Fort Dodge, Iowa

It was named after Henry Dodge, a governor of Wisconsin Territory (which had included Iowa until Iowa became a state in 1846).

== History == Fort Dodge traces its beginnings to 1850 when Capt.

The fort was abandoned by the Army in 1853.

The town of Fort Dodge was founded in 1869.

In 1872 the long and continuing history of gypsum production in Iowa started when George Ringland, Webb Vincent, and Stillman T.

The Fort Dodge Senior High School musical is the longest-running high school musical theater tradition in the United States, first produced in 1927.

The Blanden opened June 5, 1932.

A commercial TV station, last known as KVFD-TV, an NBC affiliate, operated on channel 21 from 1953 until 1970 then moved to channel 50.

On May 4, 1977, its tower and transmitter were destroyed by a tornado.

The company's headquarters were moved from Fort Dodge to Overland Park, Kansas in 1995.

The Fort Dodge Correctional Facility, a 1,250-bed medium-security state prison, opened in 1998.

=== 2000 census === As of the census of 2000, there were 25,136 people, 10,470 households, and 6,376 families residing in the city.

The 300 acres (1.2 km2) Gypsum City Off-Highway Vehicle Park opened to the public on July 6, 2006.

=== 2010 census === As of the census of 2010, there were 25,206 people, 10,275 households, and 5,850 families residing in the city.

Fort Frenzy opened in the eastern part of the city in late 2013.

2014 marked the 40th year of the event.

Duncombe Elementary closed briefly in 2015 due to structural issues, and was operating in the former Fair Oaks Middle School.

In 2018, Kris Patrick, executive director of Fort Dodge Main Street, stated that Fort Dodge is locally referred to as "Little Chicago" because architects modeled downtown buildi...

== Demographics == === 2020 census === As of the census of 2020, there were 24,871 people, 9,946 households, and 5,428 families residing in the city.

In 2022, Cargill announced it would build a corn syrup refinery in Fort Dodge.

Matt Cosgrove River's Edge Discovery Center, 20 N 1st Street, Fort Dodge, had its grand opening in 2024.