West Des Moines, Iowa
| West Des Moines, Iowa | |
|---|---|
| City | |
West Des Moines welcome sign on George Mills Civic Pkwy. just west of Interstate 35
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 Location in the State of Iowa |
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 West Des Moines, Iowa
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| Coordinates: 41°34′30″N 93°42′33″W / 41.57500°N 93.70917°WCoordinates: 41°34′30″N 93°42′33″W / 41.57500°N 93.70917°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State |
 Iowa
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| Counties | Polk, Dallas, Warren |
| Incorporated | October 9, 1893 |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Steve Gaer |
| Area | |
| • Total | 39.48 sq mi (102.25 km2) |
| • Land | 38.59 sq mi (99.95 km2) |
| • Water | 0.89 sq mi (2.31 km2) |
| Elevation | 955 ft (291 m) |
| Population (2010) | |
| • Total | 56,609 |
| • Estimate (2014) | 63,325 |
| • Rank | 9th in Iowa |
| • Density | 1,466.9/sq mi (566.4/km2) |
| Time zone | CST (UTC-6) |
| • Summer (DST) | CDT (UTC-5) |
| ZIP code | 50263-50266 |
| Area code(s) | 515 |
| FIPS code | 19-83910 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0462839 |
| Website | http://www.wdm.iowa.gov/ |
West Des Moines is a city in Polk, Dallas, and Warren counties in the US state of Iowa. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 56,609. West Des Moines is the second-largest city in the Des Moines metropolitan area and the tenth-largest city in Iowa. It ranked 94th in Money magazine's list of the "100 Best Places to Live and Launch" in 2008, 77th and 57th on the 100 Best Places to Live in 2014 and 2015, respectively, and 18th on the Hipster Cities of 2015.
The West Des Moines area used to be home to the Sac and Fox tribes. Near the stroke of midnight on October 11, 1845 a gunshot was fired by a cattle farmer, James Cunningham Jordan (born 1813; died 1893) and the tribes left. His residence, the Jordan House, has been restored and is now home to the West Des Moines Historical Society. In West Des Moines' early years, the town was a trading and shipping junction. West Des Moines incorporated as the city of Valley Junction on October 9, 1893.
In its early days Valley Junction was home to the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad's switching facilities and repair shops due to its location at the junction of several railroad lines. The Rock Island's facilities moved out of Valley Junction and back into Des Moines in 1936.
The speed limit of ten miles (16 km) an hour had existed in Valley Junction since 1911 for all automobiles. But in 1915 an Englishman named Jack Prince built a one-mile (1.6 km) oval race track, designed to let race cars break that speed limit ten times over. The wooden track was made of 980,000 feet (300,000 m) of 2x4's laid on edge. It was one of 24 such tracks nationwide; with seating for over 10,000 people. On 1915-08-07, the eyes of the auto world were on Valley Junction in anticipation of the fastest 300-mile (480 km) auto race in history. Ralph DePalma, winner of the Indianapolis 500 that year, was one of at least a dozen drivers vying for the $10,000 purse. Before a crowd of 7,000 people, a tire blew, lunging Joe Cooper's car over the rail. Later while rounding a curb, a wheel of Billy Chandler's Duesenberg failed, cartwheeling the car into the infield and fatally injuring his mechanic, Morris Kessler. Chandler was seriously injured. Smiling Ralph Mulford won the race with DePalma a close 2nd. This baptism by blood left a bad taste in the mouth of the locals, and the track was closed two years later. The wood was salvaged and then used to construct buildings in Valley Junction.
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