Grundy County, Iowa
Grundy County is a county located in the U.S. state of Iowa. At the 2020 census, the population was 12,329,[1] and was estimated to be 12,361 in 2025.[2] The county seat and the largest city is Grundy Center.[3] The county is named for Felix Grundy, former U.S. Attorney General.[4]
Grundy County is included in the Waterloo–Cedar Falls metropolitan area.[5]
History
[edit]Grundy County was formed on January 15, 1851, and became self-governing in 1856. It was named after Felix Grundy, a U.S. Senator and Representative from Tennessee and a former U.S. Attorney General under President Martin Van Buren.
The first courthouse was built in 1861. The wooden, two-story building contained a courtroom, but was used for other purposes, including housing the office of the sheriff, county treasurer, the judge, as well as a chamber for the jury. The cornerstone for a second courthouse was laid on November 11, 1891.[6]
Geography
[edit]According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 501.891 square miles (1,299.89 km2), of which 501.855 square miles (1,299.80 km2) is land and 0.036 square miles (0.093 km2) (0.01%) is water.[7] It is the 71st largest county in Iowa by total area.[8]
Major highways
[edit]
U.S. Highway 20- File:Elongated circle 14.svg Iowa Highway 14
- File:Elongated circle 57.svg Iowa Highway 57
- File:Elongated circle 175.svg Iowa Highway 175
Adjacent counties
[edit]- Butler County (north)
- Black Hawk County (east)
- Tama County (southeast)
- Marshall County (southwest)
- Hardin County (west)
- Franklin County (northwest)
Demographics
[edit]
2020 census
[edit]
As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 12,329 and a population density of Template:Pop density.[9] 96.97% of the population reported being of one race.[10]
The racial makeup of the county was 96.0% White, 0.4% Black or African American, 0.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 0.3% from some other race, and 3.0% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 1.2% of the population.[10]
The median age was 42.3 years. 23.8% of residents were under the age of 18 and 21.6% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 96.2 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 94.5 males age 18 and over.[9]
There were 5,069 households in the county, of which 28.2% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 57.4% were married-couple households, 16.3% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 20.9% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 27.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.[9]
There were 5,465 housing units, of which 7.2% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 82.5% were owner-occupied and 17.5% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.5% and the rental vacancy rate was 9.4%.[9]
<0.1% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.[11]
2010 census
[edit]The 2010 census recorded a population of 12,453 in the county, with a population density of Template:Pop density. There were 5,530 housing units, of which 5,131 were occupied.[12]
2000 census
[edit]At the 2000 census, there were 12,369 people, 4,984 households and 3,583 families residing in the county. The population density was 25 inhabitants per square mile (9.7/km2). There were 5,304 housing units at an average density of 11 per square mile (4.2/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 98.97% White, 0.08% Black or African American, 0.02% Native American, 0.29% Asian, 0.15% from other races, and 0.48% from two or more races. 0.58% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 4,984 households, of which 30.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.80% were married couples living together, 5.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.10% were non-families. 25.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.94.
25.20% of the population were under the age of 18, 6.30% from 18 to 24, 25.10% from 25 to 44, 24.10% from 45 to 64, and 19.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.10 males.
The median household income was $39,396, and the median family income was $46,627. Males had a median income of $32,006 and females $22,003. The per capita income was $19,142. About 3.30% of families and 4.60% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.60% of those under age 18 and 5.70% of those age 65 or over.
Communities
[edit]Cities
[edit]Townships
[edit]Population ranking
[edit]The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2020 census of Grundy County.
† county seat
| Rank | City/Town/etc. | Municipal type | Population (2020 Census) |
Population (2024 Estimate) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | † Grundy Center | City | 2,796 | 2,821 |
| 2 | Reinbeck | City | 1,662 | 1,673 |
| 3 | Dike | City | 1,304 | 1,293 |
| 4 | Conrad | City | 1,093 | 1,098 |
| 5 | Wellsburg | City | 720 | 709 |
| 6 | Holland | City | 269 | 261 |
| 7 | Stout | City | 191 | 194 |
| 8 | Beaman | City | 161 | 155 |
| 9 | Morrison | City | 98 | 101 |
Politics
[edit]Grundy County has long been one of the most consistently Republican counties in Iowa. The county has only voted for a candidate of a different party four times since the county was founded in 1851. The first occasion was in 1912, when former Republican Theodore Roosevelt won the county as the Progressive candidate. During his two landslide victories of 1932 and 1936, Franklin D. Roosevelt became the first Democrat to win Grundy County in its history. The final time a non-Republican candidate carried the county was in 1964, when Lyndon B. Johnson won in a nationwide landslide. No Democratic candidate has ever received more than 60% of the vote in the county, and in the last twenty-one elections (beginning in 1944), the Republican obtained at least 60% of the vote in sixteen of them, and the Republicans have hit at least 65% in ten of the twenty-one elections in that span.
