1673: French explorers, Jolliet
and Marquette explored the area for the
King of France
1682: LaSalle explored
Mississippi River, claimed the river and
land for King of France
1762: King of France transferred
claim to the land to the King of Spain
during Seven Years' War
1788: Julien Dubuque became first
white settler in Iowa
1800: Spain transferred land back
to France during Napoleonic Wars in
Europe
1803: United States acquired Iowa
in Louisiana Purchase
1804: Lewis and Clark expedition
arrived; only death on the expedition
occurred
1808: U.S. Army built Fort
Madison
1811: New Madrid fault caused
earthquakes in central Iowa
1813: Troops abandoned and burned
Fort Madison
1820: Missouri Compromise made
Iowa non-slave territory
1832: Black Hawk War ended; Sauk
tribe forced to cede land west of
Mississippi River
1833: Iowa Territory opened for
settlement
1834: Patrick O'Connor first
person hung in Iowa
1846: Nearly 20,000 Mormons
crossed Iowa; Iowa admitted to Union as
29th state
1847: Dutch immigrants arrived at
Pella
1856: First train from Chicago
arrived Iowa City; band of Sioux indians
massacred settlers at Spirit Lake
1857: State capital moved to Des
Moines from Iowa City
1858: First legislative session
held in Des Moines
1867: Grasshopper invasion
occurred, crops damaged; first railroad
completed through Iowa
1890: Huge meteor struck ground
11 miles northwest of Forest City
1893: Pomeroy tornado struck
Calhoun County, destroyed 80% of homes,
killed 71 and injured 200
1901: Record temperature of 113
degrees set in Sigourney
1907: Last lynching occurred
1909: Earthquake felt in eastern
Iowa
1912: Record low temperature of
-47 degrees set in Washta
1913: Keokuk Dam completed;
Martin Block Coal Co. produced largest
single piece of coal - 2,445 pounds
1916: Prohobition closed Iowa
breweries
1920: Devil's Backbone designated
Iowa's first state park
1928: Herbert Hoover elected
president of U.S.
1935: First Heisman Trophy
presented to Iowan, Jay Berwanger
1940: Henry Agard Wallace elected
vice president of U.S.
1942: Five Sullivan brothers
killed in World War II
1949: Effigy Mounds National
Monument designated
1954: Governor William S.
Beardsley killed in automobile accident
1965: Herbert Hoover National
Historic Site established
1983: Last Maytag wringer washer
produced
1991: Riverboat gambling
legalized
1993: Flooding caused more than
$2 billion in damages
1998: Derecho in Washington, Iowa
caused wind gusts of 123 mph
1999: New state slogan "Fields of
Opportunites" selected
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