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Des Moines is the capital of and the most populous city in the State of Iowa, United States. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines, owing its name to the Des Moines River (French: Rivière Des Moines, meaning "River of the Monks"), until it was shortened to "Des Moines" in 1857. It is also the county seat of Polk County. The five-county metropolitan area is ranked 92nd in terms of population in the United States according to 2006 estimates with 534,230 residents according to United States Census Bureau.
Des Moines is a major center for the insurance industry and also has a sizeable financial services and publishing business base. The city is the headquarters for the Principal Financial Group, the Meredith Corporation, and Ruan Transportation. Other major corporations such as Wells Fargo, ING Group, Marsh, and Pioneer Hi-Bred have large operations in or near the metro area. Forbes Magazine ranked Des Moines as the fourth "Best Place for Business" in 2007.
Recently, Des Moines has been experiencing rapid growth in the western and southern suburbs and is quickly becoming a large metropolitan area and national center for financial business.

Of Interest

News from The Des Moines Register

Schweitzer to headline Harkin event

Sep 6, 2008 11:46 pm

Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer, whose feisty speech in Denver was one of the rhetorical highlights of the Democratic National Convention, will be the headline speaker at U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin’s...

Prairie Awakening brings Dallas-County site full circle

Sep 6, 2008 9:46 pm

Earlham, Ia. — Robert Knuth still feels somewhat like an outsider to his American Indian heritage.

Program offers resources, services for veterans

Sep 6, 2008 9:36 pm

Two dozen Army-green tents and scores of volunteers were waiting Saturday to help struggling veterans at the Stand Down event.

Pelosi sets Iowa tour, asks president to reduce state’s cleanup tab

Sep 6, 2008 9:33 pm

U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is scheduled to tour weather-damaged areas of the state on Monday, beginning in Des Moines around noon. She will also tour parts of Parkersburg and Cedar Rapids.

Dyersville ethanol plant to produce 110M gallons yearly

Sep 6, 2008 7:05 pm

DYERSVILLE, Iowa (AP) — VeraSun Energy says a new ethanol biorefinery in eastern Iowa will produce 110 million gallons of ethanol per year.

Keokuk disagrees with EPA over storm sewers

Sep 6, 2008 7:00 pm

KEOKUK, Iowa (AP) — The city of Keokuk plans to fight U.S. Environmental Projection Agency efforts to have the city separate its sanitary and storm sewers.

GMAC closes offices in Waterloo, Cedar Falls

Sep 6, 2008 6:58 pm

WATERLOO, Iowa (AP) — Lender GMAC has closed its retail offices in Cedar Falls and Waterloo, eliminating 27 jobs.

Details for Biden visit released

Sep 6, 2008 5:30 pm

Sen. Joe Biden, the Democratic nominee for vice president of the United States, will discuss the economy at a rally at the Iowa State Fairgrounds on Monday.

Man assaulted, has car stolen

Sep 6, 2008 3:39 pm

A man’s night out at the local pub left him beat up with a stolen vehicle.

Decision on hit-run teen trial criticized

Sep 6, 2008 5:05 am

Polk County’s chief prosecutor said Friday he disagrees with a judge’s ruling that will keep an 18-year-old woman’s fatal hit-and-run case in juvenile court.

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