Iowa's Population Shifts

After World War II, machines took over much of the work on the farms. People who had worked on farms moved to towns and cities to work in factories.

After World War II mechanization began to take over on the farm. Although farms were bigger, the increased use of machinery made manpower less necessary and a shift of population began from rural areas to the cities. By 1960 Iowa’s city populations outnumbered the rural populations for the first time in history. Because industries no longer had to depend on the state’s natural resources and since raw materials could easily be shipped in, new and different industries rapidly developed. The Collins Radio Company, manufacturers of electronic parts, became a major employer of workers in the Cedar Rapids area.