Council Bluffs is a city in and the county seat of Pottawattamie County, Iowa, United States. Its population was 62,799 as of the 2020 census, making it the state's tenth most populous city, and the most populous city in Southwest Iowa. The Omaha metropolitan region of which Council Bluffs is a part, is the 58th largest in the United States, with an estimated population of 967,604 (2020). It is located on the east bank of the Missouri River, across from Omaha, Nebraska. Until about 1853 Council Bluffs was known as Kanesville. Kanesville was the historic starting point of the Mormon Trail. Kanesville is also the northernmost anchor town of the other emigrant trails because there was a steam-powered boat which ferried the settlers' wagons and cattle across the Missouri River. In 1869, the first transcontinental railroad to California was connected to the existing U.S. rail network at Council Bluffs.
Jonathan Ray Lieber is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He stands 6 feet 2 inches (1.88 m) tall and weighs 240 pounds (110 kg). He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates (1994–1998), Chicago Cubs, New York Yankees (2004), and Philadelphia Phillies (2005–2007). He batted left-handed and threw right-handed, and utilized a fastball, a slider, and a changeup for his pitches. In a 14-season career, Lieber compiled a 131–124 record with 1,553 strikeouts and a 4.27 ERA in 2,198 innings pitched.
Paul William Splittorff Jr. was an American professional baseball player and television sports commentator. He played his entire career in Major League Baseball as a left-handed pitcher for the Kansas City Royals from 1970 to 1984. After his playing career, Splittorff became a television color commentator for the Royals. He was inducted into the Royals Hall of Fame in 1987.
Philip Poole Bradley is an American former professional baseball outfielder / designated hitter who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the American League (AL) Seattle Mariners, Baltimore Orioles, and Chicago White Sox, and National League (NL) Philadelphia Phillies, from 1983 to 1990. He also played in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Yomiuri Giants, in 1991.
Shane William Rawley is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball from 1978 through 1989 for the Seattle Mariners, New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies, and Minnesota Twins.
Chalmers William "Bump" Elliott was an American football player, coach, and college athletics administrator. He played halfback at Purdue University (1943–1944) and the University of Michigan (1946–1947). Elliott grew up in Bloomington, Illinois, enlisted in the United States Marine Corps as a senior in high school and was assigned to the V-12 Navy College Training Program at Purdue University. He received varsity letters in football, baseball, and basketball at Purdue, before being called into active duty in late 1944, serving with the Marines in China.
Stanley Raymond Bahnsen is an American former professional baseball pitcher, who played 16 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), primarily for the New York Yankees and the Montreal Expos. Nicknamed the "Bahnsen Burner", he once made 118 starts over a three-year stretch while playing with the Chicago White Sox in the mid-1970s.
Tom P. Hanafan is the former mayor of Council Bluffs, Iowa and is a past president of the Iowa League of Cities.
The Lakes Conference is a high school athletic conference whose members are located in mid-sized cities in northwest Iowa. Most of the schools are located in their respective county seats.
The Missouri River Activities Conference is a high school athletic and activities conference whose members are located in either the Sioux City Metropolitan Area or the Omaha-Council Bluffs Metropolitan Area, both located along the Missouri River on the border of western Iowa, United States.
Thomas Jefferson High School is a public high school located in Council Bluffs, Iowa. It is one of two high schools in the Council Bluffs Community School District.
Iowa School for the Deaf is a pre-K to 12th grade school for deaf and hard-of-hearing students located in Council Bluffs, Iowa. It serves students who live in Iowa and Nebraska.
The Hawkeye 10 Conference is a high school athletic conference in Iowa made up of larger-mid-size schools in Southwest Iowa. Most members participate at the 3A level in all sports, which is the second highest level of competition in Iowa.
The War Eagle Conference is a 11-team high school athletic conference in Northwest Iowa. The schools are classified as 1A and 2A, the two smallest classes in Iowa. The conference is widely recognized as one of the best small school baseball conferences in the state, often sending multiple teams to the state tournament. The WEC has also been successful in boys basketball housing multiple state champions, the most recent being South O’Brien boys in 2015–16 as Class 1A state champions at a record of 25–3. Remsen St. Mary’s has been the most recent qualifiers the past two seasons
Philip N. Krasne was an American attorney who became a film and television producer.
Robert Ingalls Simpson was an American hurdler and track and field coach. Simpson set several world records in the 120 yd hurdles, equaled the world record in the 220 yd hurdles, and won two gold medals at the 1919 Inter-Allied Games. He served in the United States Army in both World Wars, rising to the rank of major by 1944. He was track and field head coach at first the University of Missouri and then Iowa State University, and later in Hungary; he also coached Army athletes.
The Daily Nonpareil is a daily newspaper serving Council Bluffs and a 10-county area of southwest Iowa.
Kent Eugene Vrana is an American pharmacologist.
The Underwood Community School District is a rural public school district located in Underwood, Iowa. The first school in the district was built in 1863, in Downsville, IA. The school was moved to Underwood, IA in 1903 following the incorporation of the town and subsequent abandonment of Downsville. In 1926, the high school was founded. The district headquarters are in the elementary-middle school, while the high school is a separate building. The district, entirely in Pottawattamie County, serves Underwood and McClelland.
Shannon Willis Deniston was an American athlete and sports coach. A native of Long Beach, Deniston attended St. Mary's College of California for one year before starting a professional baseball career in 1939. He played for several minor league teams before serving in World War II at the San Diego Marine Corps Base. While there he also coached the baseball team at Pepperdine University, where he received a degree, and played professional football in the Pacific Coast Professional Football League (PCPFL) and on a military service team. After the war was over Deniston returned to professional baseball as a player-manager, spending 1947 to 1955 both playing for and managing several minor league teams while also serving as a college coach at Pepperdine and Drake University. Deniston retired from playing in 1956 and became a high school football coach, a position he would serve in until 1977, when he was named head coach at United States International University. He retired from coaching in 1987. Deniston became a centenarian in 2019 and died at the age of 101 in 2020.
