Clinton is a city in and the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

of Clinton County, Iowa, United States. The population was 24,469 as of

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global social and economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, worldwide lockdowns and the largest economic recession since the Great Depression in t ...

. Clinton, along with DeWitt (also located in Clinton County), was named in honor of the sixth governor of New York, DeWitt Clinton. Clinton is the principal city of the Clinton Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is coterminous with Clinton County. Clinton was incorporated on January 26, 1857.

History

Among the first settlers of European origin in the Clinton area was Elijah Buell, who built a log cabin on July 25, 1835, and in 1837, established the town of Lyons, named after the French city of the same name. Buell partnered with a John Baker in a successful ferry service across the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it fl ...

, at a location called "the Narrows," between Lyons and what would become the city of

Fulton, Illinois Fulton is a city in Whiteside County, Illinois, United States. The population was 3,481 at the 2010 census, down from 3,881 in 2000. Fulton is located across the Mississippi River from Clinton, Iowa. History A post office called Fulton has been i ...

. Although Lyons grew rapidly and prospered, it eventually merged into the city of Clinton. Clinton was platted as the town of New York in 1836 by Joseph Bartlett. Bartlett believed that the region was rich with gold deposits, and he prepared for a boom town to develop. While waiting for the "gold boom" to materialize, Bartlett started a second ferry service across the Mississippi to the village of

Albany, Illinois Albany is a village in Whiteside County, Illinois, United States. The population was 891 at the 2010 census, down from 895 in 2000. History Albany was laid out in 1837, and named after Albany, New York, the native home of a large share of the fi ...

. However, his service was not as popular as Buell's in Lyons. Bartlett soon became discouraged, and sold his assets. In March 1837, Noble and Sarah Gregory Perrin purchased of land in what is now Clinton and raised their family in a cabin located approximately at the foot of the railroad bridge. Eve Their oldest daughter, Valeria, married Dr. Augustus Lafayette Ankeny, who participated in the Blackhawk war and came to Lyons in April 1850. Mary Perrin, born September 26, 1837, was the first female child of European ancestry born in Clinton County. In 1839, as in most early river towns, the town consisted of a sprinkling of cabins, two stores and a tavern. In 1855, the Chicago, Iowa, Nebraska Railroad announced it would cross the river at Little Rock Island adjacent to Bartlett's settlement. The Iowa Land Company was organized on May 26, 1855, and on July 4, bought Bartlett's tract and renamed it Clinton, in honor of DeWitt Clinton, two-time governor of New York and one of the driving forces behind the construction of the

Erie Canal The Erie Canal is a historic canal in upstate New York that runs east-west between the Hudson River and Lake Erie. Completed in 1825, the canal was the first navigable waterway connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, vastly reducing t ...

. In 1840, the County of Clinton was officially organized; the village of Camanche, just downstream from Bartlett's "New York," became the first county seat. The settlement that would become Clinton did not change much in the 1840s, but Lyons continued to grow and prosper. By 1852, stagecoach lines ran from Lyons to Davenport, to the Southwest; to Iowa City, to the West; and to

Dubuque Dubuque (, ) is the county seat of Dubuque County, Iowa, United States, located along the Mississippi River. At the time of the 2020 census, the population of Dubuque was 59,667. The city lies at the junction of Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin, a r ...

, to the Northwest. That same year, the Lyons and Iowa Central Railroad Company was formed, led by an H.P. Adams. Work began on the railroad almost immediately, and progressed rapidly. However, the funds raised to construct the line were insufficient; some were misused. The venture eventually failed. The railroad was disparagingly known as "the Calico Line," after the large amount of

calico Calico (; in British usage since 1505) is a heavy plain-woven textile made from unbleached, and often not fully processed, cotton. It may also contain unseparated husk parts. The fabric is far coarser than muslin, but less coarse and thick than ...

fabric sold at the

company store A company, abbreviated as co., is a legal entity representing an association of people, whether natural, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common purpose and unite to achieve specific, declared g ...

