Kyrie Maloney

Geog. 1125-10
Febuary 19, 2016
County Assignment #3: Van Buren County, IA

Van Buren, Iowa has had a very steady population history for most of its time as a

county. Established in the 1850s, Van Buren was a typical farm town population. Through

westward expansion before the civil war, Iowa became a western state for those that weren't up

for the perilous journey all the way to the coast. After the civil war was concluded, Van Buren

lost its appeal. The population has continued on a decreasing slope of losing its citizens. Van

Buren continues to lose on average one thousand citizens per decade.

Because Van Buren is mostly rural and farmland, many people, especially the

millennials who are close to, in, or out of college schooling, have lost the desire of living in their

small town county. With the introduction to a more urban setting, they may not be too motivated

to come back and become farmers for the rest of their lives. They may only stay for family ties.
 Compared to Iowa, Van Buren has a odd percent change. Iowa, since 1980, has had

only positive population changes, but Van Buren has had only negative changes. Is this

because of its farming occupation? The attraction of urban cities? Either way, Van Burens

population continues to decrease as the rest of Iowas increases.

The recent rate of net migration is just as depressing. Van Buren County between the

years 2013-2014, has a negative number of people moving to the county. Van Buren County is

losing people rapidly, losing 134 more than they are gaining. They are also only gaining 3

international immigrants than they are losing. Iowa is in a similar dilemma. Iowa is also losing

migrants to other states, but they still have a positive total net migration value. Van Buren also

has a very low natural increase. With a birth total of 94, and a death total 93, the natural

increase totals out to only 1 person.

 According the data, Van Buren is not very diverse in its ethnicity. 97% percent of the

county is white, and the other 3% is Asian, Hispanic/Latino, or mixed race. Iowa is similar to Van

Buren. 87% of the state is white. 6% of the population is HIspanic/Latino. Only 3% of the

population are African American, 2% Asian, 1% are American Indian. The last 2% are the

people of two or more races.

 The age distribution is also an interesting point. Most of the population is above 25 years

of age. Under 25, the distribution drastically falls. This may be because there are no universities

in the county, forcing new adults to go to urban areas for post secondary school. Adults that

choose to stay or come back may be continuing family businesses or farms. The median age of

Van Buren confirms the lopsided distribution being 46 years of age. This is in the second oldest

group of people, instead of the middle.

Works Cited

"Van Buren County QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau." Van Buren County QuickFacts

from the US Census Bureau. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Feb. 2016.

Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 19 Feb. 2016.

"Your Geography Selections." American FactFinder. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Feb. 2016.

"Your Geography Selections." American FactFinder. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Feb. 2016.

"Your Geography Selections." American FactFinder. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Feb. 2016.