ZIP Code 52627

Fort Madison is a city and county seat of Lee County, Iowa, United States along with Keokuk. Located along the Mississippi River in the state's southeast corner, it lies between small bluffs along one of the widest portions of the river. Fort Madison was the site of Black Hawk's first battle against U.S. troops, the only real War of 1812 battle fought west of the Mississippi. The city is the location of the Iowa State Penitentiarythe state's maximum security prison for men. The Fort Madison Toll Bridge has a top level for cars and a similar level for trains; it is also the world's largest [1]. Fort Madison is the Mississippi river crossing and station stop for Amtrak's Southwest Chief. The fort was named for James Madison, fourth President of the United States. It was built to control trade and pacify Native Americans in the Upper Mississippi River region. Its construction led to resentment among the local Native Americans, especially the Sauk: They considered the 1804 treaty invalid, the fort threatened established trading networks, and American trade goods were considered inferior to French or British goods. Black Hawk lamented over the new fort, and disparaged its construction in his autobiography. The original Fort Madison (1808-1813) is on the National Historic Registry. It is one of three posts established by the U.S. Army to establish control over the newly acquired Louisiana Purchase territories. The other two posts were Fort Belle Fontaine near St. Louis and Fort Osage, near what is now Kansas City, which controlled trade with western Native American tribes.

History

The city of Fort Madison was established around the site of the historic Fort Madison (1808-1813), which was the first permanent U.S. military fortification on the Upper Mississippi. Fort Madison has the last remaining double swing-span bridge on the Mississippi River, the Fort Madison Toll Bridge. The Fort Madison Downtown Commercial Historic District is a collection of well-preserved historic storefronts from the late 19th century. Along with this is the Park-to-Park Residential Historic District. With a rich variety of architectural styles like Gothic Revival, Italianate, Second Empire, Eastlake Stick, Richardson Romanesque, Queen Anne, and Tudor. The city is the location of the Iowa State Penitentiary, the state's maximum security prison for men. It is also the Mississippi river crossing and station stop for Amtrak's Southwest Chief. A replica of the fort stands along the river. A disputed 1804 treaty with the Sauk and affiliated tribes led to the U.S. claim of control over western Illinois and parts of what is now Iowa. The fort was named for James Madison, fourth President of the United States. It was built to control trade and pacify Native Americans in the upper Mississippi River region. The post was attacked in 1809, and in 1812, it was the focus of a coordinated siege and attacked in September. The siege resulted in the fort being nearly overrun and the attack was only stopped when cannon fire destroyed a fortified Indian position. Black Hawk claimed to have personally shot down the fort's flag.

Geography

Fort Madison is famous for the Tri-State Rodeo, RiverFest, Mexican Fiesta, Balloons Over the Mississippi, Art in Central Park and Annual Lighted Parade. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 13.23 square miles (34.27 km²), of which 9.49 sq miles (24.58 km²) is land and 3.74sq miles (9.69 km²") is water. The city is located on the Mississippi River, which runs through the center of the city. It is located in the Mississippi Valley, one of the most biodiverse areas in the United  States. The town has a population of about 6,000. The population of Fort Madison is about 5,000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. It has a climate that is very different from that of the rest of the country, with an average monthly temperature of °F (°C) to °C (°F to°F). The city has an average annual rainfall of 1,816 square miles (3,822 square km) and an average yearly temperature of 2,823 square miles (4,821 square kilometers) The city's climate is very tropical in nature, with a monthly average of 1.7 square feet (1.6 m) to 1.9 m (2.2 square acres).