in Lyons. But the prospect of a railroad to Lyons, and a likely crossing of the Mississippi at the Narrows that would follow, sparked rapid growth in the community. Lyons' population grew from a mere 200 in 1852, to over 5,000 by 1858. On November 10, 1855, the first plat of the city of Clinton was signed; the plat was surveyed under the direction of Charles B. Stuart, a civil engineer from New York, with the assistance of William Rumble, engineer, and C.I. Loring, draftsman. On January 26, 1857 the city was granted a charter and on March 7, the charter was adopted. On April 5, 1859, the amended charter of the city was adopted, which lasted until a general charter was adopted in 1867. An announcement came in 1855 that a railroad was to cross the Mississippi, South of Lyons, at Little Rock Island. At the same time, the Iowa Land Company (ILC) was formed. The ILC purchased Bartlett's tract on the Iowa shore opposite Little Rock Island. Concurrently, the Chicago, Iowa, & Nebraska (C&IN) Railroad was formed, with the express intent of crossing the Mississippi River at Clinton. Construction on the railroad bridge began in 1856, and Clinton's population grew to over 1,000 as construction continued. In June 1859, the railroad line was completed to Cedar Rapids. The first train crossed from the Illinois shore to Little Rock Island at noon, January 9, 1860, and was ferried from there to the Iowa shore. In January 1864, construction was started on the span from Little Rock Island to the Iowa shore and was completed on January 6, 1865. The original single track railroad bridge was replaced by a double track bridge that was completed in 1909. Also in 1864, the C&IN Railroad merged with the Galena & Chicago Union Railroad to form the Chicago & North Western Railroad (C&NW). In the north–south direction, railroad development continued as well. In 1868, the C&NW built a branch line connecting Lyons with the east–west railroad at Clinton. In 1870, the Iowa Midland Company built a railroad from Lyons to Anamosa, Iowa, to the Northwest. This railroad was later absorbed by the C&NW. In 1872, the Chicago, Clinton, & Dubuque Railroad (CC&D) was built North from Lyons. It became part of the Milwaukee Road; it extended another line South to Clinton. The last of the railroads in Clinton, the Davenport, Rock Island, and Northwestern, was completed from the Southwest along the Mississippi River to Clinton in 1901. An

interurban The Interurban (or radial railway in Europe and Canada) is a type of electric railway, with streetcar-like electric self-propelled rail cars which run within and between cities or towns. They were very prevalent in North America between 1900 ...

passenger railroad (the Clinton, Davenport, and Muscatine Railway) operated along this trackage as late as 1940. This right-of-way, along with that of the former CC&D, is currently operated by

Canadian National The Canadian National Railway Company (french: Compagnie des chemins de fer nationaux du Canada) is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States. CN ...

. In 1869, due to its importance as a major transportation hub, the county seat was moved to Clinton; it has resided there ever since. The Clinton County Court House, located at 612 North 2nd Street, was designed by G. Stanley Mansfield, Architect, of

Freeport, Illinois Freeport is the county seat and largest city of Stephenson County, Illinois, United States. The population was 23,973 at the 2020 census, and the mayor of Freeport is Jodi Miller, elected in 2017. Freeport is known for hosting the second Linc ...

, and Josiah L. Rice, Supervising Architect, of Clinton. It was constructed between 1892 and 1897. The first public school in Clinton was conducted in a log house near the W.J. Young upper mill. It was erected in the winter of 1855-56 and Isaac Baldwin was its first teacher. St. Irenaeus School was opened in 1852. The original Lyons-Fulton Bridge was constructed in 1891 (replaced by the Mark N. Morris Memorial Bridge in 1975), followed by the Clinton High Bridge in 1892 (replaced by the

Gateway Bridge The Sir Leo Hielscher Bridges are a side-by-side pair of road bridges on the Gateway Motorway (M1), which skirts the eastern suburbs of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The western bridge carries traffic to the north and the eastern bridge car ...

in 1956). Between the 1850s and 1900, the cities of Lyons and Clinton quickly became centers of the lumber industry and were regarded as the "Lumber Capital of the World." Huge log rafts were floated down the river from Wisconsin and Minnesota, cut into lumber at Clinton, then shipped to the growing communities via the river and the railroads. Companies owned by the W.J. Young, Chancy Lamb, George M. and Charles F. Curtis ( Curtis Bros. & Co), David Joyce, Silas W. Gardiner Lyons, and

Friedrich Weyerhäuser Friedrich (Frederick) Weyerhäuser (November 21, 1834 – April 4, 1914), also spelled Weyerhaeuser, was a German-American timber mogul and founder of the Weyerhaeuser Company, which owns saw mills, paper factories, and other business enterprise ...

