Iowa Guide: Fun Facts About the State of Iowa

Iowa Fun Facts

Here are some fun facts about the State of Iowa that anyone can enjoy!

If you like corn, you’ll love Iowa. About one-fifth of the country’s corn comes from Iowa’s rich farm lands.
A full 90 percent of Iowa’s land is devoted to farming.
Iowa has the highest literacy rate in the United States. More than 99 percent of Iowa’s citizens can read.
Iowa gets more tornadoes than any other state. A tornado is a mighty twisting windstorm. At the center of the storm, the wind can travel as fast as 300 miles per hour.
A three-day tulip festival is held in the town of Pella each year to commemorate the contributions of Iowa’s early Dutch residents.
Iowa’s most well-attended event is its annual state fair, which attracts more than 1 million visitors each year from around the Midwest. Attendees can check out innovations in farming, prize livestock and delicious baked goods.
Iowan Herbert Hoover, who served as U.S. president from 1929 to 1933, was the first commander in chief to be born west of the Mississippi.
“Iowa” is the only state name that begins with two vowels.
Can’t decide between a chocolate bar and ice cream? Get both! The “Eskimo Pie”—a chocolate-covered ice cream bar—was invented in Iowa by Onawa native Chris Nelson.
Although Iowa produces a tenth of the nation’s food supply, the value of Iowa’s manufactured products is twice that of its agriculture. Major industries are food and associated products, non-electrical machinery, electrical equipment, printing and publishing, and fabricated products.
Iowa stands in a class by itself as an agricultural state. Its farms sell over $10 billion worth of crops and livestock annually. Iowa leads the nation in all corn, soybean, and hog marketings, and comes in third in total livestock sales. Iowa’s forests produce hardwood lumber, particularly walnut, and its mineral products include cement, limestone, sand, gravel, gypsum, and coal.
Tourist attractions include the Herbert Hoover birthplace and library near West Branch; the Amana Colonies; Fort Dodge Historical Museum, Fort, and Stockade; the Iowa State Fair at Des Moines in August; and the Effigy Mounds National Monument, a prehistoric Indian burial site at Marquette.