Johnson County, Iowa

Johnson County
County
Johnson County Courthouse
Seal
Location within the U.S. state of Iowa
Iowa's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 41°40′00″N91°35′00″W / 41.666666666667°N 91.583333333333°W / 41.666666666667; -91.583333333333
Country	United States
State	Iowa
Founded	December 21, 1837
Named for	Richard Mentor Johnson (1837–2020) Lulu Johnson (since 2020)
Seat	Iowa City
Largest city	Iowa City
Area
• Total	623 sq mi (1,610 km2)
• Land	614 sq mi (1,590 km2)
• Water	9.1 sq mi (24 km2)  1.5%
Population  (2020)
• Total	152,854
• Density	250/sq mi (100/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	1st
Website	www.johnsoncountyiowa.gov

Johnson County is located in the U.S. state of Iowa. As of the 2020 census, the population was 152,854, ^[1] making it the fourth-most populous county in Iowa. The county seat is Iowa City, ^[2] home of the University of Iowa. Johnson County is included in the Iowa City metropolitan area, which is also included in the Cedar Rapids-Iowa City Corridor Combined Statistical Area. ^[3]

History

Johnson County was established in December 1837 by the legislature of the Wisconsin Territory, one of thirteen counties established by that body in a comprehensive act. ^[4] The county's area was partitioned from Dubuque County, and was not initially provided with a civil government, instead being governed by Cedar County officials. It was originally named for the US Vice President Richard M. Johnson (1780–1850). ^[5] In 2020, the Johnson County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to change the county's namesake to be Lulu Merle Johnson (1907–1995), the first black woman in the state to earn a doctorate; Vice President Johnson was a slaveowner who had sexual relations with several of his slaves. ^[6]

The first courthouse in the county was a two-story log cabin structure, built in 1838 in the settlement of Napoleon, ^[7] about two miles south of the current courthouse. ^[8] The building stood across from what later would become the James McCollister Farmstead on land later owned by Philip Clark.

Old Johnson County Courthouse, Iowa City, 1857-1899

After Iowa City was established by fiat as the new territorial capitol of Iowa, the county seat was removed there. ^[9] The second Johnson County Courthouse, the first in Iowa City, was built on Lot 8 Block 8 of the County Seat Addition to Iowa City in 1842 for $3,690. ^[8] This location was in the southeast corner of the intersection of Harrison and Clinton Streets. The building was 56 x 28 feet and two stories tall. ^[10] It was built by James Trimble, who had previously built the first jail. ^[8]

A third courthouse was built in 1857 in the courthouse square on Clinton Street between Court and Harrison Streets. It was used until 1901, after cracks appeared in its south wall in 1899. ^[11] The building was apparently built of brick with stone and wood ornamentation. ^[12]

The Richardsonian Romanesque style courthouse in use today was designed by the firm of Rush, Bowman and Rush of Grand Rapids, Michigan. ^[13] It was bid at a cost of $111,000 and built by the firm Rowson & Son of Johnson County. ^[14] The cornerstone was laid in December 1899. ^[15] The building's tower was based on Henry Hobson Richardson's design for the spire of Trinity Church in Boston. ^[16] The building was dedicated on June 8, 1901. ^[17] The currently unused jail that stands to the west of the courthouse was designed by C.L. Wundt of Burlington, Iowa on behalf of the Stewart Iron Works in Cleveland and bid for $14,000. ^[18]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 623 square miles (1,610 km²), of which 614 square miles (1,590 km²) is land and 9.1 square miles (24 km²) (1.5%) is water. ^[19]

Major highways

• Interstate 80
• Interstate 380
• U.S. Highway 6
• U.S. Highway 218
• Iowa Highway 1
• Iowa Highway 22
• Iowa Highway 27

Transit

• 380 Express
• Cambus
• Coralville Transit
• Iowa City Transit
• List of intercity bus stops in Iowa

Adjacent counties

• Benton County – northwest
• Cedar County – east
• Iowa County – west
• Linn County – north
• Muscatine County – east and southeast
• Louisa County – southeast and south
• Washington County – south

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1850	4,472		—
1860	17,573		293.0%
1870	24,898		41.7%
1880	25,429		2.1%
1890	23,082		−9.2%
1900	24,817		7.5%
1910	25,914		4.4%
1920	26,462		2.1%
1930	30,276		14.4%
1940	33,191		9.6%
1950	45,756		37.9%
1960	53,663		17.3%
1970	72,127		34.4%
1980	81,717		13.3%
1990	96,119		17.6%
2000	111,006		15.5%
2010	130,882		17.9%
2020	152,854		16.8%
2023 (est.)	157,528	[20]	3.1%
U.S. Decennial Census [21] 1790–1960 [22] 1900–1990 [23] 1990–2000 [24] 2010–2019 [25]

Population of Johnson County from US census data

2020 census

The 2020 census recorded a population of 152,854 in the county, with a population density of 245.8946/sq mi (94.94044/km²). 93.62% of the population reported being of one race. There were 65,916 housing units, of which 61,335 were occupied. ^[1]