families soon became among the largest in the nation. In the 1880s and 1890s Clinton boasted 13 resident millionaires, more millionaires per capita than any other town or city in the nation. In 1877 the noted pianist Carl Lachmund founded the German Conservatorium of Music in Clinton. The largest, most elaborate party ever held in Clinton celebrated the debut of Emma Lamb and the twentieth wedding anniversary of her parents, Artemus and Henrietta Sabrina Smith Lamb on October 13, 1885. Fellow lumber baron F.C. Weyerhauser, his wife and daughter attended together with several hundred guests all attired in formal wear. In 1895, Lyons officially merged with the City of Clinton. The era of opulence came to an end by 1900, as the northern forests were depleted. The sawmills closed, but the railroad and river, providing economical transportation in all directions, attracted manufacturing and heavy industry. The city still boasts a number of magnificent Victorian mansions, including the Curtis Mansion, now the home of the Clinton Women's Club. The

American Protective Association The American Protective Association (APA) was an American Anti-Catholicism, anti-Catholic secret society established in 1887 by Protestants. The organization was the largest anti-Catholic movement in the United States during the later part of the ...

(APA) was founded in Clinton on March 13, 1887 by Attorney Henry Francis Bowers. In 1941, with Howard Judd as coach, Clinton High School won the first of its 11 state championships in swimming. This string included five straight championships between 1954 and 1958 and produced 39 individual All Americans and 14 Individual All American Relay Teams (The Howard Judd Story Reception Program June 5, 1966). Clinton's athletic successes were added to in 1953 when St. Mary's won the state basketball championship. Other great athletic triumphs were achieved by the 1964 Clinton High School boys’ baseball team winning the State Championship, the 1991 Clinton Giants winning the Midwest League baseball championship and by the 1992 Clinton High School boys’ basketball team (referred to as the '92 Crew) winning the State Championship. On April 27, 1951, the Mississippi crested at ; then on April 26, 1952, it crested again at . All of that was an exercise compared with the crest on April 28, 1965, which at was the highest ever recorded. Construction of the Gateway Bridge (Illinois-Iowa) was started in August 1954, was finished in May 1956. It opened on July 1, 1956. In 2005, Clinton, along with

Coon Rapids, Iowa Coon Rapids is a city in Carroll and Guthrie counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 1,300 at the 2020 census, which is a decrease of 5 from the 2000. The small portion of Coon Rapids that lies in Guthrie County is part of the D ...

and

Sioux City Sioux City () is a city in Woodbury and Plymouth counties in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 85,797 in the 2020 census, making it the fourth-largest city in Iowa. The bulk of the city is in Woodbury County ...

, was awarded one of the inaugural Iowa Great Places designations. This award brought to Clinton a $1 million state budget allocation for cultural and landscape improvements along the city's riverfront. In 2009, the Archer Daniels Midland began construction of a new

cogeneration Cogeneration or combined heat and power (CHP) is the use of a heat engine or power station to generate electricity and useful heat at the same time. Cogeneration is a more efficient use of fuel or heat, because otherwise- wasted heat from elec ...

plant to provide for its electrical needs, which burns coal and leftover corn for the energy. The new cogeneration plant went online in 2010.

Geography

Clinton is located at (41.846863, -90.207330). According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), 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 Census Bureau is part of t ...

, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water. Clinton is on the western shore of the

and is the easternmost city in Iowa. The

Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge The Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge is a ,Lock and Dam No. 13 is the widest section of the river at across.

Climate

Demographics

2010 census

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

of 2010, there were 26,885 people, 11,246 households, and 6,889 families residing in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical ...

was . There were 12,202 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 91.0%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...

, 4.3%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.4% Native American, 0.7% Asian, 1.1% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 2.5% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race were 3.3% of the population. There were 11,246 households, of which 29.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.0% were married couples living together, 12.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.6% had a male householder with no wife present, and 38.7% were non-families. 32.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.33 and the average family size was 2.90. The median age in the city was 40.4 years. 23.1% of residents were under the age of 18; 9.3% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 22.8% were from 25 to 44; 27.6% were from 45 to 64; and 17.1% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.5% male and 51.5% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 27,772 people, 11,427 households, and 7,358 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 12,412 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 93.80%

, 3.22%

, 0.32% Native American, 0.81% Asian, 0.01%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...

, 0.51% from

, and 1.34% from two or more races.

of any race were 1.68% of the population. There were 11,427 households, out of which 30.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.9% were married couples living together, 11.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.6% were non-families. 30.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.93. Age spread: 24.6% under the age of 18, 9.1% from 18 to 24, 26.8% from 25 to 44, 22.5% from 45 to 64, and 17.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.1 males. In the 2000 census 37.7% of the population reported they were of German ancestry, 15.3% of Irish ancestry, 11.4% of British (English, Scottish, Welsh or Scots-Irish) ancestry, 7.8% of Scandinavian ancestry and 5.8% of Dutch ancestry. The median income for a household in the city was $34,159, and the median income for a family was $43,157. Males had a median income of $34,210 versus $20,882 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the city was $17,320. About 10.0% of families and 12.5% 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 t ...

