A post office has been in operation at Luther since 1883. Luther was laid out as a town in 1893. The community was named after Clark Luther, a local merchant. On September 11, 2014, the Luther City Council accepted a petition from 58 residents asking that the city be discontinued. There are several steps in the discontinuation process, including approval or disapproval of the petition by the CityDevelopment Board. If the Board approves, a public referendum on discontinuation could be held in 2015. The discontinuance failed and the city continues to exist today. Since 2015 several new businesses have sprung up as well as a major expansion by the local co-op.
Geography
Luther is located at . According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of, all land.
As of the census of 2010, there were 122 people, 54 households, and 40 families living in the city. The population density was. There were 59 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the city was 98.4% White, 0.8% African American, and 0.8% Asian. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.6% of the population. There were 54 households of which 20.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 66.7% were married couplesliving together, 3.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.7% had a male householder with no wife present, and 25.9% were non-families. 22.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.26 and the average family size was 2.63. The median age in the city was 47.5 years. 16.4% of residents were under the age of 18; 3.3% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 24.6% were from 25 to 44; 38.6% were from 45 to 64; and 17.2% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 53.3% male and 46.7% female.
2000 census
As of the census of 2000, there were 158 people, 55 households, and 47 families living in the city. The population density was 204.1 people per square mile. There were 59 housing units at an average density of 76.2 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 99.37% White and 0.63% Asian. There were 55 households out of which 38.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 78.2% were married couples living together, 7.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 14.5% were non-families. 12.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 3.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.87 and the average family size was 3.15. In the city, the population was spread out with 27.8% under the age of 18, 6.3% from 18 to 24, 32.3% from 25 to 44, 20.9% from 45 to 64, and 12.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 100.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.0 males. The median income for a household in the city was $41,964, and the median income for a family was $41,786. Males had a median income of $29,250 versus $27,083 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,393. About 11.9% of families and 13.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 26.3% of those under the age of eighteen and 23.8% of those sixty five or over.
Transportation
The community is located on Iowa Highway 17, and is southwest of Ames. Luther was formerly served by a branch of the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul & Pacific Railroad which ran from Madrid to Boone. The line was trimmed back from Boone to Luther in the 1960s. Sporadic freight service continued to serve the grain elevator in Luther until the line was totally removed in the late 1960s.