Johnson County Racial Composition ^[26]

Race	Num.	Perc.
White (NH)	114,491	74.9%
Black or African American (NH)	12,643	8.3%
Native American (NH)	193	0.12%
Asian (NH)	8,555	5.6%
Pacific Islander (NH)	41	0.03%
Other/Mixed (NH)	6,733	4.4%
Hispanic or Latino	10,198	6.7%

2010 census

The 2010 census recorded a population of 130,882 in the county, with a population density of 212.9964/sq mi (82.2384/km²). There were 55,967 housing units, of which 52,715 were occupied. ^[27]

2000 census

2000 Census Age Pyramid for Johnson County

As of the census ^[28] of 2000, there were 111,006 people, 44,080 households, and 23,582 families residing in the county. The population density was 181 inhabitants per square mile (70/km²). There were 45,831 housing units at an average density of 75 per square mile (29/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 90.13% White, 2.90% Black or African American, 0.28% Native American, 4.12% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 1.01% from other races, and 1.51% from two or more races. 2.51% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 44,080 households, out of which 26.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.90% were married couples living together, 6.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 46.50% were non-families. 30.20% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.97.

Age spread: 20.10% under the age of 18, 23.40% from 18 to 24, 30.80% from 25 to 44, 18.20% from 45 to 64, and 7.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 28 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.30 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $40,060, and the median income for a family was $60,112. Males had a median income of $36,279 versus $29,793 for females. The per capita income for the county was $22,220. About 5.20% of families and 15.00% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.10% of those under age 18 and 3.80% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Largely due to the presence of the University of Iowa, Johnson County is considered the most liberal county in Iowa and a stronghold of the Democratic Party, and has always been among Iowa's most Democratic counties since the Civil War. It has been the strongest Democratic county in the state since 1984. This trend predates the recent swing toward the Democrats in counties influenced by college towns. The last Republican to win the county in a presidential election was Richard Nixon in 1960, and the last Republican to even get 40 percent of the county's vote was Ronald Reagan in 1984. The last time the GOP won the county in a gubernatorial election was the 1978 Iowa gubernatorial election. As a measure of how strongly Democratic the county has been, Democrats easily carried it even in the national Republican landslides of 1972, 1984 and 1988, and the county was the only county in Iowa to vote for Democrat Alton B. Parker over Republican Theodore Roosevelt in 1904. In 2020, Joe Biden received the highest percentage of the vote received by any Democrat in the county's history; indeed, by any candidate of any party. ^[29] In 2024, it was the only county to vote for Nikki Haley rather than Donald Trump in the state's Republican presidential caucuses. Haley won the county by a single vote. ^{[30] [31] [32]}

Johnson County's Democratic bent is just as pronounced at the state level. It was the lone county to vote Democratic in statewide Republican landslides, such as Senator Chuck Grassley's re-elections in 2010 and 2016 or Governor Terry Branstad's re-election in 2014.

United States presidential election results for Johnson County, Iowa ^[33]

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2020	22,925	27.34%	59,177	70.57%	1,749	2.09%
2016	21,044	27.35%	50,200	65.25%	5,696	7.40%
2012	23,698	31.19%	50,666	66.69%	1,613	2.12%
2008	20,732	28.40%	51,027	69.91%	1,230	1.69%
2004	22,715	34.75%	41,847	64.01%	811	1.24%
2000	17,899	33.92%	31,174	59.08%	3,696	7.00%
1996	13,402	29.31%	27,888	60.98%	4,442	9.71%
1992	14,041	27.12%	28,656	55.35%	9,077	17.53%
1988	15,453	34.61%	28,759	64.41%	435	0.97%
1984	18,677	41.46%	26,000	57.72%	367	0.81%
1980	13,642	31.73%	20,122	46.80%	9,233	21.47%
1976	16,090	41.57%	20,208	52.20%	2,412	6.23%
1972	14,823	40.91%	20,922	57.74%	491	1.36%
1968	11,384	43.88%	13,541	52.19%	1,019	3.93%
1964	6,860	31.73%	14,717	68.08%	41	0.19%
1960	10,927	50.80%	10,563	49.11%	18	0.08%
1956	11,298	56.28%	8,767	43.67%	11	0.05%
1952	11,231	58.04%	8,067	41.69%	52	0.27%
1948	7,139	43.79%	8,611	52.82%	553	3.39%
1944	6,396	42.93%	8,434	56.62%	67	0.45%
1940	7,206	44.27%	9,017	55.39%	55	0.34%
1936	5,629	38.18%	8,794	59.65%	320	2.17%
1932	5,484	37.87%	8,764	60.51%	235	1.62%
1928	7,288	50.27%	7,181	49.53%	29	0.20%
1924	5,741	44.53%	4,570	35.45%	2,580	20.01%
1920	5,696	52.15%	5,032	46.07%	195	1.79%
1916	2,704	42.23%	3,650	57.00%	49	0.77%
1912	1,645	27.95%	3,327	56.52%	914	15.53%
1908	2,758	44.84%	3,314	53.88%	79	1.28%
1904	2,963	48.27%	3,085	50.25%	91	1.48%
1900	3,010	48.10%	3,182	50.85%	66	1.05%
1896	2,910	47.06%	3,170	51.26%	104	1.68%
1892	2,179	39.35%	3,227	58.28%	131	2.37%
1888	2,051	40.15%	3,038	59.48%	19	0.37%
1884	2,019	38.71%	3,151	60.41%	46	0.88%
1880	2,400	44.89%	2,766	51.74%	180	3.37%

