Ottumwa... the name means place of perseverance and land of rippling waters. Ottumwa embodies the westward expansion of the United States, plentiful game, good fishing, and the river's rippling waters. These qualities enticed Iowa's most famous chiefs, Wapello, Keokuk, and Appanoose, to settle here.
They weren't alone for long, in the land rush of 1843 a group of white investors staked out 467 acres along the winding Des Moines River, to make a town. The railroad came through in 1859, opening Ottumwa and Wapello County to the world and ensuring the city's continued growth over the next 100 years. By 1870 Ottumwa boasted a population of over 5,000 people. More: About Ottumwa · Ottumwa Facts |
