★ Michael Nunn - Former middleweight boxing champion.

★ Daniel David Palmer - inventor of chiropractic.

★ Mary Beth Peil - Actress and opera singer.

★ Nat Pendleton - Olympic wrestler and actor.

★ Hiram Price - U.S. Representative

★ Dale Ruplinger - Bodybuilder 1982 IFBB Mr. Universe

★ Mark Salter - Author and Chief of Staff to Senator John McCain

★ Jim Skinner - CEO of McDonald's Corporation.

★ Hynden Walch - American voice actress (Stanley, Teen Titans, Chalk Zone)

★ Paul Ziffren - Prominent entertainment lawyer with Los Angeles based firm of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher.

Points of interest

★ Brady Street Stadium

★ Centennial Bridge

★ Credit Island

★ Davenport Public Library

★ Davenport Skybridge

★ Figge Art Museum

★ Great Mississippi Valley Fairgrounds

★ John O'Donnell Stadium, home of the Swing of the Quad Cities

★ Mount Ida

★ Northpark Mall

★ Palmer College of Chiropractic - The world's first chiropractic school

★ Putnam Museum and IMAX Theater

★ River Music Experience

★ Sacred Heart Cathedral (Davenport)

★ Saint Ambrose University

★ Vander Veer Botanical Park

Partner/Sister Cities

★ Ilheus, Bahia, Brazil

★ Kaiserslautern, Germany

References

1. Population Estimates and Rankings for Population, Numerical Change, and Percent Change for Iowa's Incorporated Places: 2000-2006 Iowa Data Center


★ Homepage

See also

Bucktown, Davenport

External links

★ City of Davenport

★ Davenport Gold Coast - Historic District of homes built by Davenport's original German residents.

★ Scott Community College

★ QCOnline.com - Local Newspaper

★ QCTimes.com - Local Newspaper

★ QCAMegaHunter

★ Quad Cities Alive - Local Restaurant/Bar Reviews