Bellevue

History

# Jackson County, along with Jones and Linn Counties were established in 1837 and Bellevue was the named the seat of justice for all three counties. Prior to the formal opening of the county, Bellevue was laid out by John D. Bell in 1835. He built a cabin there and was the town's first postmaster. The first hotel was built by Peter Dutell in 1836, and was called the Bellevue House. When Iowa became a territory in 1838, the first census was taken and Jackson County had 881 people. The town of Bellevue constructed a city hall that serves as the Bellevue Public Library on the upper level. The Bellevue War of 1840 gave the town an unsavory reputation and discouraged settlement in its aftermath. However, the population would double within two years. In 1838 the town of Andrew was designated as the county seat. Between 1848 and 1876, the struggle between Andrew and Bellevue for the county seat continued with the county seat being moved from one town to the other several times, with Bellevue constructing a county courthouse in 1845 that now serves as Bellevue Elementary, the oldest functioning school building in Iowa. As the county was settled, Maquoketa would become the dominant centrally located town when the railroad reached Maquoketa in 1873. The Town of Maquoketa then built a large city hall and offered to lease the building to Jackson County as a courthouse. The proposition was put to a vote and approved, and since then, Maquoketa has been the county seat.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water. Bellevue has a humid continental climate (Köppen Dfa), which gives it four distinct seasons. However, local weather is often not as extreme as that found in other parts of the Midwest, such as Minnesota or Wisconsin. Spring is usually wet and rainy, summers are sunny and warm, autumn is mild, and winters are typically cloudy and snowy.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  2,000
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  1,945
• Red-winged Blackbird

  Agelaius phoeniceus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  1,793
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,758
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  1,580
• Bald Eagle

  Haliaeetus leucocephalus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  1,548
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,510
• Black-capped Chickadee

  Poecile atricapillus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  1,458

Largest nearby schools

• Bellevue Elementary School
  Elementary · Bellevue · 425 students · 15.7:1 ratio
• Bellevue High School
  High · Bellevue · 362 students · 15.7:1 ratio