, including 18.5% of those under age 18 and 7.7% of those age 65 or over.

Parks and recreation

;Parks *The most notable parks are Eagle Point Park and Riverview Park. *Other parks are Dewitt Park, Root Park, Southside Park, Edwin P Neubauer Park, River View Stadium, and Four Square Park. *Clinton has the First White Settler in Clinton County

Historical Marker A commemorative plaque, or simply plaque, or in other places referred to as a historical marker, historic marker, or historic plaque, is a plate of metal, ceramic, stone, wood, or other material, typically attached to a wall, stone, or other ...

. ;Tourist attractions *The Bickelhaupt Arboretum is a non-profit arboretum with one of North America's largest collections of dwarf conifers. *Felix Adler Children's Discovery Center a non-profit children's center to explore science, the arts and culture.

Transportation

U.S. Route 30 U.S. Route 30 or U.S. Highway 30 (US 30) is an east–west main route in the system of the United States Numbered Highways, with the highway traveling across the northern tier of the country. With a length of , it is the third longest ...

(

Lincoln Highway The Lincoln Highway is the first transcontinental highway in the United States and one of the first highways designed expressly for automobiles. Conceived in 1912 by Indiana entrepreneur Carl G. Fisher, and formally dedicated October 31, 1913 ...

U.S. Route 67 U.S. Route 67 is a major north–south U.S. highway which extends for 1,560 miles (2,511 km) in the Central United States. The southern terminus of the route is at the United States-Mexico border in Presidio, Texas, where it continues ...

( Great River Road), and

Iowa Highway 136 Iowa Highway 136 (Iowa 136) is a state highway maintained by the Iowa Department of Transportation. It runs for in eastern Iowa. It begins at the Mississippi River in Clinton on the Mark Morris Memorial Bridge, where it continues as Illinois ...

pass through Clinton. For air travel, the Quad City International Airport, which is about 40 miles away in

Moline, Illinois Moline ( ) is a city located in Rock Island County, Illinois, United States. With a population of 42,985 in 2020, it is the largest city in Rock Island County. Moline is one of the Quad Cities, along with neighboring East Moline and Rock Island ...

, is the closest commercial airport and can be reached in less than one hour by car. Chicago's O'Hare International Airport is about 140 miles east, and can typically be reached in less than three hours by car. Clinton has a municipal airport ( Clinton Municipal Airport, KCWI) that serves the general aviation community. There are two runways, 3-21 which is 5,200' long, and 14-32 which is 3700' long. Numerous instrument approaches are available. Major railroads include the

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...

and the

Canadian Pacific The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadi ...

. A national U.S. recreation trail, the Mississippi River Trail passes through Clinton. Clinton MTA bus

For intracity transit, residents can rely on the MTA's (Municipal Transit Authority) 6 bus routes that run throughout the city. Disabled residents can rely on the MTA's para-transit service.

Education

Clinton Community College is in the community. Clinton Community School District operates public schools, including Clinton High School. Clinton Public Library is the local public library system.

Culture and institutions

* Bickelhaupt Arboretum 340 S. 14th St. *

Clinton LumberKings The Clinton LumberKings are a collegiate summer baseball team of the Prospect League. They are located in Clinton, Iowa, and play their home games at NelsonCorp Field. From 1956 to 2020, they were members of Minor League Baseball's Midwest Leag ...

, a collegiate summer baseball team of the Prospect League that plays at

NelsonCorp Field NelsonCorp Field is a stadium in Clinton, Iowa. It is primarily used for baseball, and is operated by and is the home field of the Clinton LumberKings collegiate summer baseball team of the Prospect League. It was built in 1937 and its capacity ...

. They were previously members of the Class A

Midwest League The Midwest League is a Minor League Baseball league established in 1947 and based in the Midwestern United States. A Class A league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Baseball's 2021 reorganizat ...

and were affiliated with

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

teams. *

Clinton Area Showboat Theatre The Clinton Area Showboat Theatre is a summer stock professional theatre in Clinton, Iowa. Currently run by Executive Director James Kyle Davis, the showboat has been drydocked on the Army Corps of Engineers Levee. With a 217-seat theater, t ...

