Newton, Iowa

Newton is the county seat and most populous city in Jasper County, Iowa, United States. Located 30 mi (48 km) miles east of Des Moines, Newton, is in Central Iowa. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 15,254. It is the home of Iowa Speedway, Maytag Dairy Farms, and the Iowa Sculpture Festival.

History

Early history

Newton was founded in 1850 and incorporated as a city in 1857. In the late 19th century, Newton's growth was fueled by the development of coal mines in the region. The first significant mine in the area was the Couch mine of the Jasper County Coal and Railway Company, opened in the 1870s. It was, for a while, the largest mine in the county, producing 70 tons per day. William Snooks opened a mine near Newton in 1886. In the early 20th century, large scale mining in the Newton area had declined, but there were still several mines in the area that were worked intermittently.

Maytag and the era of growth

In the 20th century, Newton was a manufacturing community, much of its growth derived from the washing machine industry. Its most distinctive landmark, the Jasper County Courthouse, was built in 1911.

Iowa

Iowa (ⁱ/ˈaɪ.əwə/) is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States, bordered by the Mississippi River on the east and the Missouri River and the Big Sioux River on the west, by Wisconsin and Illinois to the east, Missouri to the south, Nebraska and South Dakota to the west, and Minnesota to the north.

In colonial times, Iowa was a part of French Louisiana and Spanish Louisiana; its state flag is patterned after the flag of France. After the Louisiana Purchase, settlers laid the foundation for an agriculture-based economy in the heart of the Corn Belt.

In the latter half of the 20th century, Iowa's agricultural economy made the transition to a diversified economy of advanced manufacturing, processing, financial services, information technology, biotechnology, and green energy production. Iowa is the 26th most extensive in land area and the 30th most populous of the 50 United States. Its capital and largest city is Des Moines. Iowa has been listed as one of the safest states in which to live. Its nickname is the Hawkeye State.

Iowa people

The Iowa (also spelled Ioway), also known as the Báxoǰe, are a Native American Siouan people. Today they are enrolled in either of two federally recognized tribes, the Iowa Tribe of Oklahoma and the Iowa Tribe of Kansas and Nebraska.

With the Missouria and the Otoe, the Ioway are the Chiwere-speaking peoples, claiming the Ho-Chunks as their "grandfathers." Their estimated population of 1,100 (in 1760) dropped to 800 (in 1804), a decrease caused mainly by smallpox, to which they had no natural immunity.

In 1837, the Iowa were moved from Iowa to reservations in Brown County, Kansas, and Richardson County, Nebraska. Bands of Iowa moved to Indian Territory in the late 19th century and settled south of Perkins, Oklahoma, becoming the Iowa Tribe of Oklahoma.

Name

Their name has been said to come from ayuhwa ("asleep"). Early European explorers often adopted the names of tribes from the ethnonyms which other tribes gave them, not understanding that these differed from what the peoples called themselves. Thus, ayuhwa is not an Ioway word. The word Ioway comes from Dakotan ayuxbe via French aiouez. Their autonym (their name for themselves) is Báxoje, pronounced [b̥aꜜxodʒɛ] (alternate spellings: pahotcha, pahucha,), which translates to "grey snow". Báxoje has been incorrectly translated as "dusted faces" or "dusty nose", since the Ioway words use different consonants.

IOWA

IOWA is an independent neo-noir film directed, written and starring Matt Farnsworth. The film follows two young Iowan lovers who decide to cook their own methamphetamine. The film was met with highly negative reviews.

Plot

After his father dies, Esper Harte learns that he may collect on his father's insurance. However, his mother and a crooked cop want to get rid of him so that they can take the money. Desperate to escape their problems, Esper and his girlfriend, Donna Huffman, decide to cook their own methamphetamine.

Cast

Release

IOWA premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 22, 2005.

Reception

The film received negative reviews. Rotten Tomatoes reports 15% of surveyed critics liked it, with a 3.9/10 rating average out of 13 reviews.Metacritic gave it a score of 35/100, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".

Slant Magazine called the film "stupendously slipshod" and "meandering, amateurish sleaze", while The New York Times criticized the lack of subtlety. In a more positive review, The Village Voice praised the film's energy and acting.Monsters and Critics said "This story and the characters in it are as real as the day is long and faithful to all that is good and bad about growing up with ever shrinking horizons."