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1896 | 1,894 | 60.36% | 1,206 | 38.43% | 38 | 1.21% |
| 1900 | 2,025 | 61.79% | 1,203 | 36.71% | 49 | 1.50% |
| 1904 | 2,021 | 66.55% | 938 | 30.89% | 78 | 2.57% |
| 1908 | 1,861 | 61.77% | 1,105 | 36.67% | 47 | 1.56% |
| 1912 | 421 | 13.60% | 1,149 | 37.12% | 1,525 | 49.27% |
| 1916 | 2,127 | 67.23% | 1,015 | 32.08% | 22 | 0.70% |
| 1920 | 4,662 | 85.82% | 714 | 13.14% | 56 | 1.03% |
| 1924 | 3,322 | 57.84% | 615 | 10.71% | 1,806 | 31.45% |
| 1928 | 3,671 | 69.03% | 1,620 | 30.46% | 27 | 0.51% |
| 1932 | 2,419 | 39.44% | 3,661 | 59.68% | 54 | 0.88% |
| 1936 | 2,656 | 39.62% | 3,918 | 58.45% | 129 | 1.92% |
| 1940 | 3,908 | 58.56% | 2,745 | 41.13% | 21 | 0.31% |
| 1944 | 3,625 | 62.14% | 2,191 | 37.56% | 18 | 0.31% |
| 1948 | 3,154 | 55.85% | 2,344 | 41.51% | 149 | 2.64% |
| 1952 | 5,652 | 78.98% | 1,483 | 20.72% | 21 | 0.29% |
| 1956 | 4,915 | 71.99% | 1,908 | 27.95% | 4 | 0.06% |
| 1960 | 4,989 | 69.62% | 2,174 | 30.34% | 3 | 0.04% |
| 1964 | 3,215 | 47.22% | 3,582 | 52.61% | 11 | 0.16% |
| 1968 | 4,866 | 71.14% | 1,675 | 24.49% | 299 | 4.37% |
| 1972 | 4,706 | 71.03% | 1,844 | 27.83% | 75 | 1.13% |
| 1976 | 4,173 | 62.66% | 2,410 | 36.19% | 77 | 1.16% |
| 1980 | 4,644 | 66.10% | 1,869 | 26.60% | 513 | 7.30% |
| 1984 | 4,527 | 69.45% | 1,915 | 29.38% | 76 | 1.17% |
| 1988 | 3,433 | 60.42% | 2,211 | 38.91% | 38 | 0.67% |
| 1992 | 3,160 | 51.33% | 1,895 | 30.78% | 1,101 | 17.88% |
| 1996 | 2,928 | 51.49% | 2,322 | 40.83% | 437 | 7.68% |
| 2000 | 3,851 | 63.02% | 2,139 | 35.00% | 121 | 1.98% |
| 2004 | 4,429 | 64.67% | 2,386 | 34.84% | 34 | 0.50% |
| 2008 | 3,945 | 57.77% | 2,790 | 40.86% | 94 | 1.38% |
| 2012 | 4,215 | 60.54% | 2,635 | 37.85% | 112 | 1.61% |
| 2016 | 4,527 | 65.88% | 1,856 | 27.01% | 489 | 7.12% |
| 2020 | 4,929 | 67.74% | 2,206 | 30.32% | 141 | 1.94% |
| 2024 | 4,998 | 69.94% | 2,019 | 28.25% | 129 | 1.81% |
| 2016 | 1 | 33.33% | 1 | 33.33% | 1 | 33.33% |
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ↑ "Explore Census Data". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 9, 2026.
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedQF - ↑ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved January 9, 2026.
- ↑ Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. Govt. Print. Off. pp. 145.
- ↑ United States Office of Management and Budget. "Update of Statistical Area Definitions and Guidance on Their Uses" (PDF). pp. 5, 36. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 14, 2006. Retrieved July 21, 2006.
- ↑ "Welcome to Grundy County". Archived from the original on February 17, 2008. Retrieved January 20, 2008.
- ↑ "2025 County Gazetteer Files – Iowa". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 9, 2026.
- ↑ "U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Grundy County, Iowa". www.census.gov. Retrieved January 9, 2026.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 "2020 Decennial Census Demographic Profile (DP1)". United States Census Bureau. 2021. Retrieved December 25, 2025.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 "2020 Decennial Census Redistricting Data (Public Law 94-171)". United States Census Bureau. 2021. Retrieved December 25, 2025.
- ↑ "2020 Decennial Census Demographic and Housing Characteristics (DHC)". United States Census Bureau. 2023. Retrieved December 25, 2025.
- ↑ "Population & Housing Occupancy Status 2010" (PDF). United States Census Bureau American FactFinder. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 16, 2020. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
- ↑ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved April 26, 2018.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Grundy County, Iowa. |