Welcome to Norwalk ...
The city of Norwalk is primarily located in Polk County<1>. A portion of Norwalk extends into Warren County.
The location of Norwalk has been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (ie- the GNIS).<2>
While we don't have a date for the founding of Norwalk, you might get a feel for it by knowing that during our research the earliest mention that we found (so far) was in a book dated 1895.
When the people of Norwalk refer to themselves (known as a demonym), they frequently use Norwalker<3>
From the Census Estimates for 2019, Norwalk has a population of 11,974 people<4> (see below for details).
Norwalk is 920 feet [280 m] above sea level.<5>.
Time Zone: Norwalk lies in the Central Time Zone (CST/CDT) and observes daylight saving time
Norwalk is located in the (515) area code.
The ZIP code for Norwalk: 50211<6>
Websites for Norwalk ...
Official Website: www.ci.norwalk.ia.us/
Population Details ...
Taken from the 2019 Census Estimates, Norwalk had an population of 11,974 people. This is an increase of 33.86% since the 2010 Census (or an increase of 73.94% since the 2000 Census).
At the time of the 2010 Census, Norwalk had a population of 8,945 people. This makes Norwalk the county's 2nd most populous community.
The population of Norwalk represents 0.29% of the total population of Iowa (which has 3,046,355 people), making it the state's 43rd most populous community.
With a 2010 count of 8,945 people, the population of Norwalk increased 29.94% from the 2000 Census (with a count of 6,884 people).
More information can be found on the Census Page for Norwalk.
Communities Also Named Norwalk ...
Using our Gazetteer, we found that there are two Iowa communities named Norwalk: This one is located in Polk County and the other is located in Warren County.
Beyond Iowa, there are 8 communities that are also named Norwalk - they are located in California, Connecticut, Florida, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio and Wisconsin.
For more information, see our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Norwalk.
Communities near Norwalk ...
We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Norwalk.
- Des Moines
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Des Moines
- Des Moines is located in Polk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 212,312 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Des Moines <7>
- Ankeny
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ankeny have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ankeny
- Ankeny is located in Polk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 70,068 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ankeny <7>
- West Des Moines
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Des Moines have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Des Moines
- West Des Moines is located in Polk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 69,057 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for West Des Moines <7>
- Urbandale
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Urbandale have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Urbandale
- Urbandale is located in Polk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 44,650 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Urbandale <7>
- Waukee
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waukee
- Waukee is located in Dallas County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 26,166 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Waukee <7>
- Johnston
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Johnston have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johnston
- Johnston is located in Polk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 23,092 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Johnston <7>
- Altoona
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Altoona have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Altoona
- Altoona is located in Polk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 19,503 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Altoona <7>
- Clive
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clive have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clive
- Clive is located in Polk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 17,444 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Clive <7>
- Indianola
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indianola
- Indianola is located in Warren County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 16,072 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Indianola <7>
- Grimes
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grimes
- Grimes is located in Polk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 15,831 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Grimes <7>
To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.
We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Norwalk. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Norwalk.
Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Norwalk. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around Norwalk.
We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Norwalk. See our Newspapers Page for Norwalk.
TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Norwalk ...
Looking for more information about Norwalk? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.
In addition to the Tourism page for Norwalk, there are neighboring communities that also have Tourism pages. More information about those communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for Norwalk.
Adding Norwalk to Our Gazetteer ...
We originally found mention of Norwalk in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.
From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found for Norwalk was in the book titled Business Atlas and Shippers' Guide (1895).
We also found Norwalk on a map (with an unknown title) dated 1905.
For more details, see References and Mentions for Norwalk.
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for Norwalk: www.ci.norwalk.ia.us/
The official website for Polk County: www.co.polk.ia.us/
The official website for State of Iowa: https://www.iowa.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | If you're interested in how the shape of Iowa's counties, including Polk, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. |
| <2> | The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required. |
| <3> | A demonym is the name for a resident of a community which is usually derived from (or is related to) the name of that community. In other words, it's how the residents of Norwalk refer to themselves. It's important to note that there aren't any rules for taking a city's name and turning it into a demonym. A demonym is informal and while the majority of Norwalk may use one name, keep in mind that others may use something different. |
| <4> | Population counts have been provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. For more detail, please visit our Census Page for Norwalk. |
| <5> | The elevation is an estimate for the area around Norwalk - it will be higher in some places and lower in others. |
| <6> | ZIP Codes have been created by the United States Postal Service (USPS) as a way of grouping addresses to make delivery more efficient. The boundaries of the ZIP Code can be changed, re-assigned, eliminated or overlapped with other ZIP Codes. So keep in mind that any given ZIP Code is only 'loosely' associated with a city (such as Norwalk). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether Norwalk or elsewhere, it's always best to check the website of the United States Postal Service (USPS). |
| <7> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |