Welcome to Elkhart ...
The city of Elkhart is located in Polk County<1>.
While we don't have a date for the founding of Elkhart, you might consider that their post office opened in 1854.
From the Census Estimates for 2019, Elkhart has a population of 921 people<2> (see below for details).
Elkhart is 970 feet [296 m] above sea level.<3>.
Time Zone: Elkhart lies in the Central Time Zone (CST/CDT) and observes daylight saving time
Elkhart lies within the (515) area code.
The ZIP code for Elkhart: 50073<4>
Population Details ...
Taken from the 2019 Census Estimates, Elkhart had an population of 921 people. This is an increase of 34.85% since the 2010 Census (or an increase of 154.42% since the 2000 Census).
At the time of the 2010 Census, Elkhart had a population of 683 people. This makes Elkhart the county's 14th most populous community.
The population of Elkhart represents 0.02% of the total population of Iowa (which has 3,046,355 people), making it the state's 384th most populous community.
With a 2010 count of 683 people, the population of Elkhart increased 88.67% from the 2000 Census (with a count of 362 people).
More information can be found on the Census Page for Elkhart.
Communities Also Named Elkhart ...
Using our Gazetteer, we found that there are 7 communities that are also named Elkhart - they are located in Illinois, Indiana, Kansas (2), Missouri, Texas and Wisconsin.
For more information, see our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Elkhart.
Communities near Elkhart ...
We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Elkhart.
- Des Moines
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Des Moines
- Des Moines is located in Polk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 212,312 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Des Moines <5>
- Ankeny
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ankeny have been provided by the GNIS.<6> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ankeny
- Ankeny is located in Polk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 70,068 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ankeny <5>
- Ames
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ames
- Ames is located in Story County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 67,033 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ames <5>
- Urbandale
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Urbandale have been provided by the GNIS.<6> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Urbandale
- Urbandale is located in Polk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 44,650 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Urbandale <5>
- Johnston
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Johnston have been provided by the GNIS.<6> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johnston
- Johnston is located in Polk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 23,092 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Johnston <5>
- Altoona
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Altoona have been provided by the GNIS.<6> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Altoona
- Altoona is located in Polk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 19,503 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Altoona <5>
- Clive
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clive have been provided by the GNIS.<6> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clive
- Clive is located in Polk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 17,444 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Clive <5>
- Grimes
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grimes
- Grimes is located in Polk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 15,831 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Grimes <5>
- Pleasant Hill
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pleasant Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<6> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Hill
- Pleasant Hill is located in Polk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 10,025 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pleasant Hill <5>
- Bondurant
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bondurant have been provided by the GNIS.<6> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bondurant
- Bondurant is located in Polk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 7,293 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bondurant <5>
To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.
We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Elkhart. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Elkhart.
Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Elkhart. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around Elkhart.
We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Elkhart. See our Newspapers Page for Elkhart.
TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Elkhart ...
Looking for more information about Elkhart? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.
In addition to the Tourism page for Elkhart, there are neighboring communities that also have Tourism pages. More information about those communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for Elkhart.
Adding Elkhart to Our Gazetteer ...
We originally found mention of Elkhart in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.
From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found for Elkhart was in the document titled List of Post Offices from Cameron Blevins and Richard Helbock.<7>
From that list, the Elkhart post office opened in 1854.
We also found Elkhart in the book titled List of Post Offices in the United States (1870).
For more details, see References and Mentions for Elkhart.
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Elkhart. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Polk County: www.co.polk.ia.us/
The official website for State of Iowa: https://www.iowa.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | If you're interested in how the shape of Iowa's counties, including Polk, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. |
| <2> | Population counts have been provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. For more detail, please visit our Census Page for Elkhart. |
| <3> | The elevation is an estimate for the area around Elkhart - it will be higher in some places and lower in others. |
| <4> | ZIP Codes have been created by the United States Postal Service (USPS) as a way of grouping addresses to make delivery more efficient. The boundaries of the ZIP Code can be changed, re-assigned, eliminated or overlapped with other ZIP Codes. So keep in mind that any given ZIP Code is only 'loosely' associated with a city (such as Elkhart). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether Elkhart or elsewhere, it's always best to check the website of the United States Postal Service (USPS). |
| <5> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <6> | The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required. |
| <7> | A copy of their list with background information can be found at: https://cblevins.github.io/us-post-offices/data-biography/ |