Dubuque, Iowa
Dubuque is a city in Dubuque County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. The population was 59,667 at the 2020 United States census. The city lies along the Mississippi River at the junction of Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin, a region locally known as the Tri-State Area. It serves as the main commercial, industrial, educational, and cultural center for the area. Geographically, it is part of the Driftless Area, a portion of North America that escaped all three phases of the Wisconsin Glaciation, resulting in a hilly topography unlike most of the Midwestern United States.
Dubuque is a regional tourist destination featuring the city's unique architecture, casinos, and riverside location. It is home to five institutions of higher education. While Dubuque has historically been a center of manufacturing, the local economy also includes health care, publishing, and financial service sectors.
History
Spain gained control of the Louisiana Territory west of the Mississippi River following the 1763 defeat of the French; the British took over all territory to the east. The first permanent European settler in what is now Dubuque was Quebecois pioneer Julien Dubuque, who arrived in 1785. In 1788, he received permission from the Spanish government and the local Meskwaki people to mine the area's rich lead deposits. Control of Louisiana and Dubuque's mines shifted briefly back to France in 1800, then to the United States in 1803, following the Louisiana Purchase. The Meskwaki continued to mine with the full support of the U.S. government until 1830 when the Meskwaki were illegally pushed out of the mine region by American prospectors.The current City of Dubuque was named after Julien Dubuque, who settled at the southern end of a large flat plain adjacent to the Mississippi River. The city was officially chartered in 1833, located in unorganized territory of the United States. The region was designated as the Iowa Territory in 1838 and was included in the newly created State of Iowa in 1846. After the lead resources were exhausted, the city became home to numerous industries. Dubuque became a center for the timber industry because of its proximity to forests in Minnesota and Wisconsin, and was later dominated by various mill working businesses. Also important were boat building, brewing, and later, the railroad industry. In 1874, the Diamond Jo Line moved its company headquarters to Dubuque. Diamond Jo Line established a shipyard at Eagle Point in 1878. Just two years later, the company was the largest employer in Dubuque, putting 78 people to work, 75 of whom worked at the shipyard earning their collective $800$1,000 per week in wages.
Between 1860 and 1880, Dubuque was one of the 100 largest urban areas in the United States. Iowa's first church was built by Methodists in 1833.
Beginning in the mid-19th century and into the early 20th century, thousands of poor German, Luxembourgish and Irish Catholic immigrants came to the city to work in the manufacturing centers. The city's large Roman Catholic congregations led to its designation as the seat of the newly established Archdiocese of Dubuque. Numerous convents, abbeys, and other religious institutions were built. The ethnic German and Irish descendants maintain a strong Catholic presence in the city. Nicholas E. Gonner, a Catholic immigrant from Pfaffenthal in Luxembourg, founded the Catholic Publishing Company of Dubuque, Iowa. His son Nicholas E. Gonner Jr. took over in 1892, editing two German-language weeklies, an English-language weekly, and the Daily Tribune, the only Catholic daily newspaper ever published in the United States.
Early in the 20th century, Dubuque was one of several sites of a brass era automobile company, Adams-Farwell; like most others, it folded. Subsequently, Dubuque grew significantly, and industrial activity remained its economic mainstay until the 1980s.
A series of changes in manufacturing and the onset of the Farm Crisis in the 1980s led to a large decline in the sector and the city's economy as a whole. In the 1990s, the economy diversified rapidly, shifting away from heavy industry. Tourism, technology, and publishing are now among the largest and fastest-growing businesses. Dubuque attracts over 2 million tourists annually.
At the start of the 21st century, the city focused its efforts on revitalizing the Port of Dubuque, which now includes the National Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium, Grand Harbor Resort and Waterpark, Grand River Event Center, Diamond Jo Casino, the nearly-mile long Mississippi Riverwalk, and Stone Cliff Winery, which is housed in the former Dubuque Star Brewery building.