Communities

Cities

• Coralville
• Hills
• Iowa City
• Lone Tree
• North Liberty
• Oxford
• Shueyville
• Solon
• Swisher
• Tiffin
• University Heights

Census-designated place

• Frytown

Other unincorporated communities

• Amish
• Elmira
• Cosgrove
• Morse
• Oasis
• River Junction
• Sharon Center
• Sutliff
• Windham

Ghost towns

• Midway

Townships

• Big Grove
• Cedar
• Clear Creek
• East Lucas
• Fremont
• Graham
• Hardin
• Jefferson
• Liberty
• Lincoln
• Madison
• Monroe
• Newport
• Oxford
• Penn
• Pleasant Valley
• Scott
• Sharon
• Union
• Washington
• West Lucas

Population ranking

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

†county seat

Rank	City/Town/etc.	Municipal type	Population (2020 Census)
1	† Iowa City	City	74,828
2	Coralville	City	22,318
3	North Liberty	City	20,479
4	Tiffin	City	4,512
5	Solon	City	3,018
6	West Branch (mostly in Cedar County )	City	2,509
7	Lone Tree	City	1,357
8	University Heights	City	1,228
9	Swisher	City	914
10	Hills	City	863
11	Shueyville	City	731
12	Oxford	City	722
13	Frytown	CDP	193

See also

• Iowa portal

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Johnson County, Iowa
• Secrest Octagon Barn

References

1. "2020 Census State Redistricting Data". census.gov. United states Census Bureau. Retrieved August 12, 2021.
2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 3, 2015. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
3. United States Office of Management and Budget. "Update of Statistical Area Definitions and Guidance on Their Uses" (PDF). pp. 5, 36. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 14, 2006. Retrieved July 21, 2006.
4. The other counties created on December 21, 1837: Benton, Buchanan, Cedar, Clayton, Clinton, Delaware, Fayette, Jackson, Jones, Keokuk, Linn, and Scott.
5. History of Johnson County, Iowa 1836-1882 (1883). Reproduction by Unigraphic Inc. pp. 165-6.
6. Sherman, Cymphanie (September 24, 2020). "Johnson County votes unanimously to change namesake". KGAN. Retrieved May 14, 2021.
7. This no longer exists as a separate settlement but as part of Iowa City. Its former existence is recognized by the present Napoleon Park, accessed via Napoleon Lane (41.63350N, 91.53147W). Napoleon Lane Google Maps (accessed 18 August 2018)
8. Aurner, p. 492.
9. Aurner, pp. 47, 72.
10. Aurner, pp. 21, 492.
11. Aurner, p. 494.
12. Aurner, p. 65.
13. Daily Iowa State Press, April 1, 1899, p. 5
14. Aurner, pp. 496-7.
15. Aurner, p. 496.
16. "The Johnson County Courthouse". Archived from the original on June 17, 2008. Retrieved July 14, 2008.
17. Aurner, p. 496
18. Aurner, p. 497.
19. "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
20. "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved April 2, 2024.
21. "U.S. Decennial Census". US Census Bureau. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
22. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
23. "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". US Census Bureau. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
24. "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). US Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 27, 2010. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
25. "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 7, 2011. Retrieved July 18, 2014.
26. "P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Johnson County, Iowa".
27. "Population & Housing Occupancy Status 2010" (PDF). US Census Bureau – American FactFinder. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 16, 2020. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
28. "U.S. Census website". US Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
29. "Presidential election of 1848 - Map by counties". geoelections.free.fr. Retrieved April 27, 2022.
30. "Iowa Caucus Results". The New York Times. January 15, 2024. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved January 31, 2024.
31. "Iowa Caucus 2024 Live Election Results". NBC News. Archived from the original on January 15, 2024. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
32. "Nikki Haley beats Donald Trump in Johnson County Iowa Caucus by a single vote". Iowa City Press-Citizen. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
33. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved April 26, 2018.

• Charles Ray Aurner, Leading Events in Johnson County, Iowa, History, Volume I (1912) reproduction by Torch Press, Cedar Rapids IA

External links

• Johnson County Government
• Johnson County Crisis Center
• Johnson County website

41°40′N91°35′W / 41.667°N 91.583°W / 41.667; -91.583