, se
Clinton Area Showboat Theatre

Religion

The community has a single Roman Catholic church, Jesus Christ Prince of Peace Parish, which opened in March 2009, consolidating the membership of five previous churches: Sacred Heart, St. Boniface, St. Irenaeus, St. Mary's, and St. Patrick's. Prince of Peace Catholic Academy and College Preparatory, as of 2011, uses the Sacred Heart property.

Architecture

National Historic Landmark *The

Van Allen Building The Van Allen Building, also known as Van Allen and Company Department Store, is a historic commercial building at Fifth Avenue and South Second Street in Clinton, Iowa. The four-story building was designed by Louis Sullivan and commissioned by ...

, a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

Louis Sullivan Louis Henry Sullivan (September 3, 1856 – April 14, 1924) was an American architect, and has been called a "father of skyscrapers" and "father of modernism". He was an influential architect of the Chicago School, a mentor to Frank Lloy ...

, was completed in 1914 Buildings listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

: * Clinton County Courthouse, constructed from 1892 to 1897 by architects Stanley Mansfield and Josiah Rice in Romanesque Revival style. Exterior walls are of red sandstone and granite and the tower is of copper which has weathered to a bright green color. Noted architect

Claire Allen ] ] Claire Allen (July 29, 1853 – December 22, 1942) was an Americans, American architect prominent in southern Michigan in the early twentieth century, and best known for designing several county courthouses. He was considered a "master ...

from Jackson, Michigan also worked on this building. * Clinton Public Library, financed by

Andrew Carnegie Andrew Carnegie (, ; November 25, 1835August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century and became one of the richest Americans i ...

and built 1903-1904 from the design of the Chicago architectural firm of Patton & Miller. Beaux Arts Neoclassica; style with a monumental entry with processional steps and flanking paired columns. Symmetry of design and borrowings of Greek and Roman inspired elements complete the composition. Exterior walls of cut and dressed limestone. * Lafayette Lamb House (YWCA), constructed in 1877 by architect W.W. Sanborn and rebuilt in 1906. Originally built in the

Second Empire style Second Empire style, also known as the Napoleon III style, is a highly eclectic style of architecture and decorative arts, which uses elements of many different historical styles, and also made innovative use of modern materials, such as i ...

, the 1906 'modernization' converted it to more of the

Georgian Revival Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1714 and 1830. It is named after the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover— George I, George II, Ge ...

style. * City National Bank ( First National Bank), designed by John Morrell & Son in the

Neoclassical style Neoclassical architecture is an architectural style produced by the Neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century in Italy and France. It became one of the most prominent architectural styles in the Western world. The prevailing sty ...

and constructed in 1911-1912 *

Howes Building The Howes Building is a historic building located in Clinton, Iowa, United States. The four-story, brick, Neoclassical structure features arched windows, pilasters, and a chamfered corner. At one time it had a prominent entrance on the corner t ...

, constructed in 1900 for Edward Madison Howes by architect Josiah Rice in Renaissance Revival style, featuring engaged pilasters with Ionic capitals. The exterior street facades of the building are of red face brick with decorative accents of red

terracotta Terracotta, terra cotta, or terra-cotta (; ; ), in its material sense as an earthenware substrate, is a clay-based unglazed or glazed ceramic where the fired body is porous. In applied art, craft, construction, and architecture, terracotta ...

. The fourth floor added in 1905 by architect John Morrell. * Ankeny Building, constructed in 1930, designed by Chicago architect Harold Holmes in "Moderne" or

Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...

style. The building street facades are clad with cream-colored

panels. Upper story windows are steel and glass in a stylized "Chicago window" expression. The Clinton Herald Monday December 8, 1930 p. 8, The Clinton Herald Saturday December 13, 1930 p. 5, The Clinton Herald Monday December 15, 1930 p. 16, The Clinton Herald Tuesday December 30, 1930 p. 5, The Clinton Herald Tuesday, January 6, 1931 p. 5, The Clinton Herald Thursday, January 8, 1931 p. 5, The Clinton Herald Thursday May 21, 1931 p. 11. * Moeszinger-Marquis (Armstrong) Building, designed by Josiah Rice and constructed in 1891 by William Bentley for the Clinton Produce Company. In 1907 the Baldwin Bros. acquired the building for its wholesale hardware business, which in turn passed to its successor company, the Moeszinger-Marquis Hardware Company in 1912. In 1941 the building was acquired by R.W. Armstrong, who also conducted a wholesale hardware business from the premises. * George M. Curtis Mansion (Women's Club), constructed in Queen Anne style in 1883-1884 * Castle Terrace Historic District, Originally platted in 1892. The project was a promotional effort to show developers, architects, and builders the application and products of the Curtis Company. The architectural design is highly eclectic, with Tudor Gothic the primary style utilized
Castle Terrace Historic District
* Cherry Bank, Built 1870–1871, the Dr. A.L. Ankeny/Lindmeier/Cottral house is two stories high with walls of red brick with buff-colored brick used for quoins at the corners and for the window arches. A cornice, hip roof, and widow's walk cap the building * Saint Irenaeus Church, was designed by W.W. Sanborn and was constructed from 1864 to 1871. The parish was found in 1852 in Lyons. It merged with the other four Clinton parishes in 1990 to form Jesus Christ, Prince of Peace Parish. The parish continued to use the St. Irenaeus Church building until 2008 when a new church was built near the Mill Creek Parkway.

