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County · code 19013

Black Hawk CountyIowa

Black Hawk County is a county in Iowa with its seat in Waterloo. It was created on February 17, 1843, from Buchanan County.

  • Founded1843
  • County seatWaterloo
  • Named forBlack Hawk
  • Land area566 sq mi + 6.9 sq mi water
  • Population131,144 2020 Census
  • Parcels mapped68,029 checked 14 October 2026
Open the free map Click any parcel in Black Hawk County: acreage, parcel id, address and who publishes the map. No sign-in.

Updated

BuchananGrundy Waterloo Census outline · seat marked

Where it is

Black Hawk on the map of Iowa

Iowa has 99 counties and county equivalents, each with its own records office. Shapes with a page are links.

Adair CountyAdams CountyAllamakee CountyAppanoose CountyAudubon CountyBenton CountyBoone CountyBremer CountyBuchanan CountyBuena Vista CountyButler CountyCalhoun CountyCarroll CountyCass CountyCedar CountyCerro Gordo CountyCherokee CountyChickasaw CountyClarke CountyClay CountyClayton CountyClinton CountyCrawford CountyDallas CountyDavis CountyDecatur CountyDelaware CountyDes Moines CountyDickinson CountyDubuque CountyEmmet CountyFayette CountyFloyd CountyFranklin CountyFremont CountyGreene CountyGrundy CountyGuthrie CountyHamilton CountyHancock CountyHardin CountyHarrison CountyHenry CountyHoward CountyHumboldt CountyIda CountyIowa CountyJackson CountyJasper CountyJefferson CountyJohnson CountyJones CountyKeokuk CountyKossuth CountyLee CountyLinn CountyLouisa CountyLucas CountyLyon CountyMadison CountyMahaska CountyMarion CountyMarshall CountyMills CountyMitchell CountyMonona CountyMonroe CountyMontgomery CountyMuscatine CountyO'Brien CountyOsceola CountyPage CountyPalo Alto CountyPlymouth CountyPocahontas CountyPolk CountyPottawattamie CountyPoweshiek CountyRinggold CountySac CountyScott CountyShelby CountySioux CountyStory CountyTama CountyTaylor CountyUnion CountyVan Buren CountyWapello CountyWarren CountyWashington CountyWayne CountyWebster CountyWinnebago CountyWinneshiek CountyWoodbury CountyWorth CountyWright CountyBlack Hawk County Black Hawk
Counties of Iowa · Black Hawk highlighted

History

Formed in 1843 from Buchanan County

An old deed may name a county that no longer exists, or a boundary that has since moved.

Black Hawk County was created from Buchanan County by Iowa Territory and named after Black Hawk. In 1844, it was attached to Delaware County for administrative and judicial purposes, then in 1846 it was attached to Benton County for election, judicial, and revenue purposes. When Iowa became a state on December 28, 1846, Black Hawk County became an Iowa county. Between 1851 and 1856, Bremer, Butler, and Grundy counties were organized and detached from Black Hawk County.

Boundary changes from the Newberry Library, Atlas of Historical County Boundaries; the 5 that matter most are shown first.

