Editing Muscatine, Iowa (section)

== History ==
[[File:Muscatine IA Barber 1865p533cropped.jpg|thumb|left|{{center|Muscatine in 1865}}]]
Muscatine began as a trading post founded by representatives of Colonel [[George Davenport]] in 1833. Muscatine was incorporated as Bloomington in 1839; the name was changed to reduce mail delivery confusion, as there were several Bloomingtons in the Midwest. Before that, Muscatine had also been known as "Newburg" and "Casey's Landing".

The origin of the name ''Muscatine'' is debated. It may have been derived from the [[Mascouten]] Native American tribe.<ref name="History">[http://www.muscatine.com/gmcci/?page=30 "The Prosperous Industrial History of Muscatine"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081004143255/http://www.muscatine.com/gmcci/?page=30 |date=2008-10-04 }}, Greater Muscatine Chamber of Commerce & Industry, 2004. Retrieved 2008-05-09.</ref> The Mascoutin lived along the Mississippi in the 1700s.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=QBIuaF3ZGVwC&pg=PA65 Irving Berdine Richman, ''John Brown Among the Quakers: And Other Sketches''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160215163733/https://books.google.com/books?id=QBIuaF3ZGVwC&pg=PA65 |date=2016-02-15 }}, Historical Department of Iowa, 1894</ref>{{rp|66}} In 1819 Muscatine Island was known as ''Mascoutin Island''.

In the 1838 [[United States General Land Office]] map, the town is labelled ''Musquitine'', which may be a variation of ''Musquakeen'', an alternative name for Muscatine Island; ''Musquakeen'' may have derived from the [[Meskwaki]] indigenous people who lived close by.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Toole|first1=William|title=History of Louisa County|journal=Annals of Iowa|date=1870|volume=8|page=260}}</ref> Major William Williams, who was visiting in 1849 when the town was still called both Bloomington and Muscatine, claimed, "Muscatine in English is Fire Island," in his list of the meanings of [[Siouan language]] names.<ref name="williams1"/>

Williams wrote a brief description of the settlement:
{{blockquote|text=Bloomington is a fine town, one of the most important points in the state. Its situation on one of the great bends of the Mississippi has great commercial advantages; [it] is the seat of justice of Muscatine County. Contains about 2000 inhabitants, is the natural depository for a vast amount of trade from the surrounding country, has many neat residences and several spacious brick mercantile establishments- a large steam mill, one smaller one, two printing establishments, 6 churches, 4 physicians, 8 lawyers, an neat court house and jail, Masonic lodge, etc.... This town is very prettily situated, in part on a level on the river for two streets back, when the ground rises and the remaining street is elevated in benches, the whole standing in a rise enclosed by a range of high bluffs which runs around it in a semicircular form, forming beautiful sites for residences. From the bluff there is a beautiful view of the town below and of the Mississippi for miles up and down. All [[steamboats|steam boats]] land here, passing up and down.<ref name="williams1">{{cite journal |last=Williams |first=William |year=1920|title=Major William Williams' Journal of a Trip to Iowa in 1849 |journal=Annals of Iowa|volume=12|issue=4|pages=249–250, with minor spelling and punctuation changes}}</ref>|author=Major William Williams}}

[[File:US61 Business South IA38 IA92 East - Downtown Muscatine (29384138397).jpg|thumb|Downtown Muscatine]]

From the 1840s to the [[American Civil War|Civil War]], Muscatine had Iowa's largest black community, consisting of fugitive [[History of slavery in the United States|slave]]s who had traveled the Mississippi from the South and free blacks who had migrated from the eastern states. One of the most prominent community leaders was [[Alexander Clark|Alexander G. Clark Sr.]], born free in [[Pennsylvania]]. He was a [[barber]], a respected position at the time, and eventually became a wealthy timber salesman and real estate speculator. In 1848 he was among the founders of the local [[African Methodist Episcopal Church]], which had been established as the first independent black denomination in the US.

In the antebellum period he assisted fugitive slaves, and petitioned the state government to overturn racist laws before the Civil War. In 1863, Clark helped organize Iowa's black regiment, the 60th United States Colored Infantry (originally known as the 1st Iowa Infantry, African Descent), though an injury prevented him from serving.

In 1868, he gained desegregation of Iowa's public schools by suing the Muscatine school board after his daughter Susan was turned away from her neighborhood school. Eleven years later, in 1879 his son Alexander Jr. became the first black graduate of the [[University of Iowa College of Law]] and its first black graduate from any department. Clark Sr. went to the college and became its second black law graduate five years later, despite being 58 years old. He said that he wanted to serve “as an example to young men of his own race.” Clark rose to prominence in the [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]], serving as a delegate to state and national conventions.

