Pacific Junction is a city in Mills County,

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to th ...

, United States. The population was 96 at the time of the 2020 census.

History

Pacific Junction was established by the railroad in 1871 to serve as the western terminus of the

Burlington and Missouri River Railroad The Burlington and Missouri River Railroad (B&MR) or sometimes (B&M) was an American railroad company incorporated in Iowa in 1852, with headquarters in Omaha, Nebraska. It was developed to build a railroad across the state of Iowa and began oper ...

, the eastern terminus of the Nebraska Burlington & Missouri River RR, and a station on the Kansas City, Council Bluffs, & Saint Joseph Railroad. All three were consolidated as part of the

Chicago, Burlington and Quincy The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States. Commonly referred to as the Burlington Route, the Burlington, or as the Q, it operated extensive trackage in the states of Colorado, Illin ...

Railroad, today's

BNSF BNSF Railway is one of the largest freight railroads in North America. One of seven North American Class I railroads, BNSF has 35,000 employees, of track in 28 states, and nearly 8,000 locomotives. It has three transcontinental routes that ...

. After several rough and tumble years of growth Pacific Junction was incorporated in 1882. The scene of violence during the Burlington Railroad Strike of 1888, PJ's population peaked during the early 20th century with just over 700 people. Railroad traffic through town remains almost constant although the town's connections to the railroad have declined significantly since 1971. Historic structures include the 1914 Pacific Junction Public School which graduated its last high school class in 1961 and closed for good in 1986. On the early morning of December 3, 2021, two BNSF trains collided two locomotives and 16 cars derailed in Pacific Junction. Pacific Junction was impacted by the

2019 Midwestern U.S. floods The Midwestern United States experienced major floods in the spring of 2019, primarily along the Missouri River and its tributaries in Nebraska, Missouri, South Dakota, Iowa, and Kansas. The Mississippi River also saw flooding, although startin ...

. Buyout funding has been allocated for local residents. 1914PacificJunction,IAPublicSchool

Geography

Pacific Junction is located at (41.018319, -95.799883). 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 , all land.

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 471 people, 196 households, and 138 families living 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 208 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 96.0%

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 ...

, 0.6% Native American, 0.4%

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 ...

, 1.3% 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 1.7% 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 2.1% of the population. There were 196 households, of which 24.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.6% were married couples living together, 9.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 6.1% had a male householder with no wife present, and 29.6% were non-families. 22.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 2.75. The median age in the city was 45.1 years. 18.3% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.8% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 23.8% were from 25 to 44; 36.5% were from 45 to 64; and 13.6% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.2% male and 51.8% female.

2000 census

During the

of 2000, there were 507 people, 196 households, and 148 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 210 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 96.84%

, 0.20% Native American, 0.59%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 0.39%

, 0.20% from

, and 1.78% from two or more races.

of any race were 0.99% of the population. There were 196 households, out of which 33.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.6% were married couples living together, 14.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.0% were non-families. 18.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.2% 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 2.91. 24.9% are under the age of 18, 9.5% from 18 to 24, 27.2% from 25 to 44, 26.4% from 45 to 64, and 12.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.8 males. The median income for a household in the city was $36,563, and the median income for a family was $40,333. Males had a median income of $28,750 versus $25,089 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 $15,103. About 5.6% of families and 7.6% 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 12.9% of those under age 18 and 2.3% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The city is in the Glenwood Community School District.

References

External links

{{authority control Cities in Mills County, Iowa Cities in Iowa 1871 establishments in Iowa Populated places established in 1871