Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
No town among the 141 in Iowa we compare has a higher average trip to work than What Cheer. Masonic Opera House is on the National Register of Historic Places. What Cheer has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
Where What Cheer beats most towns.
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Census counts: 719 in 1880, a peak of 3,246 in 1890, 607 in 2020. The archive holds 5 old photos and papers going back to 2004 and 2 maps from 1965 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in What Cheer, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in What Cheer.
The typical What Cheer home is worth about $107,000, up 5.4% in a year, 55% below the Iowa typical home. At $744 a month, What Cheer’s median rent is where Iowa’s towns sit at $911 a month and U.S. towns at $1,185 a month.
| What Cheer | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $744 a month | $911 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 73% | 70% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
0.8% of What Cheer working residents work locally, below both Iowa’s towns (31%) and U.S. towns (8%). 21% of What Cheer residents live below the poverty line. The top destinations are Sigourney (7%), Oskaloosa (6%) and Williamsburg (5%).
| What Cheer | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 0.8% | 31% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 21% | 11% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $48,000 | $69,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
What Cheer has cold winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 85°, January nights drop to 13° and about 24 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
What Cheer beats the Iowa average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 12. 20% of adults smoke cigarettes in What Cheer. Only 9 of the 141 Iowa towns we compare have a higher share of adults who have high blood pressure than What Cheer.
| What Cheer | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 15% | 14% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 43% | 38% | 35% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 40% | 35% | 35% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 26% | 25% |
| What stands out | What Cheer | IA |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 19.3% | 11.6% |
| More adults with COPD | 9.7% | 6.9% |
| More smokers | 19.7% | 14.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 55% of U.S. communities. Since 1990, 2 flood insurance claims have been paid out in What Cheer.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Griffin Park | — | 8 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
None within 15 miles of What Cheer; the nearest are
About 2 of every 100 What Cheer residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Iowa.
Where What Cheer’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
3 notable people were born in What Cheer.
City in Iowa, United States
What Cheer () is a city in Keokuk County, Iowa, United States. It is a former coal town, and from the 1870s to the early 1900s was one of the major coal-producing centers of Iowa. Its greatest recorded population was 3,246, in the 1890 census. The population was 607 in the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
What Cheer has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
3 notable people were born here, including B. J. Palmer and Frank Hayes.