Notable people

* Felix Adler, "King of Clowns,"

Ringling Brothers Circus Ringling Bros. World's Greatest Shows is a circus founded in Baraboo, Wisconsin, United States in 1884 by five of the seven Ringling brothers: Albert, August, Otto, Alfred T., Charles, John, and Henry. The Ringling brothers were sons of a Ge ...

Matt Bentley Matthew James Bentley (born December 10, 1979) is an American professional wrestler best known for his work in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) by the ring name Michael Shane, later changed to "Maverick" Matt Bentley. He was trained by his c ...

, professional wrestler for

Total Nonstop Action Wrestling Impact Wrestling (stylized as ''IMPACT! Wrestling''), is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment. Founded by Jeff and Jerry Jarrett in 2002, the promo ...

Marquis Childs Marquis William Childs (March 17, 1903 – June 30, 1990) was a 20th-century American journalist, syndicated columnist, and author. Early life and education Childs was born on March 17, 1903, in Clinton, Iowa. He graduated from Lyons High Sch ...

, Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist *

Muriel Frances Dana Muriel Frances Dana (1916 – 1997) was a child actress in thirteen silent films from 1921 to 1926, appearing in two of them as a boy, ''Hail the Woman'' and ''Can a Woman Love Twice?''. She was born in Clinton, Iowa and died in Thousand Oaks, Ca ...

, child actress who appeared in

silent films A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, whe ...

* Angela Dohrmann, actress, television personality *

Robert Drouet Robert Drouet (March 27, 1870 – August 17, 1914) was an American actor and playwright. Robert Drouet (probably a stage name), was born in Clinton, Iowa. He married Mildred Loring, daughter of M. A. Loring, October 1897, and died in New Y ...

, actor and playwright * Pat Flanagan, sportscaster for Major League Baseball in Chicago * Judith Ellen Foster, lecturer, lawyer, temperance leader, early feminist *

Dale Gardner Dale Allan Gardner (November 8, 1948 – February 19, 2014) was a NASA astronaut, and naval flight officer who flew two Space Shuttle missions during the mid 1980s. Personal information Born on November 8, 1948, in Fairmont, Minnesota, Gardn ...

, NASA astronaut *

Artemus Gates Artemus Gates Artemus Lamb Gates (November 3, 1895 – June 14, 1976) was an American businessman, naval aviator, and Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Air in charge of naval aviation efforts in World War II (December 7, 1941 – June 30, 1945) ...

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

hero, banker, Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Air during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

* Salvatore Giunta, Staff Sergeant,

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

, first living recipient of the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valo ...

since the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam a ...

. * Col. David Hilmers, former

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil List of government space agencies, space program ...

Astronaut * Robert Bruce Horsfall, artist *

Bernhard M. Jacobsen Bernhard Martin Jacobsen (March 26, 1862 – June 30, 1936) was a Democratic U.S. Representative from Iowa who served nearly three full terms during the Great Depression. He was the father of William S. Jacobsen, who succeeded him in Congress fo ...

, Congressman * William S. Jacobsen, Congressman * David Johnson, running back, University of Northern Iowa and Arizona Cardinals * David Joyce, lumber baron, industrialist * W. H. D. Koerner, artist *

Otto Kraushaar Otto Frederick Krausharr (November 19, 1901 – September 23, 1989) was an American professor of philosophy who served as the 6th president of Goucher College. Kraushaar was also a professor at Smith College for 15 years. Early life and education ...

, educator, 6th president of

Goucher College Goucher College ( ') is a private liberal arts college in Towson, Maryland. It was chartered in 1885 by a conference in Baltimore led by namesake John F. Goucher and local leaders of the Methodist Episcopal Church.https://archive.org/details/h ...

