Floyd County, Iowa

Floyd County
Floyd County
County
	Courthouse in Charles City with Veterans Memorial in front
	Location within the U.S. state of Iowa
	Iowa's location within the U.S.
	Coordinates: 43°03′24″N 92°47′02″W / 43.056666666667°N 92.783888888889°W
Country	United States
State	Iowa
Founded	1851
Named for	Charles Floyd
Seat	Charles City
Largest city	Charles City
Area
• Total	501 sq mi (1,300 km2)
• Land	501 sq mi (1,300 km2)
• Water	0.8 sq mi (2 km2) 0.1%
Population (2020)
• Total	15,627
• Density	31/sq mi (12/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	4th
Website	www.floydco.iowa.gov

Floyd County is a county located in the U.S. state of Iowa. As of the 2020 census, the population was 15,627.^[1] The county seat is Charles City.^[2]

History

Floyd County was established in 1854 and was named for Sergeant Charles Floyd^[3] of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, who died in 1804 near what is now Sioux City, Iowa, and who was the only member to die on the Expedition.

The first school in the county was taught at Nora Springs in 1854.^[4] The second was opened at Charles City, the third at Floyd. Twelve years later there were 54 schools in the county, in September 1875, there were 100 school-houses in Floyd County.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 501 square miles (1,300 km²), of which 501 square miles (1,300 km²) is land and 0.8 square miles (2.1 km²) (0.1%) is water.^[5]

Major highways

Adjacent counties

Mitchell County (north)
Chickasaw County (east)
Butler County (south)
Cerro Gordo County (west)
Howard County (northeast)
Bremer County (southeast)
Franklin County (southwest)

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1860	3,744		—
1870	10,768		187.6%
1880	14,677		36.3%
1890	15,424		5.1%
1900	17,754		15.1%
1910	17,119		−3.6%
1920	18,860		10.2%
1930	19,524		3.5%
1940	20,169		3.3%
1950	21,505		6.6%
1960	21,102		−1.9%
1970	19,860		−5.9%
1980	19,597		−1.3%
1990	17,058		−13.0%
2000	16,900		−0.9%
2010	16,303		−3.5%
2020	15,627		−4.1%
2023 (est.)	15,326	^[6]	−1.9%
U.S. Decennial Census^[7] 1790–1960^[8] 1900–1990^[9] 1990–2000^[10] 2010–2018^[11]

Population of Floyd County from US census data

2020 census

2022 US Census population pyramid for Floyd County from ACS 5-year estimates

The 2020 census recorded a population of 15,627 in the county, with a population density of 31.1337/sq mi (12.0208/km²). 96.21% of the population reported being of one race. There were 7,314 housing units of which 6,674 were occupied.^[1]

Floyd County Racial Composition^[12]
Race	Num.	Perc.
White (NH)	13,907	89%
Black or African American (NH)	415	2.7%
Native American (NH)	29	2.7%
Asian (NH)	293	0.2%
Pacific Islander (NH)	12	0.1%
Other/Mixed (NH)	421	3.2%
Hispanic or Latino	550	2.7%

2010 census

The 2010 census recorded a population of 16,303 in the county, with a population density of 32.567/sq mi (12.5742/km²). There were 7,526 housing units, of which 6,886 were occupied.^[13]

2000 census

As of the census^[14] of 2000, there were 16,900 people, 6,828 households, and 4,711 families residing in the county. The population density was 34 people per square mile (13 people/km²). There were 7,317 housing units at an average density of 15 units per square mile (5.8 units/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 98.11% White, 0.23% Black or African American, 0.09% Native American, 0.43% Asian, 0.09% Pacific Islander, 0.44% from other races, and 0.60% from two or more races. 1.31% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 6,828 households, out of which 30.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.70% were married couples living together, 7.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.00% were non-families. 28.00% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 2.92.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 25.10% under the age of 18, 7.00% from 18 to 24, 24.40% from 25 to 44, 24.20% from 45 to 64, and 19.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 93.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.40 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $35,237, and the median income for a family was $41,133. Males had a median income of $30,285 versus $20,867 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,091. About 6.50% of families and 9.30% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.00% of those under age 18 and 5.70% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

Unincorporated communities

Townships

Floyd County is divided into twelve townships:

Population ranking

The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2020 census of Floyd County.^[1]

† county seat

Rank	City/Town/etc.	Municipal type	Population (2020 Census)
1	† Charles City	City	7,396
2	Nashua (mostly in Chickasaw County)	City	1,551
3	Nora Springs (partially in Cerro Gordo County)	City	1,369
4	Greene (mostly in Butler County)	City	990
5	Rockford	City	758
6	Rudd	City	358
7	Floyd	City	313
8	Marble Rock	City	271
9	Colwell	City	55
10	Roseville	CDP	39

Politics

Prior to 1988, Floyd County was strongly Republican in presidential elections. In only four elections from 1896 to 1984 did a Republican presidential candidate fail to win the county. Starting with the 1988 election, the county consistently backed Democratic Party presidential candidates up until the 2016 election. In that presidential election, the county swung 29.5 points Republican with Donald Trump winning the county by over 14 points after Barack Obama won the county by a similar margin 4 years earlier.^[15]

United States presidential election results for Floyd County, Iowa^[16]
Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party
Year	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2020	4,732	58.91%	3,172	39.49%	128	1.59%
2016	4,375	54.28%	3,179	39.44%	506	6.28%
2012	3,472	42.05%	4,680	56.68%	105	1.27%
2008	3,051	37.70%	4,822	59.58%	220	2.72%
2004	3,745	45.86%	4,349	53.25%	73	0.89%
2000	3,191	44.09%	3,830	52.92%	217	3.00%
1996	2,379	34.54%	3,769	54.73%	739	10.73%
1992	2,404	31.02%	3,688	47.59%	1,658	21.39%
1988	3,266	42.23%	4,377	56.60%	90	1.16%
1984	4,341	50.75%	4,154	48.57%	58	0.68%
1980	4,665	51.16%	3,634	39.86%	819	8.98%
1976	4,361	47.52%	4,646	50.62%	171	1.86%
1972	4,726	57.69%	3,338	40.75%	128	1.56%
1968	4,792	58.60%	2,971	36.33%	415	5.07%
1964	3,721	41.15%	5,317	58.80%	5	0.06%
1960	5,774	59.24%	3,970	40.73%	2	0.02%
1956	6,172	62.17%	3,739	37.66%	16	0.16%
1952	7,042	70.04%	2,999	29.83%	13	0.13%
1948	4,644	54.65%	3,688	43.40%	165	1.94%
1944	5,248	60.11%	3,446	39.47%	37	0.42%
1940	5,829	58.11%	4,167	41.54%	35	0.35%
1936	4,267	47.25%	4,242	46.97%	522	5.78%
1932	4,083	46.50%	4,563	51.96%	135	1.54%
1928	5,675	72.80%	2,074	26.61%	46	0.59%
1924	5,012	66.00%	529	6.97%	2,053	27.03%
1920	6,106	84.84%	933	12.96%	158	2.20%
1916	2,691	66.10%	1,250	30.70%	130	3.19%
1912	1,216	31.13%	1,244	31.85%	1,446	37.02%
1908	2,462	65.13%	1,250	33.07%	68	1.80%
1904	2,820	76.28%	761	20.58%	116	3.14%
1900	2,843	67.56%	1,295	30.77%	70	1.66%
1896	2,749	64.15%	1,461	34.10%	75	1.75%