Page County, Iowa

Page County is a county in Iowa, United States, about 90 miles southeast of Omaha, Nebraska. It
had a population of 15,211 at the 2020 census and covers 535 square miles (1,390 km2) centred
near 40°44′N 95°09′W.

Clarinda is the county seat; its postal code is 51632. The county holds 2 cities, 8
incorporated towns and 7 unincorporated communities across 16 townships, and it runs on Central
Time. Its FIPS code is 19145.

Towns & Villages in Page County

Page County has 17 named places on record: 10 incorporated cities and towns and 7
unincorporated communities with no local government of their own. CDP stands for census
designated place; Unincorp. covers crossroads and rural communities with no formal boundary.

Township boundaries in Page County are not tied one-for-one to town names the way they are in
some Iowa counties, and no public source ties each of these 17 places to a specific civil
township, so the Township column is left blank rather than guessed. The 16 townships themselves
are listed below.

Townships

Page County is divided into 16 civil townships: Amity, Buchanan, Colfax, Douglas, East River,
Fremont, Grant, Harlan, Lincoln, Morton, Nebraska, Nodaway, Pierce, Tarkio, Valley and Washington.
Township-level population figures are not published in a single public table, so they are omitted
here rather than estimated.

ZIP Codes

• 51632 — Clarinda
• 51601 — Shenandoah
• 51603 — Shenandoah (a unique ZIP assigned to a single large-volume mailer in the city)
• 51638 — Essex
• 51636 — Coin
• 51637 — College Springs (PO Box ZIP)
• 51651 — Shambaugh (PO Box ZIP)
• 51631 — Braddyville
• 51656 — Yorktown (PO Box ZIP)
• 51647 — Northboro
• 51630 — Blanchard

Bethesda, Bingham, Hawleyville, Hepburn, Norwich, Nyman and Page Center have no ZIP code of
their own; mail there is delivered under the nearest incorporated town’s code.

Geography

Page County sits in Iowa’s southwestern Loess Hills region, a landscape of rolling,
wind-deposited hills cut by the East Nishnabotna River, which flows south-southwest through the
county past Shenandoah on its way toward the Missouri River. Of the county’s 535 square miles,
about 534.5 are land and 0.5 are water, roughly 0.1 percent — low even by Iowa standards,
since the county has no large natural lake.

Montgomery County lies to the north, Taylor County to the east, Fremont County to the west,
and across the state line in Missouri, Nodaway County to the south and Atchison County to the
southwest. Montgomery County,
Taylor County, Fremont County, Nodaway County and Atchison County all border
Page directly.

Demographics

Page County had a population of 15,211 at the 2020 census, and county records show a modest
decline since then, consistent with the broader trend across rural southwestern Iowa. Clarinda
and Shenandoah are by far the two largest communities, together holding more than two-thirds of
the county’s population. Median household income runs $57,953, well below Iowa’s
statewide figure of $71,433 (2023 ACS). Population density works out to roughly 28 people per
square mile of land, low even for rural Iowa.

Economy & Local Life

Manufacturing employs the most workers in the county, about 1,547 people, followed by health
care and social assistance at 982 and retail trade at 904. NSK-AKS, a bearing manufacturer, and
Lisle Corporation, a hand-tool maker founded in 1903, both operate plants in Clarinda. Clarinda
Regional Health Center, a 25-bed critical access hospital, and the Clarinda Correctional Facility
are among the county’s largest employers outside manufacturing. Shenandoah built its economy
on the seed trade — Earl May Seed Company made the city known nationally as a seed and
nursery center, and the pioneering radio station KMA, launched to sell seed by air, later helped
launch the careers of The Everly Brothers. Iowa Western Community College runs campuses in both
Clarinda and Shenandoah.

History

Page County was established on 24 February 1847 and named for Captain John Page of the 4th
United States Infantry, mortally wounded at the Battle of Palo Alto in the Mexican–American
War. Clarinda, founded in 1851 and incorporated in 1866, takes its name from Clarinda Buck, who
carried water to the surveyors laying out the county.

From 1884 the Clarinda Treatment Complex operated as Iowa’s third state mental hospital,
running for more than 130 years before closing in 2015. Clarinda is the birthplace of bandleader
Glenn Miller and of Jessie Field Shambaugh, a founder of the 4-H movement. A courthouse fire on
11 December 1991 forced county court services into temporary quarters for roughly two and a half
years while it was rebuilt.

Getting There

US Highway 71 and Iowa Highway 2 cross the county through Clarinda; US Highway 59 and Iowa
Highway 48 also run through Page County. No interstate highway reaches the county.

• Omaha, Nebraska — about 90 miles northwest
• Red Oak, Iowa — about 20 miles north
• Bedford, Iowa — about 20 miles east
• St. Joseph, Missouri — about 70 miles south

Eppley Airfield in Omaha, roughly 90 miles northwest of Clarinda, is the nearest major
commercial airport. Amtrak’s California Zephyr calls at Omaha’s downtown station, the
nearest Amtrak stop to Page County. Jefferson Lines runs intercity bus service through
Shenandoah, connecting to Kansas City and Sioux Falls.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Page County located?
It sits in Iowa’s southwestern Loess Hills region, about 90 miles southeast of Omaha,
bordered by Montgomery, Taylor, Fremont, Nodaway and Atchison counties.

What is the population of Page County?
15,211 at the 2020 census.

How big is Page County?
535 square miles (1,390 km2), of which about 534.5 square miles are land.

What is the county seat of Page County?
Clarinda, founded in 1851 and incorporated in 1866, is the county seat.

How many towns and cities are in Page County?
Ten incorporated places — Clarinda, Shenandoah, Essex, Coin, College Springs, Shambaugh,
Braddyville, Yorktown, Northboro and Blanchard — plus seven unincorporated communities:
Bethesda, Bingham, Hawleyville, Hepburn, Norwich, Nyman and Page Center.

What ZIP codes does Page County use?
51632 for Clarinda, 51601 and 51603 for Shenandoah, 51638 for Essex, 51636 for Coin, 51637 for
College Springs, 51651 for Shambaugh, 51631 for Braddyville, 51656 for Yorktown, 51647 for
Northboro and 51630 for Blanchard.

What is Page County known for?
Shenandoah’s seed and radio industry, built around Earl May Seed Company and station KMA,
and Clarinda as the birthplace of bandleader Glenn Miller.

More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Iowa.