Adair County is a county in Iowa, United States, about 55 miles west of Des Moines. It had a
population of 7,496 at the 2020 census, an estimated 7,403 by 2024, and covers 570 square miles
(1,500 km2) centred near 41°20′N 94°28′W.
Greenfield is the county seat; its postal code is 50849. The county holds 7 cities and 10
smaller unincorporated communities across 16 townships, and it runs on Central Time. Its FIPS
code is 19001.
Towns & Villages in Adair County
Adair County has 17 named places on record: 7 incorporated cities and 10 unincorporated
communities with no local government of their own. Unincorp. covers crossroads and rural
communities with no formal boundary; none of the 10 are census designated places.
| Place | Type | Township | Pop. | ZIP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Greenfield | City · seat | Lee | 2,062 | 50849 |
| Stuart | City | Lincoln | 1,782 | 50250 |
| Adair | City | Summit | 791 | 50002 |
| Fontanelle | City | Summerset | 676 | 50846 |
| Orient | City | Orient | 368 | 50858 |
| Casey | City | Walnut | 387 | 50048 |
| Bridgewater | City | Jackson | 148 | 50837 |
| Arbor Hill | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
| Berea | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
| Canby | Unincorp. | Grand River | — | — |
| Fisk | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
| Hebron | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
| Howe | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
| Leith City | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
| Nanito | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
| Prussia | Unincorp. | Prussia | — | — |
| Zion | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
Stuart straddles a county line the opposite way from most such cases: its city limits sit
mostly in Guthrie County, in that county’s own Stuart Township, with only a smaller southern
section reaching into Adair County’s Lincoln Township. Its 1,782 residents are counted
citywide and are overwhelmingly Guthrie County residents, not Adair County ones. Casey works
similarly — most of the town lies in Guthrie County’s Thompson Township, with a portion
in Adair County’s Walnut Township. Adair itself splits between Summit Township here and Grant
Township in Guthrie County. The old list on this page also carried Gilead, Linwood, Rosserdale
and Stanzel as Adair County communities; none of the four turned up in county gazetteers or
Wikipedia’s own community list for Adair County, so they have been dropped rather than
republished on no evidence.
ZIP Codes
- 50849 — Greenfield
- 50250 — Stuart (shared with the Guthrie County side of town)
- 50002 — Adair (shared with the Guthrie County side of town)
- 50846 — Fontanelle
- 50858 — Orient
- 50048 — Casey (shared with the Guthrie County side of town)
- 50837 — Bridgewater
Arbor Hill, Berea, Canby, Fisk, Hebron, Howe, Leith City, Nanito, Prussia and Zion have no ZIP
code of their own; mail there is delivered under the nearest incorporated town’s code.
Townships
Adair County is divided into 16 civil townships. Lincoln Township, which contains the Adair
County share of Stuart, had 926 residents at the 2010 census — the most recent year the
Census Bureau published township-level counts for the county; 2020 figures for individual
townships were not separately tabulated. The table below lists each township with its
incorporated town, if any.
| Township | Pop. | Main settlements |
|---|---|---|
| Lee | — | Greenfield (part) |
| Lincoln | 926 (2010) | Stuart (part) |
| Summit | — | Adair (part) |
| Summerset | — | Fontanelle |
| Orient | — | Orient |
| Walnut | — | Casey (part) |
| Jackson | — | Bridgewater |
| Prussia | — | Prussia (unincorp.) |
| Eureka | — | Rural |
| Grand River | — | Canby (unincorp.) |
| Grove | — | Rural |
| Harrison | — | Rural |
| Jefferson | — | Rural |
| Richland | — | Rural |
| Union | — | Rural |
| Washington | — | Rural |
Geography
Adair County sits on the Southern Iowa Drift Plain, a landscape of rolling hills carved by
glacial till and cut by shallow stream valleys. Of its 570 square miles, 569 are land and 1.0 is
water, about 0.2 percent — the county has no natural lake of any size, and its water area
is mostly farm ponds and stream channels along the Middle River, Nodaway River and Grand River,
which all rise or pass through the county.
Guthrie County lies to the north, Madison County to the east, Union County to the southeast,
Adams County to the southwest, and Cass County to the west. Guthrie County, Madison County, Union County, Adams County and Cass County all border Adair directly.
Demographics
Adair County had a population of 7,496 at the 2020 census, continuing a long decline from a
peak of 16,192 residents in 1900, and the latest estimate puts the county near 7,403 residents.
Greenfield and Adair are the two largest communities, together holding well over a third of the
county’s population. Median household income runs $68,092, below Iowa’s statewide
figure of $75,059. Population density works out to roughly 13 people per square mile of land,
typical for rural southwest Iowa outside the Des Moines commuter belt that reaches Stuart and
Casey along the county’s northern edge.
Economy & Local Life
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting employs the most workers in the county, about 559
people, closely followed by manufacturing at 558 and health care and social assistance at 440.
Row crops and livestock dominate the farmland outside the towns, and Greenfield’s Adair
County Health System runs the county’s main hospital and clinics. Stuart and Casey, both
straddling the Guthrie County line, sit inside the Des Moines commuter shed along Interstate 80
and draw workers into the metro area. The Adair County Fair, held in Greenfield each July, is the
county’s biggest annual event, alongside Adair’s own summer celebration marking the
1873 Jesse James train robbery.
History
The Iowa General Assembly formed Adair County in 1851 from portions of Pottawattamie County.
It was named for John Adair, a War of 1812 general who later served as the eighth governor of
Kentucky. Greenfield was platted as the county seat soon after organization.
The town of Adair holds a specific claim in outlaw history: on 21 July 1873, the James-Younger
Gang derailed a Rock Island Express train southwest of town and took about $3,000, the first
successful train robbery in the American West. More recently, on 21 May 2024, a violent tornado
struck Greenfield during a major Midwest outbreak, killing four people, injuring at least 35 and
producing wind speeds researchers estimated may have exceeded 300 mph at ground level —
among the highest ever recorded.
Getting There
Interstate 80 crosses the county’s northeast corner near Stuart and Casey. US Highway 6
runs east-west through the county, and Iowa Highways 25 and 92 provide the main north-south and
secondary routes.
- Des Moines — about 55 miles east
- Council Bluffs — about 75 miles west
- Creston — about 30 miles south
- Atlantic — about 20 miles west
Des Moines International Airport, roughly 50 miles east of Greenfield, is the nearest major
commercial airport. Amtrak has no station in the county; the closest stop is in Osceola, about 35
miles southeast.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Adair County located?
It sits in southwest Iowa’s rolling drift-plain country, about 55 miles west of Des Moines,
bordered by Guthrie, Madison, Union, Adams and Cass counties.
What is the population of Adair County?
7,496 at the 2020 census, with a 2024 estimate near 7,403.
How big is Adair County?
570 square miles (1,500 km2), of which 569 square miles are land.
What is the county seat of Adair County?
Greenfield is the county seat, hit by a deadly EF4 tornado on 21 May 2024.
How many towns and cities are in Adair County?
Seven incorporated cities — Greenfield, Stuart (partly), Adair (partly), Fontanelle,
Orient, Casey (partly) and Bridgewater — plus ten unincorporated communities: Arbor Hill,
Berea, Canby, Fisk, Hebron, Howe, Leith City, Nanito, Prussia and Zion.
What ZIP codes does Adair County use?
50849 for Greenfield, 50250 for Stuart, 50002 for Adair, 50846 for Fontanelle, 50858 for Orient,
50048 for Casey and 50837 for Bridgewater.
What is Adair County known for?
The 1873 Jesse James train robbery at Adair, the first successful train robbery in the American
West, and the destructive May 2024 tornado that struck Greenfield.
More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Iowa.