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Fun Facts About Keokuk

Fun Facts About Keokuk, Iowa

A City Full of Surprises

Keokuk, Iowa, may be a small city, but it has a history packed with interesting, unusual, and fun facts. From famous visitors to record-breaking events, Keokuk has made its mark in ways you might not expect. Here are some of the most fascinating fun facts about this historic river town.

Famous People & Visitors

  1. Mark Twain once lived and worked in Keokuk as a printer for his brother Orion Clemens’ newspaper.
  2. Buffalo Bill Cody performed in Keokuk with his Wild West Show.
  3. U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt visited Keokuk during his time in office.
  4. Vice President Aaron Burr’s daughter, Theodosia, was rumored to have visited Keokuk before her mysterious disappearance.
  5. The outlaw Jesse James was said to have passed through Keokuk during his crime spree.
  6. Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain) later wrote about Keokuk in his book Life on the Mississippi.
  7. Ulysses S. Grant was stationed at Fort Des Moines, near Keokuk, before the Civil War.
  8. Famed aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart once flew over Keokuk on a cross-country trip.
  9. Keokuk was visited by the famous circus showman P.T. Barnum in the 19th century.
  10. Noted actor William Frawley, best known for playing Fred Mertz on I Love Lucy, was born in nearby Burlington, Iowa, but had relatives in Keokuk.
  11. Famed writer Robert A. Heinlein, one of the “Big Three” science fiction authors, was born in Missouri but had ties to Keokuk through extended family.
  12. General Samuel Ryan Curtis, a major figure in the Civil War, was a resident of Keokuk.
  13. Renowned Civil War nurse Annie Wittenmyer worked in Keokuk hospitals during the war.

Historical & Cultural Facts

  1. Keokuk is named after Chief Keokuk, a Sauk leader known for his diplomacy with U.S. settlers.
  2. The city was a major hub for riverboat travel in the 19th century.
  3. During the Civil War, Keokuk had five military hospitals treating wounded Union soldiers.
  4. Keokuk was home to the first medical college in Iowa, established in 1850.
  5. The Grand Theatre has been in operation for over 100 years.
  6. Keokuk’s Lock & Dam No. 19 was once the largest hydroelectric dam in the world.
  7. The dam was built with financial backing from Andrew Carnegie.
  8. In 1934, Keokuk recorded the highest temperature ever in Iowa—118°F.
  9. The Keokuk National Cemetery is one of the original national cemeteries established during the Civil War.
  10. Chief Keokuk’s remains were relocated to Keokuk, Iowa, in 1883 from Kansas.
  11. The Keokuk Waterworks building is one of the oldest municipal water plants in Iowa.
  12. The city was once a leader in manufacturing lead shot for firearms.
  13. The historic Keokuk Carnegie Library was built in 1903 and still serves the community.
  14. The first steamboat to navigate the Des Moines Rapids stopped in Keokuk in 1823.
  15. The city was a major point of departure for pioneers heading westward in the 1840s.

Unusual & Record-Breaking Events

  1. Keokuk’s floodwall was one of the first major flood control structures along the Mississippi River.
  2. Keokuk has one of the largest concentrations of bald eagles in the winter months.
  3. The town has hosted Bald Eagle Appreciation Days for decades.
  4. The first professional baseball game played in Iowa was in Keokuk in 1875.
  5. The Keokuk Westerns were a major league baseball team for one year in the National Association.
  6. Keokuk’s old courthouse clock tower was once the tallest structure in the city.
  7. The first streetcar system in Iowa was built in Keokuk.
  8. Keokuk was a major stop on the Mormon Trail, with thousands passing through in the 1840s.
  9. The first automobile in Iowa is said to have driven through Keokuk in the early 1900s.
  10. Keokuk once had one of the busiest riverfronts in the Midwest, shipping goods across the country.
  11. The city was home to the first YMCA established west of the Mississippi River.
  12. The Keokuk-Hamilton Bridge was once the longest double-deck swing-span bridge in the world.
  13. The city’s once-thriving oyster shell button industry supplied buttons across the country.
  14. In 1857, Keokuk’s population surpassed 10,000, making it one of Iowa’s largest cities at the time.

Local Legends & Curiosities

  1. Some claim that Al Capone’s bootleggers used the Mississippi River near Keokuk to transport illegal liquor during Prohibition.
  2. The city is home to several historic ghost stories, including tales of haunted mansions.
  3. The Mississippi River at Keokuk is one of the deepest parts of the river in Iowa.
  4. Keokuk is home to one of the longest continuously operating Masonic Lodges in Iowa.
  5. The city’s “Keokuck” spelling variation led to the creation of Keokuck.com as a fun nod to the historical misspelling.
  6. Several downtown buildings in Keokuk have underground tunnels rumored to have been part of the Underground Railroad.
  7. Keokuk was once home to one of the largest button factories in the world, using Mississippi River mussel shells to make buttons.
  8. The city once had a hotel that claimed to be “fireproof” but burned down in the early 1900s.
  9. A legendary river monster was rumored to have been spotted near Keokuk in the 1800s.
  10. Keokuk was home to one of the earliest bowling alleys in Iowa, dating back to the late 1800s.
  11. Keokuk once had a thriving ice harvesting industry, cutting massive blocks of ice from the Mississippi River to sell to surrounding areas.
  12. The city’s Victorian-era mansions are said to be among the most haunted buildings in Iowa.
  13. Keokuk was home to one of the first synchronized stoplight systems in Iowa.
  14. The original Keokuk Public Library was designed with a hidden vault to store valuable books and manuscripts.
  15. The city’s riverfront was once a bustling center for steamboat races in the late 1800s.
  16. Keokuk’s historic Rand Park was once home to a small zoo featuring exotic animals.
  17. The Mississippi River near Keokuk is one of the few places where the water can reverse direction due to dam operations.
  18. During the Great Flood of 1993, Keokuk was one of the last cities along the Mississippi to hold back rising waters before experiencing flooding.
  19. Keokuk once had a beer bottling plant that produced some of the most popular beverages in the region.
  20. The city’s first telephone exchange was established in the 1880s, connecting Keokuk residents before many larger cities had phone service.
  21. Keokuk has a time capsule buried at one of its oldest public schools, set to be opened in 2050.
  22. The Keokuk Art Center was founded by a group of local artists who wanted to preserve the city’s creative history.

This is just the beginning—Keokuk’s history is filled with unique and surprising stories. Whether you live here or are just visiting, there’s always something new to discover about this fascinating river town!