Exira, Iowa
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Exira is a city in
Audubon County, Iowa Audubon County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Iowa. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 5,674, making it Iowa's third-least populous county. Its county seat is Audubon, Iowa, Audubon. ...
, United States, along the East Nishnabotna River and
U.S. Route 71 U.S. Route 71 or U.S. Highway 71 (US 71) is a major north–south United States highway that extends for over 1500 miles (2500 km) in the central United States. This original 1926 route has remained largely unchanged by encroaching Intersta ...
. The population was 787 at the time of the 2020 census.


History

The oldest town in Audubon County, Exira was founded in 1857. The town was named for Exira Eckman, daughter of Judge John Eckman from
Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...
, who agreed to purchase a lot of property in the town if the town was named for his daughter. The main industries in and around Exira are agriculture and
agribusiness Agribusiness is the industry, enterprises, and the field of study of value chains in agriculture and in the bio-economy, in which case it is also called bio-business or bio-enterprise. The primary goal of agribusiness is to maximize profit ...
. Exira has a school, completed in 1959. There are four churches in the town. On July 2, 1958, Exira was ravaged by the flooding of the East Nishnabotna River. Nineteen persons in the area lost their lives, 75 homes were destroyed and almost 20 businesses in the western part of Exira were damaged. Exira is well known for its
Fourth of July Independence Day, known colloquially as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday in the United States which commemorates the ratification of the Declaration of Independence by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, establishing th ...
celebrations, which have been celebrated since 1861. The morning parade and the evening fireworks draw thousands of visitors to the town. Other attractions in the area include the Plow in the Oak Park, south of Exira on Highway 71, and Littlefield Recreation Area, southeast of Exira, which features a lake,
prairie Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the ...
restoration area and a live
bison A bison (: bison) is a large bovine in the genus ''Bison'' (from Greek, meaning 'wild ox') within the tribe Bovini. Two extant taxon, extant and numerous extinction, extinct species are recognised. Of the two surviving species, the American ...
pair.


Geography

According to the
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
, the city has a total area of , all land.


Demographics


2020 census

As of the
census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...
of 2020, there were 787 people, 358 households, and 188 families residing in the city. The
population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing 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 geog ...
was 763.1 inhabitants per square mile (294.6/km2). There were 392 housing units at an average density of 380.1 per square mile (146.7/km2). The
racial Race is a categorization of humans based on shared physical or social qualities into groups generally viewed as distinct within a given society. The term came into common usage during the 16th century, when it was used to refer to groups of va ...
makeup of the city was 96.3%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 0.1% Black or African American, 0.4% Native American, 0.1% Asian, 0.0%
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...
, 0.0% from other races and 3.0% from two or more races.
Hispanic or Latino ''Hispanic'' and '' Latino'' are ethnonyms used to refer collectively to the inhabitants of the United States who are of Spanish or Latin American ancestry (). While many use the terms interchangeably, for example, the United States Census Bureau ...
persons of any race comprised 0.8% of the population. Of the 358 households, 22.1% of which had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.9% were
married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...
living together, 5.6% were cohabitating couples, 32.7% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present and 19.8% had a male householder with no spouse or partner present. 47.5% of all households were non-families. 43.3% of all households were made up of individuals, 24.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years old or older. The median age in the city was 49.3 years. 20.3% of the residents were under the age of 20; 4.4% were between the ages of 20 and 24; 20.7% were from 25 and 44; 24.0% were from 45 and 64; and 30.5% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 46.4% male and 53.6% female.


2010 census

As of the
census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...
of 2010, there were 840 people, 381 households, and 217 families living in the city. The
population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing 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 geog ...
was . There were 422 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 98.6%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 0.2%
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, 0.1% Native American, 0.4% Asian, and 0.7% from two or more races.
Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
or Latino of any race were 1.4% of the population. There were 381 households, of which 21.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.8% were
married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...
living together, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.2% had a male householder with no wife present, and 43.0% were non-families. 38.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 20.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.06 and the average family size was 2.63. The median age in the city was 49.7 years. 16.4% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.1% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 19.4% were from 25 to 44; 27.8% were from 45 to 64; and 29.3% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 43.1% male and 56.9% female.


2000 census

As of the
census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...
of 2000, there were 810 people, 362 households, and 211 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 394 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 98.64%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 0.25%
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, 0.12% Native American, 0.49% Asian, and 0.49% from two or more races.
Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
or Latino of any race were 0.86% of the population. There were 362 households, out of which 24.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.2% were
married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...
living together, 10.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.7% were non-families. 38.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 27.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.08 and the average family size was 2.74. In the city, the population was spread out, with 21.9% under the age of 18, 4.6% from 18 to 24, 19.0% from 25 to 44, 20.9% from 45 to 64, and 33.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 49 years. For every 100 females, there were 73.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 69.7 males. The median income for a household in the city was $26,319, and the median income for a family was $32,222. Males had a median income of $25,917 versus $17,656 for females. The
per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...
for the city was $15,124. About 9.9% of families and 11.7% 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 ...
, including 19.0% of those under age 18 and 13.0% of those age 65 or over.


Education

It is served by the
Exira–Elk Horn–Kimballton Community School District The Exira–Elk Horn–Kimballton (Exira–EHK) Community School District is a rural public school district headquartered in Elk Horn, Iowa. It consists of two buildings, one in Elk Horn and one in Exira. The district is mostly within Audubon ...
. It was in the
Exira Community School District Exira Community School District was a school district headquartered in Exira, Iowa. Its schools were Exira Elementary School and Exira Community High School. In addition to Exira, the district served Brayton. History In the late 1950s or early ...
until it consolidated into Exira-EHK on July 1, 2014.


Notable people

* Ben F. Jensen (1892–1970)
U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...
for the former Iowa's 7th congressional district *
Jack Pardee John Perry Pardee (April 19, 1936 – April 1, 2013) was an American professional football player and head coach. He played as a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL). As a coach, he is the only head coach to helm a team in college ...
(1936–2013)
NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The N ...
player and
Head Coach A head coach, senior coach, or manager is a professional responsible for training and developing athletes within a sports team. This role often has a higher public profile and salary than other coaching positions. In some sports, such as associat ...


See also

*
T-Bone Trail The American Discovery Trail is a system of recreational trails and roads that collectively form a coast-to-coast hiking and biking trail across the mid-tier of the United States. Horses can also be ridden on most of this trail. The coastal tr ...
* John D. Bush House


References


External links


Exira Community Schools


Comprehensive Statistical Data and more about Exira
Official website
{{authority control Cities in Audubon County, Iowa Cities in Iowa 1857 establishments in Iowa Populated places established in 1857