Davenport is a city on the banks of the Mississippi River in eastern Iowa.http://www.ci.davenport.ia.us/department/index.php?fDD=39-0 With a population of 100,827, Davenport is the third largest city in the state of Iowa behind Des Moines and Cedar Rapids.http://www.geonames.org/US/IA/largest-cities-in-iowa.html It is governed by a mayor and a ten-member city council.http://www.cityofdavenportiowa.com/category/?fCS=1-0

Incorporated in 1839, Davenport is the county seat of Scott County. Davenport did not gain this distinction easily. Shortly after Davenport was incorporated, an election was held to name the seat of Scott County's government. Rockingham was also in contention to be named county seat. When Davenport won the election, there were claims of fraud and another election was held. Davenport was able to offer more in the way of land, money and buildings. This swayed opinions in favor of Davenport and in 1840, the city was named county seat by default.http://www.museumstuff.com/learn/topics/History_of_Davenport,_Iowa http://www.scottcountyiowa.com/history/

Davenport was part of the Louisiana Purchase. During the War of 1812, an outpost called Fort Armstrong was created near what is now Davenport. Soldiers by the name of Antoine LeClaire and George Davenport were stationed there. In 1836, LeClaire established the settlement and named it for Davenport, his good friend.http://www.museumstuff.com/learn/topics/History_of_Davenport,_Iowa

The city's economy was helped by the connection of rail service from the east in the 1850s. Scott County residents purchased stock in the railroad and Davenport became better connected with cities east of the Mississippi River. Before the Civil War, Davenport was named the first military headquarters in Iowa. After the war, the Iowa Soldiers' Orphans' Home was started in Davenport to house the children that were left without parents. In 1897, the first ever school of chiropractic medicine was opened in Davenport.http://www.celticcousins.net/scott/file10.html http://www.museumstuff.com/learn/topics/History_of_Davenport,_Iowa

Davenport experienced an economic boom during the 1920s and 1930s. The city expanded with the building of a theater, baseball stadium, and hotels. Several of these structures are still standing in Davenport. As in the rest of the country, Davenport was hit hard by the Great Depression. New factories were built that helped stimulate the economy after World War II. The city did well for several years, but over 35,000 jobs were lost in the area when the Caterpillar plant closed in the 1980s. With the building of new factories and renovation of old ones in the 1990s, Davenport was able to recover from the loss of the Caterpillar jobs.http://www.museumstuff.com/learn/topics/History_of_Davenport,_Iowa

Davenport is located at 41° 33' 21" north latitude and 90° 36' 19" west longitude.http://www.lat-long.com/Latitude-Longitude-2394467-Iowa-City_of_Davenport.html It has a land area of 61.4 square miles and an elevation of 580 feet. Davenport has average precipitation of 35.1 inches per year.http://www.idcide.com/weather/ia/davenport.htm http://www.idcide.com/citydata/ia/davenport.htm

Other cities located within five miles of Davenport include Rock Island, IL, Bettendorf, IA, Moline, IL, Riverdale, IA, Panorama Park, IA and Eldridge, IA. Davenport is 153 miles west of Chicago and 157 miles east of Des Moines, IA.http://www.idcide.com/citydata/ia/davenport.htm Together with Bettendorf, Rock Island and Moline, Davenport forms what is known as the Quad Cities. Based on 2009 statistics, these four cities combine for a metropolitan population of 376,160.http://quadcitiesfirst.com/business/demographics

• Vander Veer Botanical Park — this 33 acre park features rose and lilac gardens which are used as the site for weddings. Admission to the park is free.http://www.cityofdavenportiowa.com/egov/apps/locations/facilities.egov?path=detail&id=69
• Putnam Museum of History and Natural Science — the museum offers visitors exhibits such as a hall of mammals, Asian gallery, ancient Egypt and ocean experiences.http://www.putnam.org/permexhibits.html
• Figge Art Museum — this is a 114,000 square foot facility that houses art exhibits such as the work of Frank Lloyd Wright, 19th century American art, and Northern European art.http://www.figgeart.org/Galleries.aspx http://www.figgeart.org/About.aspx
• Festival of Trees — this event is an annual fundraiser for Quad City Arts. It runs for eleven days and features over 100 designer Christmas trees and the largest helium balloon parade in the Midwest.http://www.quadcityarts.com/FOT%20About.asp
• Fejervary Park and Zoo — this park and zoo features 200 varieties of animals that can be found in the wild or on a farm.http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g37816-d117014-Reviews-Fejervary_Park_and_Zoo-Davenport_Iowa.html

• Lara Flynn Boyle — actress who played Helen Gamble on the ABC series The Practice.http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001223/
• Roger Craig — NFL running back who played most of his career for the San Francisco 49ers.http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/C/CraiRo00.htm
• Bix Beiderbecke — jazz musician. His music was featured in the motion picture The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0067147/
• Matthew Ashford — actor, producer and writer who plays Jack Deveraux on the daytime drama Days of Our Lives.http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0038932/maindetails
• D.D. Palmer — doctor that developed the theories that led to the practice of chiropractic medicine.http://www.qconline.com/qcqa/famous.html
• Ronald Reagan — 40th President of the United States, began his career in radio working for WOC in Davenport in 1931.http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/presidents/ronaldreagan http://www.qconline.com/qcqa/famous.html