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Wapello County was established in 1843 by land rush along the banks of the
Des Moines River. The initial population of 5,000 people built cabins with native
trees, cleared the land to plant crops and made use of the abundant grass prairies
for their livestock. Farming is still very much a way of life.
Today, Ottumwa is a city of 24,998 people in a county of 35,842 serving a regional
population of 140,000 located in a state with 2,954,451 citizens. It is located in
the southeastern portion of Iowa approximately 60 miles south of Interstate 80
and 90 miles southeast of Des Moines, the state capital. Air service is a short
90 minutes via four-lane divided highway from Ottumwa to Des Moines. Major
airlines providing service include American, United, Northwest, America West
Express, Midwest Connect, Allegiant Air, Continental Express, and Comair.
Non-stop service is provided to: Atlanta, Chicago, Cincinnati, Dallas, Denver,
Detroit, Houston, Las Vegas, Memphis, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Orlando, Phoenix,
St. Louis and Washington, D.C.
Ottumwa’s labor force is considered to be industrious and creative. Many are
under-employed and anxious for an opportunity to improve themselves and work
in a more challenging field. Ottumwans are also extremely well connected to the
Internet with high speed broadband service through multiple independent
service providers.
Both the city and county are fortunate to be able to embrace and nurture several
economic engines: Ottumwa is best known for the quality and quantity of
agricultural products which principally include growing corn and soybeans and
raising feeder hogs. Since the beginnings of the John Morrell Meat Packing
Company in the 1850’s, Ottumwa continues to both produce agricultural products
and add value by processing those products to primary and secondary foods.
The processing of America’s foods continues today with the Cargill Meat Solutions
Excel plant which processes four million hogs a year with 2,500 employees. The
corn from Ottumwa and the surrounding 10-county region is processed into corn
sweetener by Cargill’s Eddyville plant where enough corn sweetener is produced
for 61 billion cans of soft drinks.
Since 1910, John Deere has been making quality farm equipment in Ottumwa,
where today 950 employees produce haying equipment painted in the familiar
John Deere green and yellow. Another metal fabricator, Al-Jon Company,
manufactures metal recycling equipment and Winbco produces food grade tanks.
Further diversification of Ottumwa’s economy includes Indian Hills Community
College, where the education of Ottumwa’s current and future labor force occurs
with over 1,000 graduates each year. The Ottumwa Regional Health Center’s
950 employees keeps our labor force healthy and productive. The Ottumwa
Community Schools provide 4,700 students with a quality education.
Quality of life is in the eyes of the beholder, and Ottumwans agree that the city’s
warm, friendly environment and low crime rate make it a haven for raising
families, educating children and reaching new goals in our work.
The goal of the Ottumwa Economic Development Corporation (OEDC) is to
strengthen Ottumwa’s economic engines and further diversify our economy. If
you would like to learn more about Ottumwa, its economy, opportunities and
businesses, please feel free to make contact with OEDC and the other organizations
listed on the back of this publication.
Community Profile (PDF)
Brochure & Statistics (PDF)
Visit Ottumwa's Website
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