Demographics

As of the census of 2010, there were 11,051 people, 4,403 households, and 2,667 families residing in the city. There were 4,956 housing units at an average density of 522.2 per square mile (201.6/km²) The racial makeup of the city was 89.3% White, 5.5% African American, 0.4% Native American,0.6% Asian, 0,1% Pacific Islander, 1.6%. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 6.7%. The median income for a household in theCity was $34,318, and the median family income was $42,067. About 9.8% of families and 12.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.1% of those under age 18 and 9.1. of those age 65 or over. The average household size was 2.26 and the average family size was2.84. The median age in the City was 39.9 years, and for every 100 females there were 90.5 males. The city's per capita income in the 2010 census was $18,124. The U.S. Census Bureau estimates that the city has a population of 10,715, with a population growth rate of 1.7% in the last five years. It is the most populous city in the state, with an average population of 11,071. It has a median age of 39 years, which is higher than the national average of 38.

Economy

The W.A. Sheaffer Pen Company was founded in Fort Madison in 1907. Millions of pens were produced. The company was sold in 1997 to the French manufacturer Bic, which closed the Fort Madison plant in 2006, and then to the A.T. Cross Company of Providence, RI in 2014. The SheafferPen Museum in FortMadison features many exhibits of the company's writing instruments. The museum is open to the public and is located in the former Sheaffer Jewelry Store in the town of Fort Madison, Rhode Island.

Arts and culture

An annual Parade of Lights along Avenue G takes place on the Friday after Thanksgiving. The lighted floats, sponsored by local businesses and industry, go on display in Riverside Park until after New Year's Day. The annual parade of lights is one of the largest in the world, attracting thousands of visitors. The parade takes place in honor of U.S. soldiers who died during the Second World War in Afghanistan. The event is held every year on the anniversary of the war's end, on the same day as the U.N. General Assembly convenes in New York.

Government

The Iowa State Penitentiary, a maximum security institution for men, is in Fort Madison. The city council consists of a Mayor and seven council members. Five council members are elected from individual wards and two are elected at large. The mayor is elected in a citywide vote. The state prison is located in the city's downtown area. The prison is a maximum-security institution forMen. The Iowa State penitentiary is in the City of Fort Madison, Iowa. The City of Madison has a Mayor/City Council form of government. It has a population of about 2,000 people. It is located on the Iowa River, which runs through the center of the city and into the Iowa City section of the state. The Fort Madison Police Department has a force of about 1,000 officers. It was founded in 1872 and is the oldest police station in the state, along with the Fort Madison Post Office. It opened in 1875. It's located in a historic district, which was once the site of the town's first post office, and is now the city center. It also has a post office that was established in 1876. It now has a police station that was built in 1881. It stands on the site where the original post office was built, and was later moved to a new post office. The post office is now called Fort Madison City Hall, and it is in a former building that was once part of the original Fort Madison site. The current post office building is in an old building that dates back to 1876 and was the first post station.

Education

Fort Madison has a Junior College Campus Southeastern Community College (Iowa) located at 1602 Avenue F. The Fort Madison Community School District, the public school district of the city, has two elementary schools (Richardson and Lincoln), one middle school (Fort Madison Middle School) and one high school. Fort Madison also has a Catholic School System, Holy Trinity Catholic Schools, which formed in 2005 from the merger of Aquinas Schools in Fort Madison with the West Point Catholic schools. Holy Trinity Elementary School is a few miles away in West Point, Iowa. A section of the City limits lies in the Central Lee Community school District. The city is home to the Fort Madison High School, which is a junior/senior high school and consists of a junior and senior high. The high school is one of the largest in the state, with a student body of more than 3,000. The school is located on the campus of the University of Iowa at Fort Madison, which was founded in 1876. It is the only public high school in the City of Fort Madison. It was founded by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 1875. It has a student population of about 2,500. It opened its doors in 1881. It closed its doors again in 1883, when it was re-opened as a junior college. It now has a campus of about 1,200 students. It also has two high schools, one junior/sophomore high school, and a middle school.

