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Spirit Lake, Iowa
Spirit Lake, Iowa
City
	Spirit Lake, Iowa
	Location of Spirit Lake, Iowa
	The town of Spirit Lake, in the Iowa Great Lakes region. Map courtesy of USGS
	Coordinates: 43°25′20″N 95°06′08″W / 43.42222°N 95.10222°W
Country	United States
State	Iowa
County	Dickinson County
Incorporated	October 14, 1878
Area
• Total	4.50 sq mi (11.65 km2)
• Land	4.48 sq mi (11.60 km2)
• Water	0.02 sq mi (0.05 km2)
Elevation	1,473 ft (449 m)
Population (2020)
• Total	5,439
• Density	1,214.60/sq mi (468.97/km2)
Time zone	UTC-6 (Central (CST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP code	51360
Area code	712
FIPS code	19-74415
Website	www.cityofspiritlake.org

Spirit Lake is a city in Dickinson County, Iowa, United States. The population was 5,439 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Dickinson County.^[4]

The town is located along the western shore of East Okoboji Lake, in the Iowa Great Lakes region.

History

The Dakota Sioux originated the name of "Spirit Lake" referring to it as "The Lake of The Spirit."^[5] In 1856, three brothers-in-law created the town of Spirit Lake after a visit to the Lakes area piqued their interest.^[5] The three brothers-in-law, O.C. Howe, B.F. Parmenter, and R.U. Wheelock, were soon joined by various other settlers, making homes along the lakes' shores.^[5] These settlers however, did not get along peacefully with the natives, and on March 13, 1857 Chief Inkpaduta of the Sioux led a revolt against the non-native settlers, killing all but four women.^[5]

Courthouse, 1902
Stevens Block, 1902
Main Street, 1936

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 4.65 square miles (12.04 km²), of which 4.63 square miles (11.99 km²) is land and 0.02 square miles (0.05 km²) is water.^[6]

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1870	76	—
1880	277	264.5%
1890	782	182.3%
1900	1,219	55.9%
1910	1,162	−4.7%
1920	1,701	46.4%
1930	1,778	4.5%
1940	2,161	21.5%
1950	2,467	14.2%
1960	2,685	8.8%
1970	3,014	12.3%
1980	3,976	31.9%
1990	3,872	−2.6%
2000	4,261	10.0%
2010	4,840	13.6%
2020	5,439	12.4%
U.S. Decennial Census^[7]^[8]

2020 census

As of the census of 2020,^[9] there were 5,439 people, 2,380 households, and 1,410 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,214.6 inhabitants per square mile (469.0/km²). There were 2,806 housing units at an average density of 626.6 per square mile (241.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 94.2% White, 0.6% Black or African American, 0.2% Native American, 0.5% Asian, 0.0% Pacific Islander, 0.8% from other races and 3.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino persons of any race comprised 2.6% of the population.

Of the 2,380 households, 25.4% of which had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.3% were married couples living together, 6.6% were cohabitating couples, 26.5% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present and 19.7% had a male householder with no spouse or partner present. 40.8% of all households were non-families. 34.7% of all households were made up of individuals, 15.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years old or older.

The median age in the city was 42.5 years. 23.4% of the residents were under the age of 20; 5.4% were between the ages of 20 and 24; 23.9% were from 25 and 44; 24.3% were from 45 and 64; and 23.0% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 47.9% male and 52.1% female.

2010 census

As of the census^[10] of 2010, there were 4,840 people, 2,157 households, and 1,268 families living in the city. The population density was 1,045.4 inhabitants per square mile (403.6/km²). There were 2,578 housing units at an average density of 556.8 per square mile (215.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 97.7% White, 0.2% African American, 0.2% Native American, 0.6% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 0.1% from other races, and 1.1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.3% of the population.

There were 2,157 households, of which 27.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.5% were married couples living together, 7.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.7% had a male householder with no wife present, and 41.2% were non-families. 36.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.19 and the average family size was 2.88.

The median age in the city was 41.9 years. 23.1% of residents were under the age of 18; 6% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 24.6% were from 25 to 44; 26.3% were from 45 to 64; and 19.9% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 47.1% male and 52.9% female.

2000 census

As of the census^[11] of 2000, there were 4,261 people, 1,792 households, and 1,130 families living in the city. The population density was 1,280.2 inhabitants per square mile (494.3/km²). There were 2,024 housing units at an average density of 608.1 per square mile (234.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 98.99% White, 0.14% African American, 0.12% Native American, 0.05% Asian, 0.09% from other races, and 0.61% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.63% of the population.

There were 1,792 households, out of which 29.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.6% were married couples living together, 10.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.9% were non-families. 32.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.92.

Age spread: 24.6% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 25.8% from 25 to 44, 23.9% from 45 to 64, and 18.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 85.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.6 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $36,224, and the median income for a family was $44,652. Males had a median income of $30,746 versus $21,357 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,661. About 5.3% of families and 6.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.9% of those under age 18 and 12.6% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Public education in the city of Spirit Lake is provided by the Spirit Lake Community School District.

Media

Spirit Lake is served by the Dickinson County News, both in print and online, KUOO-FM (103.9) and KUQQ-FM.

Notable people

Berkley Bedell (1921–2019), member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Iowa's 6th district (1975–1987)
Margaret Hance (1923–1990), first female mayor of Phoenix, Arizona (1976–1983)
Douglas Franklin Wright (1940–1996), serial killer