Welcome to Ottumwa ...
The city of Ottumwa is located in Wapello County<1> and is the County Seat for Wapello County.
While we don't have a date for the founding of Ottumwa, you might consider that their post office opened in 1844.
When the people of Ottumwa refer to themselves (known as a demonym), they frequently use Ottumwan<2>
From the Census Estimates for 2019, Ottumwa has a population of 24,519 people<3> (see below for details).
Ottumwa is 640 feet [195 m] above sea level.<4>.
Time Zone: Ottumwa lies in the Central Time Zone (CST/CDT) and observes daylight saving time
Ottumwa is within the boundaries of the (641) area code.
The ZIP code for Ottumwa: 52501<5>
Websites for Ottumwa ...
Official Website: www.ci.ottumwa.ia.us/
Chamber of Commerce: www.ottumwaiowa.com/
Population Details ...
Taken from the 2019 Census Estimates, Ottumwa had an population of 24,519 people. This is a decrease of 2.01% since the 2010 Census (or a decrease of 1.92% since the 2000 Census).
At the time of the 2010 Census, Ottumwa had a population of 25,023 people (or 70.24% of the total population of Wapello County). This makes Ottumwa the county's most populous community.
The population of Ottumwa represents 0.82% of the total population of Iowa (which has 3,046,355 people), making it the state's 21st most populous community.
With a 2010 count of 25,023 people, the population of Ottumwa has remained roughly the same as the 2000 Census (which had a count of 24,998 people).
More information can be found on the Census Page for Ottumwa.
Communities Also Named Ottumwa ...
Using our Gazetteer, we found that there are 2 communities that are also named Ottumwa - they are located in Kansas and South Dakota.
For more information, see our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Ottumwa.
Communities near Ottumwa ...
We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Ottumwa.
- Bloomfield
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomfield
- Bloomfield is located in Davis County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,694 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bloomfield <6>
- Eddyville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eddyville
- Eddyville is located in Wapello County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,010 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Eddyville <6>
- Eldon
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eldon have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eldon
- Eldon is located in Wapello County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 915 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Eldon <6>
- Hedrick
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast) - Fremont
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fremont
- Fremont is located in Mahaska County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 727 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fremont <6>
- Batavia
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Batavia
- Batavia is located in Jefferson County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 552 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Batavia <6>
- Libertyville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Libertyville
- Libertyville is located in Jefferson County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 341 people
- Blakesburg
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blakesburg
- Blakesburg is located in Wapello County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 285 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Blakesburg <6>
- Packwood
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Packwood
- Packwood is located in Jefferson County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 225 people
- Drakesville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drakesville
- Drakesville is located in Davis County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 194 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Drakesville <6>
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 Ottumwa. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Ottumwa.
Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Ottumwa. 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 Ottumwa.
We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Ottumwa. Our list includes 34 papers. See our Newspapers Page for Ottumwa.
TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Ottumwa ...
Looking for more information about Ottumwa? 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 Ottumwa, there are neighboring communities that also have Tourism pages. More information about those communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for Ottumwa.
Adding Ottumwa to Our Gazetteer ...
We originally found mention of Ottumwa 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 Ottumwa was in the document titled List of Post Offices from Cameron Blevins and Richard Helbock.<8>
From that list, the Ottumwa post office opened in 1844.
We also found Ottumwa in the book titled U.S. Post Offices (Oct. 1846).
For more details, see References and Mentions for Ottumwa.
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for Ottumwa: www.ci.ottumwa.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 Wapello, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. |
| <2> | 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 Ottumwa 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 Ottumwa may use one name, keep in mind that others may use something different. |
| <3> | Population counts have been provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. For more detail, please visit our Census Page for Ottumwa. |
| <4> | The elevation is an estimate for the area around Ottumwa - it will be higher in some places and lower in others. |
| <5> | 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 Ottumwa). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether Ottumwa or elsewhere, it's always best to check the website of the United States Postal Service (USPS). |
| <6> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <7> | 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. |
| <8> | A copy of their list with background information can be found at: https://cblevins.github.io/us-post-offices/data-biography/ |