Cass County, Iowa | |
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 Location within the U.S. state ofIowa | |
| Coordinates:41°19′46″N94°55′45″W / 41.329444444444°N 94.929166666667°W /41.329444444444; -94.929166666667 | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Iowa |
| Founded | 1851 |
| Named after | Lewis Cass |
| Seat | Atlantic |
| Largest city | Atlantic |
| Area | |
• Total | 565 sq mi (1,460 km2) |
| • Land | 564 sq mi (1,460 km2) |
| • Water | 0.7 sq mi (1.8 km2) 0.1% |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 13,024 |
• Estimate (2024) | 13,127 |
| • Density | 23.1/sq mi (8.92/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−6 (Central) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−5 (CDT) |
| Congressional district | 3rd |
| Website | www |
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Cass County is acounty located in theU.S. state ofIowa. As of the2020 census, the population was 13,127.[2] Itscounty seat isAtlantic.[3] It was named to honorLewis Cass, who was the 1848 Democratic nominee for president.
Cass County is named in honor ofLewis Cass,[4] aMichigansenator and an unsuccessfulDemocratic candidate for the presidency in1848. The county was established within its present boundaries in 1851 and originated in 1853.Religious persecution was responsible for bringing the first people of European ancestry to Cass County. TheMormons, fleeing fromIllinois, were the earliest settlers, and established a community at Indiantown in 1846.
At Indiantown, two of the three commissioners selected to locate acounty seat were chosen. The site they chose was one mile (1.6 km) from Indiantown and namedLewis. Most of the people and businesses in Indian Town moved to Lewis shortly after it was laid out. In 1856, a frame courthouse was built, and eight years later a small stone building was completed for the county treasurer's office. In 1857, there was an attempt to relocate the county seat to Grove City; it was unsuccessful. On October 20, 1869, after a due canvass of the vote on the re-location of the county seat, the Board declared the city ofAtlantic the county seat and ordered the county officers to that place.
In 1872, the first courthouse built in Atlantic was completed. Until it was completed county offices were held in various empty buildings. Ten years later the county built its second courthouse at Atlantic. The $65,000 building was destroyed by a fire in 1932. The fire started in the clock tower and gutted all of the second floor. Most of the county records and equipment were saved.
Thepresent, fourth, courthouse was completed in 1934. While it was being built, county offices were located in the Atlantic Motors building, where an attempted robbery of the treasurer's safe took place. The robbers were interrupted and escaped, but without any money. The final cost of the fourth courthouse was $130,000: $65,000 came from a county bond issue, $46,500 from insurance and the remaining was covered by aPublic Works Administration federal grant. The concrete and brick building is three stories high. It was dedicated on December 26, 1934, with the main speaker being theGovernor of Iowa,Clyde L. Herring. The Board of Supervisors approved a new jail addition, which was dedicated in 1984.
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 565 square miles (1,460 km2), of which 564 square miles (1,460 km2) is land and 0.7 square miles (1.8 km2) (0.1%) is water.[5]
Due to its proximity toCass County, Nebraska, and because both of those counties receive most of their broadcasts fromOmaha, Nebraska, references to 'Cass County' must be frequently disambiguated, or result in confusion.[citation needed]
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1860 | 1,612 | — | |
| 1870 | 5,464 | 239.0% | |
| 1880 | 16,943 | 210.1% | |
| 1890 | 19,642 | 15.9% | |
| 1900 | 21,274 | 8.3% | |
| 1910 | 19,047 | −10.5% | |
| 1920 | 19,421 | 2.0% | |
| 1930 | 19,422 | 0.0% | |
| 1940 | 18,647 | −4.0% | |
| 1950 | 18,532 | −0.6% | |
| 1960 | 17,919 | −3.3% | |
| 1970 | 17,007 | −5.1% | |
| 1980 | 16,932 | −0.4% | |
| 1990 | 15,128 | −10.7% | |
| 2000 | 14,684 | −2.9% | |
| 2010 | 13,956 | −5.0% | |
| 2020 | 13,127 | −5.9% | |
| 2024 (est.) | 13,024 | [6] | −0.8% |
| U.S. Decennial Census[7] 1790-1960[8] 1900-1990[9] 1990-2000[10] 2010-2018[11] | |||
As of the2020 census, the county had a population of 13,127 with a population density of23.3/sq mi (9.0/km2). The median age was 45.5 years, 22.0% of residents were under the age of 18, and 24.1% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 95.6 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 93.4 males age 18 and over.[12]
The racial makeup of the county was 94.6%White, 0.2%Black or African American, 0.2%American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%Asian, 0.6%Native Hawaiian andPacific Islander, 0.9% from some other race, and 3.3% fromtwo or more races.Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 2.3% of the population. 96.75% of the population reported being of one race. 92.23% were non-Hispanic White, 0.22% were Black, 2.33% were Hispanic, 0.19% were Native American, 0.27% were Asian, 0.59% were Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander and 4.17% were some other race or more than one race.[13]
There were 5,818 households in the county, of which 24.5% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 48.1% were married-couple households, 19.0% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 26.2% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 34.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. There were 6,398 housing units, of which 5,818 were occupied and 9.1% were vacant; of the occupied units, 72.4% were owner-occupied and 27.6% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.6% and the rental vacancy rate was 9.2%.[12]
50.3% of residents lived in urban areas, while 49.7% lived in rural areas.[14]
The 2010 census recorded a population of 13,956 in the county, with a population density of24.7/sq mi (9.6/km2). There were 6,591 housing units, of which 5,980 were occupied.[15]
As of thecensus[16] of 2000, there were 14,684 people, 6,120 households, and 4,094 families residing in the county. Thepopulation density was 26 people per square mile (10 people/km2). There were 6,590 housing units at an average density of 12 units per square mile (4.6 units/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 98.84%White, 0.21%Black orAfrican American, 0.12%Native American, 0.14%Asian, 0.04%Pacific Islander, 0.31% fromother races, and 0.34% from two or more races. 0.69% of the population wereHispanic orLatino of any race.
There were 6,120 households, out of which 29.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.60% weremarried couples living together, 7.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.10% were non-families. 29.80% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.32 and the average family size was 2.87.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.80% under the age of 18, 6.80% from 18 to 24, 24.80% from 25 to 44, 23.80% from 45 to 64, and 20.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 94.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.20 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $32,922, and the median income for a family was $40,564. Males had a median income of $29,736 versus $20,108 for females. Theper capita income for the county was $17,067. About 7.20% of families and 11.10% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 14.40% of those under age 18 and 10.10% of those age 65 or over.
Cass County is divided into sixteentownships:
The population ranking of the following table is based on the2020 census of Cass County.[2]†county seat
| Rank | City/Town/etc. | Municipal type | Population (2020 Census) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | †Atlantic | City | 6,792 |
| 2 | Griswold | City | 994 |
| 3 | Anita | City | 963 |
| 4 | Massena | City | 359 |
| 5 | Lewis | City | 357 |
| 6 | Cumberland | City | 251 |
| 7 | Marne | City | 110 |
| 8 | Wiota | City | 91 |
Cass County has historically been one of the most solidly Republican counties in Iowa. The only Democrat ever to win the county wasFranklin D. Roosevelt in his 1932 landslide, taking the county by less than 2%. Despite Roosevelt winning by an even larger landslide nationally just four years later, he lost Cass County by more than 13%.
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1896 | 2,959 | 56.11% | 2,240 | 42.47% | 75 | 1.42% |
| 1900 | 3,128 | 60.12% | 2,010 | 38.63% | 65 | 1.25% |
| 1904 | 3,050 | 65.55% | 1,394 | 29.96% | 209 | 4.49% |
| 1908 | 2,799 | 61.19% | 1,655 | 36.18% | 120 | 2.62% |
| 1912 | 1,724 | 38.35% | 1,510 | 33.59% | 1,261 | 28.05% |
| 1916 | 2,763 | 59.75% | 1,801 | 38.95% | 60 | 1.30% |
| 1920 | 6,558 | 78.23% | 1,668 | 19.90% | 157 | 1.87% |
| 1924 | 5,721 | 68.70% | 1,099 | 13.20% | 1,508 | 18.11% |
| 1928 | 6,120 | 69.43% | 2,640 | 29.95% | 55 | 0.62% |
| 1932 | 4,215 | 48.76% | 4,339 | 50.19% | 91 | 1.05% |
| 1936 | 5,622 | 56.43% | 4,284 | 43.00% | 56 | 0.56% |
| 1940 | 6,377 | 62.69% | 3,763 | 36.99% | 32 | 0.31% |
| 1944 | 5,610 | 65.53% | 2,928 | 34.20% | 23 | 0.27% |
| 1948 | 5,106 | 59.66% | 3,372 | 39.40% | 81 | 0.95% |
| 1952 | 7,355 | 75.61% | 2,349 | 24.15% | 23 | 0.24% |
| 1956 | 6,103 | 68.34% | 2,818 | 31.56% | 9 | 0.10% |
| 1960 | 6,290 | 67.24% | 3,059 | 32.70% | 5 | 0.05% |
| 1964 | 4,182 | 51.01% | 4,006 | 48.87% | 10 | 0.12% |
| 1968 | 5,223 | 67.30% | 2,136 | 27.52% | 402 | 5.18% |
| 1972 | 5,234 | 72.06% | 1,923 | 26.48% | 106 | 1.46% |
| 1976 | 4,589 | 60.79% | 2,866 | 37.97% | 94 | 1.25% |
| 1980 | 5,391 | 66.34% | 2,176 | 26.78% | 559 | 6.88% |
| 1984 | 5,053 | 67.10% | 2,417 | 32.09% | 61 | 0.81% |
| 1988 | 3,962 | 56.86% | 2,934 | 42.11% | 72 | 1.03% |
| 1992 | 3,176 | 45.00% | 2,231 | 31.61% | 1,651 | 23.39% |
| 1996 | 3,384 | 49.29% | 2,616 | 38.11% | 865 | 12.60% |
| 2000 | 4,206 | 61.13% | 2,481 | 36.06% | 193 | 2.81% |
| 2004 | 4,796 | 63.58% | 2,679 | 35.52% | 68 | 0.90% |
| 2008 | 4,006 | 54.49% | 3,211 | 43.68% | 135 | 1.84% |
| 2012 | 4,217 | 58.53% | 2,858 | 39.67% | 130 | 1.80% |
| 2016 | 4,761 | 66.82% | 1,951 | 27.38% | 413 | 5.80% |
| 2020 | 4,969 | 68.29% | 2,201 | 30.25% | 106 | 1.46% |
| 2024 | 5,007 | 69.38% | 2,077 | 28.78% | 133 | 1.84% |
Places adjacent to Cass County, Iowa | |
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Municipalities and communities ofCass County, Iowa,United States | ||
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| Cities |  | |
| Townships | ||
| Unincorporated communities | ||
| International | |
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| National | |
| Other | |
41°19′46″N94°55′45″W / 41.32944°N 94.92917°W /41.32944; -94.92917
