Aurelia

History

Aurelia was founded in 1873 as a stop along the Illinois Central Railroad branch connecting Sioux City, Iowa, to Chicago, Illinois. This was the only railroad connecting the two Midwestern hubs and so gave birth to many railroad towns. Aurelia was named for the youngest daughter of the owner of the railroad, John Insley Blair, who died in 1866. The location of Aurelia was only set after a last minute change in the railroad design that saw it redirect to go through LeMars and Cherokee, rather than connect Sioux City directly to Storm Lake. Almost 70% of Aurelia's population is people over age 50. Its newspaper is the Aurelia Star which was founded in March 1881 as the Aurelia Sentinel.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all land.

Race & ethnicity

Largest nearby schools

• Cherokee Elementary School
  Elementary · Cherokee · 492 students · 14.9:1 ratio
• Cherokee Middle School
  Middle · Cherokee · 355 students · 16.9:1 ratio
• Washington High School
  High · Cherokee · 353 students · 13.6:1 ratio
• Alta-Aurelia Middle Sch
  Middle · Aurelia · 231 students · 13.6:1 ratio
• Aurelia Elementary School
  Elementary · Aurelia · 163 students · 13.6:1 ratio