The history of this region is filled with stories of the early Midwestern settlers from Kansas, Illinois and Iowa, of the Acadians, and of Jean Lafitte's pirates. The community of Iowa was developed in the mid-19th century. The railroad that cut through this country brought settlers who were lured to the prairie land for rice farming, cattle raising and later oil fields. Much of southwest Louisiana was developed by the North American Land and Timber Co. Seaman A. Knapp, president of the Iowa State College of Agriculture, was engaged in 1885 to demonstrate the suitability of the region for rice production. Knapp attracted a number of Iowans to settle the area. The settlers were lured to this area by advertisements published in newspapers in the midwestern states. Iowa experienced a growth boom when oil was struck in 1930 and oil companies came to try their luck in the Iowa oil and gas fields. Even though this was the Great Depression era, Iowa thrived as more men came to work in the oil fields. Today, oil continues to be a vital part of the town's economy, as are farming and cattle. The town of "Iowa" is actually pronounced with the long A sound at the end, opposed to the pronunciation of the state of Iowa.
As of the census of 2000, there were 2,663 people, 963 households, and 727 families residing in the town. The population density was 863.1 people per square mile. There were 1,041 housing units at an average density of 337.4 per square mile. The racial makeup of the town was 78.90% White, 18.59% African American, 0.38% Native American, 0.08% Asian, 0.60% from other races, and 1.46% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.46% of the population. There were 963 households, of which 39.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.0% were married couples living together, 16.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.5% were non-families. 21.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.77 and the average family size was 3.21. In the town, the population was spread out with 29.9% under the age of 18, 9.3% from 18 to 24, 27.9% from 25 to 44, 21.8% from 45 to 64, and 11.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.4 males. The median income for a household in the town was $31,581, and the median income for a family was $37,102. Males had a median income of $33,929 versus $19,393 for females. The per capita income for the town was $14,652. About 17.5% of families and 20.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 27.2% of those under age 18 and 19.2% of those age 65 or over.
Transportation
passes through the center of town as 4th Street, and Interstate 10 passes along the northern edge, with access from exits 43 and 44. The southern terminus of U.S. Route 165 is at US 90 on the eastern town border. Lake Charles is to the west via Highways 90 or 10, and Lafayette is to the east. US 165 leads northeast to Alexandria.