  1. 1843
    Black Hawk County created Black Hawk created by Iowa Territory from Buchanan.
    from Buchanan
    · Iowa Terr. Rev. Stat. 1843, ch. 34, sec. 11/p. 134
  2. 1844
    Changed Black Hawk attached to Delaware for administrative and judicial purposes.
    Delaware
    · Iowa Terr. Laws 1843-1844, ch. 87, sec. 2/p. 105
  3. 1846
    Changed Black Hawk detached from Delaware, attached to Benton "for election, judicial, and revenue purposes".
    DelawareBenton
    · Iowa Terr. Laws 1845-1846, ch. 96, secs. 1, 11, 18/pp. 86-88
  4. 1846
    Became part of Iowa Black Hawk became an Iowa county when the state of Iowa was created from Iowa Territory. · U.S. Stat., vol. 9, ch. 1[1847]/p. 117
  5. 1851
    Changed Black Hawk detached from Benton, attached to Buchanan "for judicial, elective, and revenue purposes".
    BentonBuchanan
    · Iowa Acts 1850-1851, ch. 95, secs. 1-2/p. 227
Show all 10 changes (5 more)
  1. 1843
    Black Hawk County created Black Hawk created by Iowa Territory from Buchanan.
    from Buchanan
    · Iowa Terr. Rev. Stat. 1843, ch. 34, sec. 11/p. 134
  2. 1844
    Changed Black Hawk attached to Delaware for administrative and judicial purposes.
    Delaware
    · Iowa Terr. Laws 1843-1844, ch. 87, sec. 2/p. 105
  3. 1846
    Changed Black Hawk detached from Delaware, attached to Benton "for election, judicial, and revenue purposes".
    DelawareBenton
    · Iowa Terr. Laws 1845-1846, ch. 96, secs. 1, 11, 18/pp. 86-88
  4. 1846
    Became part of Iowa Black Hawk became an Iowa county when the state of Iowa was created from Iowa Territory. · U.S. Stat., vol. 9, ch. 1[1847]/p. 117
  5. 1851
    Changed Black Hawk detached from Benton, attached to Buchanan "for judicial, elective, and revenue purposes".
    BentonBuchanan
    · Iowa Acts 1850-1851, ch. 95, secs. 1-2/p. 227
  6. 1853
    Changed Bremer, Butler, and Grundy detached from Buchanan, attached to Black Hawk "for judicial, elective, and revenue purposes."
    BremerButlerGrundyBuchanan
    · Iowa Acts 1852-1853, ch. 50, sec. 5/pp. 85-86
  7. 1853
    Changed Bremer fully organized, detached from Black Hawk.
    Bremer
    · Swisher, "Organization of Counties," 574
  8. 1853
    Changed Black Hawk fully organized, detached from Buchanan.
    Buchanan
    · Swisher, "Organization of Counties," 574
  9. 1854
    Changed Butler fully organized, detached from Black Hawk.
    Butler
    · Swisher, "Organization of Counties," 574
  10. 1856
    Changed Grundy fully organized, detached from Black Hawk.
    Grundy
    · Swisher, "Organization of Counties," 575

Land and parcels

What the maps cover in Black Hawk

Who publishes each layer, how good it is, and when we last checked.

Official
from the office that keeps the record
Good enough
a reliable statewide or national copy
Fallback
a guide only; check the official record
Missing
nothing public found yet

People and land

Black Hawk by the Census

Population
131,144 2020 Census count
Housing units
58,559 2020 Census count
Land area
566 square miles
Water area
6.9 square miles
People per sq mi
232 population ÷ land area

Source: US Census Bureau, 2020 Census; US Census Bureau, 2020 Gazetteer Files. Not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Rules and offices

Black Hawk County's official site

We have found the county's site but not its offices yet; start there.

County government

See your own lot on these maps

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Questions

Common questions about Black Hawk County

When was Black Hawk County founded?
Black Hawk County was founded in 1843, formed from Buchanan County, and named after Black Hawk.
What is the county seat of Black Hawk County?
The county seat of Black Hawk County is Waterloo.
Is there an online parcel map for Black Hawk County?
Yes. Black Hawk County publishes a parcel map of 68,029 parcels, rated good enough here. You can click any parcel on it in Parcel Chart's free map, no sign-in needed.
Has Black Hawk County's boundary or name changed?
Black Hawk County was created in 1843 from Buchanan County. Since then the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries records 9 later changes, chiefly involving Buchanan County, Benton County and Bremer County.
Is my lot in a flood zone?
We do not have flood maps for Black Hawk County yet. Look up the address on FEMA's Flood Map Service Center, which shows the effective flood map for any lot.

Nearby

Counties next door