Des Moines

Hawkeye State seat

Des Moines is the capital and largest city of Iowa, located at the confluence of the Des Moines and Raccoon rivers.

The name comes from French, though its exact meaning is disputed.

The city anchors Iowa's political significance during presidential primary season, when candidates descend for the Iowa caucuses: Every four years, Des Moines becomes the center of the political universe.

urban

downtown

Central business district

suburbs · highrise · boulevard · infrastructure · commute · traffic · residential · commercial · development · gentrification

Iowa

state capital

Administrative center of a state

downtown · metro area · suburbs

Midwest

heartland

Central region of significance

agriculture · farmland · plains · breadbasket · amber waves · silos · barns · tractors · harvest · county fair

government

state capital

Administrative center of a state

house · lawmaking · bills · statutes · caucus · mayor · city council · administration · civic · ordinance

Categories
Opposites
urban scale/cosmopolitanism

Des MoinesNew York City

America's largest city

Los Angeles · Chicago · Tokyo · London · Paris

geographic/regional character

Des MoinesMiami

Southeast Florida coastal city

Los Angeles · Seattle · Honolulu · San Diego · New Orleans

cultural symbolism (heartland vs. elite/coastal)

Des MoinesManhattan

NYC's densest borough

Washington D.C. · Hollywood · Martha's Vineyard · Silicon Valley · Wall Street

Family

monk, monastery, monastic

Familiarity
Top 200,000
Profile
Mostly American · Timeless · Concrete · Everyday, not technical · Rated G