* Chancy Lamb, lumber baron, industrialist * Cynthia Leonard, suffragist, writer, mother of

Lillian Russell Lillian Russell (born Helen Louise Leonard; December 4, 1860 or 1861 – June 6, 1922), was an American actress and singer. She became one of the most famous actresses and singers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, known for her beauty ...

, lived in Clinton * Raymond J. Lynch, attorney, administrative law judge * Larry Mac Duff, football player, head coach, and defensive coordinator * Denise McCann, American-Canadian musician, wife of

Randy Bachman Randolph Charles Bachman (; born September 27, 1943) is a Canadian guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He was a founding member of the bands The Guess Who and Bachman–Turner Overdrive. Bachman recorded as a solo artist and was part of a num ...

of Guess Who and Bachman-Turner Overdrive, born in Clinton * James C. McGloon, Illinois state legislator *

Beth Marion Beth Marion (born Betty Goettsche; July 11, 1912 – February 18, 2003) was an American B-movie actress of the 1930s, starring in westerns, her career spanning only about five years, mostly in 1936. Early years Born in Clinton, Iowa, Marion was ...

, B-movie

actress An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

of the 1930s * Peggy Moran, film actress, married film director

Henry Koster Henry Koster (born Hermann Kosterlitz, May 1, 1905 – September 21, 1988) was a German-born film director. He was the husband of actress Peggy Moran. Early life Koster was born to Jewish parents in Berlin, Germany. He was introduced to ci ...

* George Nelson, former NASA astronaut *

Stephen Paddock Stephen Craig Paddock (April 9, 1953 – October 1, 2017) was an American mass murderer who perpetrated the 2017 Las Vegas shooting. Paddock opened fire into a crowd of about 22,000 concertgoers attending a country music festival on the Las ...

, mass shooter, perpetrator of the

2017 Las Vegas shooting On October 1, 2017, Stephen Paddock, a 64-year-old man from Mesquite, Nevada, opened fire on the crowd attending the Route 91 Harvest music festival on the Las Vegas Strip in . From his 32nd-floor suites in the Mandalay Bay hotel, he fired ...

Allen E. Paulson Allen Eugene Paulson (April 22, 1922 – July 19, 2000) was an American businessman. Business career in aviation Born in Clinton, Iowa, Clinton, Iowa, Allen E. Paulson was on his own at age 13, supporting himself selling newspapers and doing ...

, businessman, developed the Gulfstream executive jet *

Ken Ploen Kenneth Ploen LAYN (born June 3, 1935) is a former star quarterback in American college football and for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League (CFL). College football In 1956, Ploen became the University of Iowa Hawkeyes s ...

, football player Rose Bowl Hall of Fame, Canadian Football Hall of Fame * Dan Roushar, American Football Coach, currently with the New Orleans Saints *

, singer and actress in

comic operas Comic opera, sometimes known as light opera, is a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature, usually with a happy ending and often including spoken dialogue. Forms of comic opera first developed in late 17th-century Italy. By the 1730s, a ne ...

George Shadid George P. Shadid (May 15, 1929 – February 3, 2018) was an American Democratic Party (United States), Democratic politician. He was sheriff of Peoria County, Illinois from 1976 to 1993 and was in the Illinois State Senate from 1993 until 2006 ...

, Illinois legislator *

Duke Slater Frederick Wayman "Duke" Slater (December 9, 1898 – August 14, 1966) was an American football player and judge. He was enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame in 1951 and was named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Centennial Class in ...

, football player College Football Hall of Fame who became a judge * George Stone, Major League Baseball AL batting title champion * William Theisen, founder of

Godfather's Pizza Godfather's Pizza is an American privately owned restaurant chain headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, that operates fast casual Italian franchises and Pizza Express locations. History Godfather's Pizza was founded in Omaha, Nebraska, in 1973. Wil ...

* William G. Thon, Illinois state representative and lawyer *

John Delbert Van Allen John Delbert Van Allen was a retail dry goods merchant and department store owner who came to Clinton, Iowa in 1892 and established a department store that was the last surviving traditional store of its type in the city. He is most noted nationa ...

, dry goods merchant, department store owner *

Krista Voda Krista Voda Kelley (born May 31, 1974) is an American sportscaster who covers auto racing as the play-by-play announcer for the ARCA Menards Series on MAVTV. She previously worked for ''NASCAR on Fox'' and '' NASCAR on Speed'' from 2003 to 2014 ...