Also revitalized in recent years is Chaplain Schmitt Island, located near the Dubuque-Wisconsin Bridge. Q Casino, as of 2025, is undergoing an expansion, including the addition of arcade complex Island Social, as well as the building of an amphitheater and new hotel.
In the early-to-mid 2010s, a large portion of the Dubuque Millworking Historic District was renovated. It is now home to several restaurants, stores, offices and apartments, as well as a monthly summertime night market.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of, of which are land and are covered by water. Lake Peosta Channel separates Chaplain Schmitt Island from the mainland.Neighborhoods
Downtown Dubuque is the city's central business district, housing many government and cultural institutions. It serves as the transportation and commercial hub, located along the Mississippi River in east-central Dubuque. Notable neighborhoods include Fenelon Place Residential Historic District, Jackson Park, Old Main Street and the Dubuque Millworking Historic District. The Port of Dubuque features the Grand Harbor Resort, Alliant Energy Amphitheater, and Grand River Center. Historic landmarks like the Shot Tower and the Dubuque County Courthouse reflect the city's regional importance.The North End, settled by German immigrants in the late 19th century, remains a working-class area with factories and key sites including Bee Branch Creek, Eagle Point Park, Holy Ghost Catholic Church, Linwood Cemetery, Lock and Dam No. 11, Mathias Ham House and Sacred Heart Catholic Church. The South End, historically Irish American, features Irish pubs, churches, and neighborhoods with "old money" homes, including St. Pius X Seminary, St. Raphael's Cathedral, Mines of Spain State Recreation Area and the Wartburg Theological Seminary.
The West End, developed after World War II, is a suburban area that grew with the baby boom, featuring shopping centers like Plaza 20 and Kennedy Mall. It includes middle-class neighborhoods, parks, schools, and industrial areas, extending into the suburbs of Asbury and Peosta. Notable sites include the Dubuque Arboretum and Botanical Gardens and Emmaus University.
Climate
Dubuque has a humid continental climate, which gives it four distinct seasons. Spring is usually wet and rainy, summers are sunny and warm, autumn is mild, and winters are typically cloudy and snowy.;Notes:
Demographics
2020 census
As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 59,667. The population density was. There were 27,174 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the city was 85.1% White, 6.3% Black or African American, 1.3% Pacific Islander, 1.2% Asian, 0.4% Native American, 1.3% from other races, and 4.4% from two or more races. Ethnically, the population was 3.7% Hispanic or Latino of any race and 83.8% Non-Hispanic White.2010 census
As of the census of 2010, there were 57,637 people, 23,506 households, and 13,888 families residing in the city. The population density was. There were 25,029 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the city was 91.7% White, 4.0% African American, 0.3% Native American, 1.1% Asian, 0.5% Pacific Islander, 0.6% from other races, and 1.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 2.4% of the population.There were 23,505 households, of which 27.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.6% were married couples living together, 11.1% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.3% had a male householder with no wife present, and 40.9% were non-families. 33.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.28 and the average family size was 2.92.
The median age in the city was 38 years. 21.4% of residents were under the age of 18; 13% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 23.3% were from 25 to 44; 25.9% were from 45 to 64; and 16.5% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.4% male and 51.6% female.
2000 census
As of the census of 2000, there were 57,686 people, 22,560 households, and 14,303 families residing in the city. The population density was. There were 23,819 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the city was 96.15% White, 1.21% Black or African American, 0.19% Native American, 0.68% Asian, 0.11% Pacific Islander, 0.69% from other races, and 0.96% from two or more races. 1.58% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.There were 22,560 households, out of which 30.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.3% were married couples living together, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.6% were non-families. 31.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 2.99.
Age spread: 23.6% under the age of 18, 11.8% from 18 to 24, 26.5% from 25 to 44, 21.6% from 45 to 64, and 16.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.2 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $36,785, and the median income for a family was $46,564. Males had a median income of $31,543 versus $22,565 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,616. About 5.5% of families and 9.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.3% of those under age 18 and 12.5% of those age 65 or over.