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Welcome to The Midwestern Connection - Iowa - Cedar Rapids

Cedar Rapids is a city located in Linn County, Iowa. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 120,758. It is the county seat of Linn County. The city is named after the Cedar River. Cedar Rapids has been residence to famous figures, including American artist Grant Wood, the Wright Brothers, journalist and historian William L. Shirer, writer and photographer Carl Van Vechten, and Dr. Alexander Lippisch.

A unique attribute of Cedar Rapids is that its city hall and county courthouse are located on Mays Island, an island on the Cedar River running through the city. Paris, France and Osaka, Japan are believed to be the only other cities in the world to have their municipal buildings located on an island in a river.

Cedar Rapids is home to several large businesses and industries, including Cargill, Alliant Energy, Rockwell Collins, Quaker Oats, AEGON, McLeodUSA, ADM, and a major factory for Square D. One reason behind the high number of large industries is the fact that Cedar Rapids is part of the Iowa Technology Corridor, a region of the state that also includes the Iowa City metro area to the south. Much of Iowa's technological businesses and industries operate from this corridor. Cedar Rapids is also the home of Coe College, Mount Mercy College, Hamilton College, and Kirkwood Community College.

Cedar Rapids is known as the City of Five Seasons, where the fifth season is "a time to enjoy." The symbol of the five seasons is the Tree of Five Seasons sculpture in downtown Cedar Rapids. The name "Five Seasons" and representations of the sculpture appear in many forms. Local rhetoric jokingly refers to the "City of Five Smells," due to the sometimes pervasive odor from the city's industrial businesses, which include Cargill, Penford Products and Quaker Oats.

Source: Wikipedia