In 1890, Clark was appointed ambassador to [[Liberia]] by President [[Benjamin Harrison]]. He was one of four Muscatine residents to be appointed as a diplomatic envoy between 1855 and 1900, a remarkable feat for a town of such small size: George Van Horne was consul at [[Marseille]], France during the 1860s; Samuel McNutt served at [[Maracaibo]], Venezuela in 1890; and Frank W. Mahin represented his country in [[Liberec]] (Reichenberg), [[Austria-Hungary]] in 1900.

Less than a year after arriving in Liberia, Clark died of fever. His body was returned to the US, where he was buried in Muscatine's Greenwood Cemetery. In 1975 the city moved his former house about {{convert|200|ft|0}}, to make room for a low-income apartment complex for senior citizens; the latter was named in his honor. The [[University of Iowa]]'s chapter of the Black Law Students Association (BLSA) is named for the Clarks, as a testament to the accomplishments of father and son, and their places in the history of [[civil rights]] in Iowa.

[[Mark Twain]] lived in the city briefly during the summer of 1855 while working at the local newspaper, the ''Muscatine Journal,'' which was partly owned by his brother, Orion Clemens.

He noted some recollections of Muscatine in his book ''[[Life on the Mississippi]]'':
{{blockquote|text=And I remember Muscatine—still more pleasantly—for its summer sunsets. I have never seen any, on either side of the ocean, that equaled them. They used the broad smooth river as a canvas, and painted on it every imaginable dream of color, from the mottled daintinesses and delicacies of the [[opal]], all the way up, through cumulative intensities, to blinding purple and crimson conflagrations which were enchanting to the eye, but sharply tried it at the same time. All the Upper Mississippi region has these extraordinary sunsets as a familiar spectacle. It is the true Sunset Land: I am sure no other country can show so good a right to the name. The sunrises are also said to be exceedingly fine. I do not know.|author=Mark Twain}}

[[File:Former Hotel Muscatine.JPG|right|thumb|The former Hotel Muscatine]]

In 1884, J. F. Boepple, a German [[immigrant]], founded a pearl [[Button (clothing)|button]] company. He produced buttons that looked like pearls by machine-punching them from [[freshwater mussel]] shells harvested from the [[Mississippi River]]. Muscatine's slogan, "Pearl of the Mississippi," refers to the days when pearl button manufacturing by the McKee Button Company was a significant economic contributor. In 1915, Weber & Sons Button Co., Inc. was the world's largest producer of fancy freshwater pearl buttons. From that time forward, Muscatine was known as "The Pearl Button Capital of the World". Weber is still manufacturing today{{when|date=April 2024}} and celebrated its 100-year anniversary in 2004.<ref name="history"/>

Muscatine is nearly as well known as the "Watermelon Capital of the World",<ref name="history">{{cite web |url=http://www.co.muscatine.ia.us/community/his.shtml |title=History |publisher=Co.muscatine.ia.us |access-date=2013-03-26 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120728115458/http://www.co.muscatine.ia.us/community/his.shtml |archive-date=2012-07-28 }}</ref> a title that reflects the agricultural rural nature of the county.

Muscatine was home to [[minor league baseball]]. The [[Muscatine Muskies]] was the last moniker of the minor league teams that played in Muscatine from 1910 to 1916. Muscatine was a member of the [[Northern Association]] (1910) and [[Central Association]] (1911–1916). [[Baseball Hall of Fame]] member [[Sam Rice]] played for the Muscatine Wallopers in 1912. Muscatine played at League Field, now named "Tom Bruner Field".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=rice--001edg|title=Sam Rice Minor Leagues Statistics & History|website=Baseball-Reference.com|access-date=2020-04-12|archive-date=2020-05-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200526031753/https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=rice--001edg|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://qctimes.com/news/local/muscatine-field-marks-100th-year-of-baseball/article_69e2454e-86fe-11df-9d52-001cc4c03286.html|title=Muscatine field marks 100th year of baseball|first=Mike|last=Ferguson|website=The Quad-City Times|date=July 3, 2010 |access-date=2020-04-12|archive-date=2020-04-12|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200412185632/https://qctimes.com/news/local/muscatine-field-marks-100th-year-of-baseball/article_69e2454e-86fe-11df-9d52-001cc4c03286.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

Muscatine was the home town and operating location of broadcaster [[Norman G. Baker]], inventor of the [[calliaphone]]. In 1925–1931, Baker operated the powerful radio station KTNT, published a newspaper, and operated the Baker Institute, a clinic. He also owned numerous businesses in the town.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Juhnke |first1=Eric |title=Baker, Norman |url=http://uipress.lib.uiowa.edu/bdi/DetailsPage.aspx?id=18 |website=THE BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY OF IOWA |publisher=University of Iowa |access-date=23 March 2023}}</ref>

Muscatine was formerly a stop on the shared [[Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad]] and [[Milwaukee Road]] line. Restructuring of the railroads followed declines in passenger traffic and the Rock Island station was eventually demolished. The two railroads split near the railroad crossing on county highway X61. A portion of the [[Milwaukee Road]]'s line is extant; it serves business and is used for the storage of [[rolling stock]].

