Cedar Rapids

Cedar Rapids, city (1990 pop. 108,751), seat of Linn co., E central Iowa, on the Cedar River; inc. as a city 1856. The second largest city in Iowa, it is named for the surging rapids in the river. It is a commercial and industrial city as well as a distribution and rail center for an extensive agricultural area. Manufactures include food and beverages, electrical equipment, machinery, and metal and plastic products. Coe College and Mt. Mercy College are there. Of note are the city's Masonic Library (1884); an art museum with a collection by the artist Grant Wood; the National Czech and Slovak Museum (1995); and Municipal Island, a strip of land in the main channel of the Cedar River, on which the municipal building and a neoclassical war memorial are located. In 2008 Cedar Rapids suffered the worst flooding in its history; roughly one seventh of the city was inundated. The Duane Arnold Energy Center, the first nuclear-powered generator in Iowa, is nearby.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2007, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

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