Muscatine, Iowa

Muscatine, Iowa
City
Muscatine County Courthouse
Nickname(s):  "The Pearl of the Mississippi", "The Pearl City"
Location in the U.S. state of Iowa
Coordinates: 41°25′26″N 91°3′22″W
Country	United States
State	Iowa
County	Muscatine
Incorporated	1839
Area
• City	19.25 sq mi (49.86 km2)
• Land	18.20 sq mi (47.13 km2)
• Water	1.05 sq mi (2.73 km2)
Elevation	587 ft (179 m)
Population  (2020)
• City	23,797
• Rank	22nd in Iowa
• Density	1,307.81/sq mi (504.95/km2)
• Metro	54,741
Time zone	UTC−6 (CST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
ZIP Code	52761
Area code	563
FIPS code	19-55110
GNIS feature ID	0465186
Website	www.muscatineiowa.gov

Muscatine is a city in Muscatine County, Iowa. In 2020, 23,797 people lived in the city of Muscatine.

History

Muscatine began as a trading post in 1833. The city was first called Bloomington in 1839. The name was later changed because there were so many other cities named Bloomington. Some people think the name "Muscatine" came from the name of a local Native American tribe.

A person from Germany founded a button company in Muscatine in 1884. They made buttons from clam shells found in the Mississippi river. Muscatine was and still is called the "Pearl button capital of the world."

Sam Clemens, also called Mark Twain, worked at the newspaper the city for a short amount of time. He also wrote about Muscatine in his book Life on the Mississippi.

"And I remember Muscatine--still more pleasantly--for its summer sunsets. I have never seen any, on either side of the ocean, that equaled them. They used the broad smooth river as a canvas, and painted on it every imaginable dream of color, from the

mottled

daintinesses and delicacies of the opal, all the way up, through cumulative intensities, to blinding purple and crimson conflagrations which were enchanting to the eye, but sharply tried it at the same time. All the Upper Mississippi region has these extraordinary sunsets as a familiar spectacle. It is the true Sunset Land: I am sure no other country can show so good a right to the name. The sunrises are also said to be exceedingly fine. I do not know."

Notable natives

• Samuel Clemmens, also called "Mark Twain" - writer
• Norman Baker- businessman, radio pioneer, helped finish the air-powered calliope
• Roy J Carver- businessman and philanthropist
• C Maxwell Stanley- founder of Stanley Consultants, delegate to the United Nations
• Ellis Parker Butler- writer
• Lee Allen- medical illustrator
• Dr. Ronald K Ross- academic physician
• Dr. David G. Meyers- academic cardiologist
• Ernie Peniston- rhythm and blues musician
• Max Allan Collins- Writer of screenplay of the movie Mommy. The movie was filmed in Muscatine's Wood Creek neighborhood in 1995. He also wrote the graphic novel Road to Perdition, which became a screenplay and was filmed in 2002, starring Tom Hanks and Jude Law.
• Terry Beatty- artist who has worked as a penciler and inker in the comic book industry.
• Phil Vischer- creator of VeggieTales
• Natalie Larson- Professional artist and marathon runner

Other websites

• Official website of the City of Muscatine Archived 2017-05-29 at the Wayback Machine
• Official website of Muscatine County
• Muscatine Chamber of Commerce Archived 2006-08-11 at the Wayback Machine
• Muscatine Journal
• Muscatine Web Design Archived 2007-10-07 at the Wayback Machine
• Muscatine Art Center