McGregor, Iowa

McGregor, Iowa
—  City  —
Downtown McGregor
Location of McGregor, Iowa
Coordinates: 43°1′19″N 91°10′47″W / 43.02194°N 91.17972°W / 43.02194; -91.17972Coordinates: 43°1′19″N 91°10′47″W / 43.02194°N 91.17972°W / 43.02194; -91.17972
Country	United States
State	Iowa
County	Clayton
Area
– Total	1.3 sq mi (3.4 km2)
– Land	1.3 sq mi (3.4 km2)
– Water	0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2)
Elevation	692 ft (211 m)
Population (2000)
– Total	871
– Density	665.8/sq mi (257.1/km2)
Time zone	Central (CST) (UTC-6)
– Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP code	52157
Area code(s)	563
FIPS code	19-48000
GNIS feature ID	0458913

McGregor is a city in Clayton County, Iowa, United States. The population was 871 at the 2000 census. McGregor is located on the Mississippi River across from Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin. Pike's Peak State Park is located just south of the city. Just to the north of McGregor is the city of Marquette.

History

McGregor in 1870

McGregor was founded as MacGregor's Landing in 1847 by Alexandar MacGregor, a descendant of Rob Roy MacGregor, and the area around MacGregor's Landing was settled by the extended family. In 1849 it was reported that the original MacGregor seal and signet were owned by Alex McGregor. The Scots Gaelic clan seal was inscribed, "Triogal Ma Dh'ream/ Een dhn bait spair nocht", which was interpreted as "I am of royal descent/ Slay and spare not". The signet was a bloodstone from Loch Lomond, and was sketched by William Williams.^[1]

Since 1837, MacGregor had been operating a ferry across the Mississippi River between Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin and the present site of McGregor, Iowa. MacGregor planned the new city as a six block development, and it was quickly populated, being incorporated as McGregor in 1857. In that same year, the Milwaukee & Mississippi Railroad finished building a railroad track from Milwaukee, Wisconsin to Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin, thus connecting Lake Michigan with the Mississippi River by rail. McGregor quickly became a major commercial center, and served as a hub where grain from Iowa and Minnesota could be transported across the Mississippi and sent on to Milwaukee via railroad. More railroads were built to connect McGregor with cities further west, and the city of North McGregor (now Marquette, Iowa) was established just north of the city to serve as the city's railroad terminus. After reaching McGregor from the west, trains were disassembled and railroad cars were ferried across the Mississippi to continue on towards Lake Michigan.

During the 1870s, the population of McGregor exploded to over 5,500 as the city became the busiest shipping port west of Chicago.^{[citation needed]} In 1874, the system of ferrying railroad cars across the river between North McGregor and Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin, was brought to an end when Prairie du Chien businessman John Lawler commissioned the construction of a permanent pontoon bridge to connect the two cities' rail lines. As the need for men to disassemble and ship trains across the river disappeared, the city's population began to decline. Today the city's history is preserved in its downtown business district, which contains many buildings constructed during the city's boom years. Because of its colorful history and location beside the Mississippi River, the city has become a popular summer tourist destination, and it is known for its many antique stores.

Geography

McGregor is located at 43°1′19″N 91°10′47″W / 43.02194°N 91.17972°W / 43.02194; -91.17972 (43.021903, -91.179811)^[2].

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1.3 square miles (3.4 km²), all of it land.

Demographics

As of the census^[3] of 2000, there were 871 people, 382 households, and 205 families residing in the city. The population density was 665.8 people per square mile (256.7/km²). There were 487 housing units at an average density of 372.2 per square mile (143.5/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 99.54% White, 0.23% Native American, 0.11% Asian, and 0.11% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.69% of the population.

There were 382 households out of which 23.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.1% were married couples living together, 10.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 46.1% were non-families. 38.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.12 and the average family size was 2.83.

In the city the population was spread out with 19.1% under the age of 18, 7.5% from 18 to 24, 24.3% from 25 to 44, 24.0% from 45 to 64, and 25.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 91.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.0 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $30,163, and the median income for a family was $37,969. Males had a median income of $27,212 versus $17,344 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,636. About 7.9% of families and 9.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.7% of those under age 18 and 5.4% of those age 65 or over.

Notable natives

• Ringling brothers, circus
• John Ward Studebaker, U.S. Commissioner of Education from 1934 to 1948
• Thomas Updegraff, United States House of Representatives from Iowa

See also

• 16 to Life
• Effigy Mounds National Monument

References

1. ^ William Williams (1920) Major William Williams' Journal of a Trip to Iowa in 1849. Annals of Iowa 7(4).
2. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2011-04-23. 
3. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 

External links

• McGregor-Marquette Chamber of Commerce