Infrastructure

Amtrak has a station in Fort Madison that serves its Southwest Chief route. Two other railroads serve Fort Madison: the BNSF (Burlington Northern Santa Fe) and Union Pacific. Greyhound Bus Lines stops to pick up or discharge passengers at 5002 Avenue O. US Highway Business 61 and State Highway 2 form a single artery that runs east and west through the heart of the city, following the river and railroad tracks. A controlled access US Highway 61 bypass around Fort Madison opened to traffic in the fall of 2011. The Fort Madison Toll Bridge is the world's longest swing bridge, and it carries both road and rail traffic across the Mississippi River over its upper and lower deck, respectively, between Fort Madison and Niota, Illinois. It is owned by the B NSF Railway and is the second-longest swing bridge in the world, after the bridge in New Orleans, Louisiana. It was built in the 1930s to carry rail and road traffic over the Mississippi. The bridge was designed to carry up to 100,000 cars at a time, but now carries up to 200,000. It has a maximum speed of 50 miles per hour (80 kilometers per hour) and a maximum height of 50 feet (15 meters) The bridge is the only one of its kind in the state of Iowa. It connects to US Highway 34, US Highway 218/State. 27, State. Highway 2, State Highway 16 and Interstate 80 in Iowa; Interstate 72 in Illinois; and Interstate 70 in Missouri.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Fort Madison, Lee County, Iowa = 87. These Air Quality index is based on annual reports from the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The number of ozone alert days is used as an indicator of air quality, as are the amounts of seven pollutants including particulates, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, lead, and volatile organic chemicals. The Water Quality Index is 69. A measure of the quality of an area’s water supply as rated by the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The EPA has a complex method of measuring the watershed quality, using 15 indicators such as pollutants, turbidity, sediments, and toxic discharges. The Superfund Sites Index is 80. Higher is better (100=best). Based upon the number and impact of EPA Superfund pollution sites in the county, including spending on the cleanup efforts. The UV Index in Fort Madison = 3.8 and is a measure of an area's exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays. This is most often a combination of sunny weather, altitude, and latitude. The UV Index has been defined by the WHO (www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/radiation-the-ultraviolet-(uv)-index) and is uniform worldwide.

Employed

The most recent city population of 10,270 individuals with a median age of 42.9 age the population dropped by -8.68% in Fort Madison, Lee County, Iowa population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 1,064.91 residents per square mile of area (411.16/km²). There are average 2.24 people per household in the 4,258 households with an average household income of $40,599 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is 10.20% of the available work force and has dropped -1.04% over the most recent 12-month period and the projected change in job supply over the next decade based on migration patterns, economic growth, and other factors will increase by 27.72%. The number of physicians in Fort Madison per 100,000 population = 158.8.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Fort Madison = 37.8 inches and the annual snowfall = 19.6 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 102. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 204. 87 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 14.7 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 39, where higher values mean a more pleasant climate. The Comfort Index measure recognizes that humidity by itself isn't the problem. (Have you noticed nobody ever complains about the weather being 'cold and humid?) It's in the summertime that we notice the humidity the most, when it's hot and muggy. Our Comfort Index uses a combination of afternoon summer temperature and humidity to closely predict the effect that the humidity will have on people.

Median Home Cost

The percentage of housing units in Fort Madison, Lee County, Iowa which are owned by the occupant = 59.81%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 64 years with median home cost = $63,950 and home appreciation of -7.45%. This is the value of the years most recent home sales data. Its important to note that this is not the average (or arithmetic mean). The median home price is the middle value when you arrange all the sales prices of homes from lowest to highest. This is a better indicator than the average, because the median is not changed as much by a few unusually high or low values. The property tax rate of $12.90 shown here is the rate per $1,000 of home value. If for simplification for example the tax rate is $14.00 and the home value is $250,000, the property tax would be $14.00 x ($250,000/1000), or $3500. This is the 'effective' tax rate.

Study

The local school district spends $5,377 per student. There are 13 students for each teacher in the school, 446 students for each Librarian and 743 students for each Counselor. 6.90% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 10.77% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 3.74% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).