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Moline
Moline is a city located in Rock Island County, Illinois, United States. Moline's population is 43,768, as of the 2000 census.
Moline is one of the Quad Cities, along with neighboring Rock Island and the Iowa cities of Davenport and Bettendorf. The corporate headquarters of Deere & Company and the Quad City International Airport are located in Moline, as well as the Quad Cities campus of Western Illinois University. Moline is a retail hub for the Illinois Quad Cities, as Southpark Mall and numerous big box stores are located in the city. In the mid 1990s, a project known as John Deere Commons led to the revitalization of Moline's central business district.
History
According to the Rock Island County Historical Society, the first established inhabitants of Moline are thought to be the Sac Fox Indians. This tribe saw the land between the Rock and Mississippi Rivers as ideal for farming and fishing. Their village was called Saukunuk, and its position on the bluffs overlooking the river would prove to be a valuable lookout point. By the early 1800s, this once peaceful area would become one of war, caused by disputes between white settlers and the Sac Fox Tribe. In 1832 Chief Black Hawk declared war on the United States, initiating the Black Hawk War. When the war ended later that year, Black Hawk and his people were forced to leave the area and go north, paving the way for more settlers to enter the Mississippi Valley.
Moline's first dam, built in 1841 by David B. Sears, was made of wood and connected Sylvan Slough and Arsenal Island. Water power generated by this dam attracted many mills and entrepreneurs, including John Deere, who moved his steel plow company to Moline in 1848. This same year, Moline was officially incorporated as a city. The city's name, suggested by a city surveyor, P.H. Olgilvie, is French for city of mills.
Along with Deere and Co., many other Moline-based companies would soon be known around the country for their products. These include Moline Wagon Company, Dimock, Gould, and Co., Velie Carriage, Moline Pipe Organ, and Moline Furniture Works, just to name a few.
Along with these factories came immigrants from France, Germany, Sweden, and Belgium. The rich culture of Moline is still evident today with events such as the Greek Fest, held every summer at the John Deere Commons, rolle bolle tournaments at Stephen's Park, and "Viva! Quad~Cities".
What started as a small mill town has grown into a city of over 43,000 people in a metropolitan area of 400,000.
Geography
Moline is located at (41.490966, -90.502006).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 41.0 km² (15.8 mi²). 40.4 km² (15.6 mi²) of it is land and 0.6 km² (0.2 mi²) of it (1.39%) is water.
Moline is situated on a peninsula formed by the confluence of the Mississippi River and the Rock River.
The flood plain along the Mississippi to the north quickly rises up the bluff to a broad highland before...
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