Van Buren County is a county in Iowa, United States, in the southeastern part of the state along the Des Moines River. It had a population of 7,203 at the 2020 census and covers 491 square miles (1,270 km2) centred near 40°45′N 91°57′W.
Keosauqua is the county seat and its postal code is 52565. The county has 7 incorporated cities, 1 census-designated place, and more than a dozen unincorporated communities, spread across 15 civil townships. Van Buren County lies in the Central time zone.
Towns & Villages in Van Buren County
Van Buren County has 22 named places on record: 7 incorporated cities (including the county seat), 1 census-designated place (CDP), and 14 unincorporated communities with no municipal government of their own. Several of the unincorporated places predate the railroad era and have shrunk to a handful of homes; their listing here reflects historical and postal record, not current population.
| Place | Type | Township | Pop. | ZIP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Keosauqua | City · seat | Keosauqua | 936 | 52565 |
| Farmington | City | Farmington | 579 | 52626 |
| Milton | City | — | 380 | 52570 |
| Birmingham | City | Birmingham | 367 | 52535 |
| Bonaparte | City | Bonaparte | 359 | 52620 |
| Stockport | City | — | 272 | 52651 |
| Cantril | City | — | 224 | 52542 |
| Douds | CDP | — | 156 | 52551 |
| Selma | Unincorp. | — | — | 52588 |
| Mount Sterling | Unincorp. | — | — | 52573 |
| Bentonsport | Unincorp. | Bonaparte | — | — |
| Harrisburg | Unincorp. | Harrisburg | — | — |
| Vernon | Unincorp. | Vernon | — | — |
| Kilbourn | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
| Leando | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
| Lebanon | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
| Mount Zion | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
| Pierceville | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
| Pittsburg | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
| Plymouth | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
| Utica | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
| Winchester | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
Douds sits directly across the Des Moines River from Leando, and the two are often mistaken for one place; only Douds is a Census Bureau-recognized CDP. Bentonsport, once the county’s largest river town before the railroad bypassed it, is now a National Historic District within Bonaparte Township.
Townships
| Township | Pop. (2020) | Main settlements |
|---|---|---|
| Birmingham | — | Birmingham |
| Bonaparte | — | Bonaparte, Bentonsport |
| Cedar | — | — |
| Chequest | — | — |
| Des Moines | — | — |
| Farmington | — | Farmington |
| Harrisburg | — | Harrisburg |
| Jackson | — | — |
| Keosauqua | — | Keosauqua |
| Lick Creek | — | — |
| Union | — | — |
| Van Buren | — | — |
| Vernon | — | Vernon |
| Village | — | — |
| Washington | — | — |
ZIP Codes
- 52565 — Keosauqua (also serves Vernon and Mount Zion)
- 52626 — Farmington (also serves Utica)
- 52570 — Milton (also serves Winchester)
- 52535 — Birmingham (also serves Pittsburg)
- 52620 — Bonaparte (also serves Bentonsport)
- 52651 — Stockport (also serves Lebanon)
- 52542 — Cantril
- 52551 — Douds (also serves Leando and Harrisburg)
- 52573 — Mount Sterling (also serves Pierceville and Kilbourn)
- 52588 — Selma
Unincorporated communities without their own post office use the ZIP code of the nearest listed town; the pairings above follow the county’s historical trade-route geography rather than a confirmed USPS routing table.
Geography
Van Buren County is bisected by the Des Moines River, which loops through the southern and eastern townships in a series of horseshoe bends that give the Keosauqua area its name (a Native American word for “great bend”). The terrain is a mix of river-bottom farmland and wooded, rolling hills carved by tributary creeks such as Chequest Creek and Lick Creek. Lacey-Keosauqua State Park, one of Iowa’s largest state parks, occupies bluffs above the river near the county seat.
Van Buren County borders Jefferson County to the north (Jefferson County, Iowa), Henry County to the northeast (Henry County, Iowa), Lee County to the east (Lee County, Iowa), Davis County to the west, Clark County, Missouri, to the southeast (Clark County, Missouri), and Scotland County, Missouri, to the southwest (Scotland County, Missouri).
Demographics
Van Buren County’s population was 7,203 at the 2020 census. Keosauqua (936) and Farmington (579) are the two largest communities, together holding about a fifth of the county’s residents. Median household income runs well below the Iowa median of $71,433 — typical for the county’s small, farm-dependent tax base. With 485 square miles of land, the county’s overall population density is about 15 people per square mile, among the lowest in southeastern Iowa.
Economy & Local Life
Row-crop and livestock agriculture, along with the timber and hardwood-lumber trades tied to the county’s wooded hills, anchor the local economy. Van Buren County’s collection of preserved 19th-century river towns — Bentonsport, Bonaparte, and Bentonsport’s neighbors along the Des Moines — draws heritage tourism, particularly around Lacey-Keosauqua State Park and the Keosauqua historic district. The county courthouse in Keosauqua, in continuous use since 1843, is the centerpiece of the county seat’s downtown.
History
Van Buren County was organized on December 7, 1836, as part of Wisconsin Territory, and named for Martin Van Buren, then vice president and soon to become the eighth U.S. president. The county was a flashpoint in the “Honey War,” an 1839 boundary dispute between the Iowa and Missouri territorial governments over the exact location of the state line — the dispute was not finally settled until Iowa achieved statehood in 1846. The 1843 Van Buren County Courthouse in Keosauqua is Iowa’s oldest courthouse still in operation and the second-oldest in continuous use in the United States.
Getting There
Iowa Highway 1 and Iowa Highway 2 cross the county and meet at Keosauqua, providing the main routes in and out.
- Fairfield, Iowa — 20 miles north
- Ottumwa, Iowa — 30 miles northwest
- Fort Madison, Iowa — 25 miles east
- Burlington, Iowa — 35 miles northeast
The nearest commercial airport is Southeast Iowa Regional Airport in Burlington.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Van Buren County, Iowa?
It is in the southeastern part of Iowa, along the Des Moines River, bordering Missouri to the south.
What is the population of Van Buren County?
7,203 people, per the 2020 census.
How big is Van Buren County?
491 square miles (1,270 km2), of which 485 square miles is land.
What is the county seat of Van Buren County?
Keosauqua, which also has Iowa’s oldest operating courthouse.
How many towns are in Van Buren County?
Seven incorporated cities — Keosauqua, Farmington, Milton, Birmingham, Bonaparte, Stockport, and Cantril — plus the CDP of Douds and more than a dozen unincorporated communities.
What ZIP codes are in Van Buren County?
Ten ZIP codes serve the county, led by 52565 (Keosauqua), 52626 (Farmington), and 52570 (Milton).
Why is Keosauqua’s courthouse notable?
Built in 1843, it is Iowa’s oldest courthouse still in use and the second-oldest in continuous operation in the United States.
More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Iowa.