, sportscaster,

Fox Sports Fox Sports is the brand name for a number of sports channels, broadcast divisions, programming, and other media around the world. The ''Fox Sports'' name has since been used for other sports media assets. These assets are held mainly by the F ...

SPEED In everyday use and in kinematics, the speed (commonly referred to as ''v'') of an object is the magnitude Magnitude may refer to: Mathematics *Euclidean vector, a quantity defined by both its magnitude and its direction *Magnitude (ma ...

Channel * Colonel Russell W. Volckmann West Point graduate, leader of guerrilla resistance in the Philippines * LaMetta Wynn, first African-American elected as mayor of an Iowa municipality * W. J. Young, lumber baron, industrialist

Notable businesses, past and present

*The Becker Seed Company located at 250 Main Ave began in 1856 by Fredrick Becker Sr. and operated by William August Becker until approx 1980. * Gray & Lunt,_____ (1906) American Lumbermen: The Personal History and Public and Business Achievements of Eminent Lumbermen of the United States, Volume 2, Chicago:The American Lumberman, p. 21-24, se

accessed June 30, 2014.P.B. Wolfe (1911) Wolfe's History of Clinton County, Iowa, v. 1, B. F. Bowen (publisher), p. 685, se

accessed June 30, 2014. 1857, saw mills and lumber concerns * Chancy Lamb, C. Lamb (lumber), c. 1857–1868, saw mills and lumber concerns *W. J. Young and Company, W.J. Young, c. 1858–1892, saw mills and lumber concerns, sawmill said to be the largest in the worldBJ Kleven (1946) The Mississippi River Logging Company, in Minnesota History (magazine), Sept, pp. 190-202, se

accessed June 30, 2014. * Curtis Bros. & Co, Claussen, Thornburg & Smith, c. 1866, a small sash and door factory * Curtis, Hemingway & Co., Charles F. Curtis and W.G. Hemingway, 1866–1868, manufacturing of sash and door woodwork * Curtis Bros. & Co, George M. and Charles F. Curtis, 1866–1966, producer of doors, sashes, pre-glazed window units, blinds and general house finishings *Lamb, Byng, & Co., Chancy Lamb, John Byng, Artemus Lamb, c. 1868–1874, saw mills and lumber concerns *Joyce & Smith, David Joyce, S.I. Smith, W.T. Joyce, c. 1869–1873, 1873–1895, 1895-?, major lumber interest, town of Lyons, and Clinton *Mississippi River Logging Company,

, F.C.A. Denkmann, et al., 1870–1909, forestry land ownership, logging, timber transport * C. Lamb & Sons, Chancy Lamb, Artemus Lamb, Lafayette Lamb, c. 1874-?, saw mills and lumber concerns *Ellis & McCoy, 1880s, law firm *Clinton Produce Company, c. 1891, wholesale hardware business, in the current Moeszinger-Marquis (Armstrong) Building *Baldwin Bros., c. 1907, wholesale hardware business, in the current Moeszinger-Marquis (Armstrong) Building *Moeszinger-Marquis Hardware Company, c. 1912, wholesale hardware business, in the current Moeszinger-Marquis (Armstrong) Building *Van Allen and Company Department Store, c. 1912–1914, in the

* One-In-Hand Tie Company, Joseph W. Less and brothers, c. 1930s-1950s, inventors and men's clothing manufacturersClinton County Historical Society (Author), 2003, Clinton Iowa (Images of America series), Arcadia Publishing (), e.g

accessed February 27, 2014. *R.W. Armstrong, c. 1941, wholesale hardware business, in the current Moeszinger-Marquis (Armstrong) Building *

, 1937–present, Class A minor league

team affiliated with the Miami Marlins *

Clinton Herald The ''Clinton Herald'' is a six-day (Monday through Saturday) daily newspaper published in Clinton, Iowa, and covering Clinton and Jackson counties in Iowa, and Carroll and Whiteside counties in Illinois. Overview It is owned by Community Newsp ...

, 1855–present, daily newspaper now owned by Community Newspaper Holdings

References

External links

Official City WebsiteChamber of CommerceClinton Regional Development CorporationClinton's Open Forum Home
Comprehensive Statistical Data and more about Clinton, Iowa
Liberty Square Brownfields Redevelopment Website

{{authority control Cities in Iowa Iowa populated places on the Mississippi River Cities in Clinton County, Iowa Micropolitan areas of Iowa County seats in Iowa 1857 establishments in Iowa Populated places established in 1857