Nevada

History

Nevada was platted in 1853 along the banks of the West Indian Creek. A local settler, Mr. Thrift, named the town after his daughter, Sierra Nevada, who was named after the Sierra Nevada mountain range. On October 11, 1853, Theodore E. and Hannah Alderman moved into the first structure in Nevada. This structure served as Pioneer Store, post office, and courtroom. Their son Ulysses Sherman Alderman later served on the Iowa House of Representatives. A post office has been in operation in Nevada since 1854. Historic properties in Nevada include Briggs Terrace Evergreen Lane Property, completed in 1879, and the Nevada Downtown Historic District, listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2003. In 2019, the district became the 54th Main Street Iowa community, part of the larger Main Street Programs in the United States.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  11,669
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  11,275
• Black-capped Chickadee

  Poecile atricapillus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  10,789
• Downy Woodpecker

  Dryobates pubescens (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  9,711
• Canada Goose (canadensis Group)

  Branta canadensis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  9,059
• House Finch

  Haemorhous mexicanus (P.L.Statius Müller, 1776) · Aves
  8,762
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  8,747
• White-breasted Nuthatch

  Sitta carolinensis Latham, 1790 · Aves
  8,663

Most recent

• M 2.5 — 2025-06-25
  10 km WNW of Marysville, Iowa
• M 3 — 2025-06-25
  5 km S of Knoxville, Iowa
• M 3.3 — 2025-06-25
  8 km SE of Knoxville, Iowa