[[Tornadoes of 2007#June 1|Muscatine]] was hit by an [[Enhanced Fujita Scale|EF3]] tornado on June 1, 2007, which destroyed or damaged areas of the city.<ref>[http://www.muscatinejournal.com/articles/2007/06/01/news/doc4660d72b4cdc3753739891.txt "Terrible touchdown in Muscatine"] ''Muscatine Journal'', 2007-06-01. Accessed 2007-06-01.</ref>

On February 15, 2012, [[Xi Jinping]], [[Vice President of the People's Republic of China]], visited Muscatine. He had previously visited in 1985 as part of a Chinese delegation to learn about American agriculture.{{efn|In 1980 accompanied by Jan Berris of the [[National Committee on US-China Relations]], Xi Jinping's father [[Xi Zhongxun]] visited New York City, Washington, D.C., Iowa, Colorado, California and Hawaii. In Muscatine, Sarah Lande sponsored Xi Jinping during his visits and has visited China numerous times, too.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/2012/11/12/164940204/chinas-next-president-is-widely-traveled|title=China's Next Leader Has A Soft Spot For Iowa Town|date=November 12, 2012|work=[[NPR]]|last=Lim|first=Louisa|access-date=October 30, 2018|archive-date=October 31, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181031005402/https://www.npr.org/2012/11/12/164940204/chinas-next-president-is-widely-traveled|url-status=live}}</ref>}} He returned to Muscatine when he toured the U.S. in 2012 before becoming president. The visit prompted the public appearance of both supporters and protesters. The latter criticized [[Human rights in China|China's human rights record]] in [[Human rights in Tibet|Tibet]].<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/16/world/asia/xi-jinping-of-china-makes-a-return-trip-to-iowa.html?scp=2&sq=Xi%20Jinping&st=cse | work=The New York Times | first=Kirk | last=Johnson | title=Xi Jinping of China Makes a Return Trip to Iowa | date=February 15, 2012 | access-date=February 25, 2017 | archive-date=September 18, 2017 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170918064942/http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/16/world/asia/xi-jinping-of-china-makes-a-return-trip-to-iowa.html?scp=2&sq=Xi%20Jinping&st=cse | url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2017, the {{convert|33,000|ft2|adj=on}} Sino-U.S. Cultural Center was established for $1 million (equivalent to ${{formatprice|{{inflation|US|1,000,000|2017}}}} in {{inflation/year|US}}),{{inflation/fn|US}} by Glad Cheng (born 1971), owner of Muscatine Travel and chairman of the China Windows Group Inc.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.visitmuscatine.com/289/Muscatine-China-Connection|title=Muscatine-China Connection|work=Visit Muscatine website|access-date=October 30, 2018|archive-date=October 31, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181031052447/http://www.visitmuscatine.com/289/Muscatine-China-Connection|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://muscatinejournal.com/muscatine/news/chinese-cultural-center-to-open-in-downtown-muscatine/article_a677dc88-081d-58e0-bbbd-a63becdd84f3.html|title=Chinese cultural center to open in downtown Muscatine|date=April 3, 2017|newspaper=[[Muscatine Journal]]|last=Touney|first=Jan|access-date=October 30, 2018|archive-date=October 31, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181031052413/https://muscatinejournal.com/muscatine/news/chinese-cultural-center-to-open-in-downtown-muscatine/article_a677dc88-081d-58e0-bbbd-a63becdd84f3.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2017/apr/4/chinese-cultural-center-to-open-in-southeast-iowa-/|title=Chinese cultural center to open in southeast Iowa city|date=April 4, 2017|newspaper=[[Washington Times]]|agency=[[Associated Press]]|access-date=October 30, 2018|archive-date=October 31, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181031052334/https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2017/apr/4/chinese-cultural-center-to-open-in-southeast-iowa-/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/local/columnists/kyle-munson/2017/04/05/seems-easier-muscatine-make-friends-china-than-its-own-city-government/99988152/|title=It seems easier for Muscatine to make friends with China than its own city government|date=April 4, 2017|newspaper=[[The Des Moines Register]]|last=Munson|first=Kyle|access-date=October 30, 2018}}</ref>