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Iowa State Profile
Official State Website URL- http://www.iowa.gov| Des Moines, Iowa | |||
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| Nickname: "DSM", "The 515", "DeMo", "City of Skywalks", "The Hartford of the West" | |||
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| Coordinates: | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Country |  United States | ||
| State |  Iowa | ||
| County | Polk | ||
| Incorporated | September 22, 1851 | ||
| Government | |||
| - Mayor | Frank Cownie | ||
| Area | |||
| - Total | 200.1 km² (77.2 sq mi) | ||
| - Land | 196.3 km² (75.8 sq mi) | ||
| - Water | 3.8 km² (1.5 sq mi) | ||
| Elevation | 291 m (955 ft) | ||
| Population (2006)[1][2] | |||
| - City | 193,886 | ||
| - Density | 1,012.0/km² (2,621.3/sq mi) | ||
| - Metro | 604,626 | ||
| Time zone | CST (UTC-6) | ||
| - Summer (DST) | CDT (UTC-5) | ||
| ZIP codes | 50301-50340 | ||
| Area code(s) | 515 | ||
| FIPS code | 19-21000 | ||
| GNIS feature ID | 0465961 | ||
| Website: http://www.dmgov.org/ | |||
Des Moines (pronounced /dɪˈmɔɪn/ in English, 
/demwan/ in French) is the capital of and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines, owing its name to the Des Moines River (French: Rivière Des Moines, literally meaning "River of the Monks," but in the 18th century designating "River of the Moingwena," an Illinois Indian subtribe; the French voyagers often abbreviated tribal names, and in this case "River of the Moingwena" became "River of the Moines"), until it was shortened to "Des Moines" in 1857.[3] It is also the county seat of Polk County. The five-county metropolitan area is ranked 92nd in terms of population in the United States according to 2006 estimates with 534,230 residents according to United States Census Bureau.[4] The population was 198,682 at the 2000 census.
Des Moines is a major center for the insurance industry and also has a sizeable financial services and publishing business base. The city is the headquarters for the Principal Financial Group, the Meredith Corporation, and Ruan Transportation. Other major corporations such as Wells Fargo, ING Group, Marsh, and Pioneer Hi-Bred have large operations in or near the metro area. Forbes Magazine ranked Des Moines as the fourth "Best Place for Business" in 2007.[5]
Recently, Des Moines has been experiencing rapid growth in the western and southern suburbs.
Interstate 235 cuts through the city, and Interstate 35 and Interstate 80 both pass through the Des Moines metropolitan area.