Waukee, Iowa

changed. As reported in the Daily Register, “The proprietors named it Shirley, but the ‘powers that be’ in the railroad office in Keokuk insisted that it should have an Indian appellation, and hence Waukee it had to be. What Waukee means, we don’t know. For that, you must ask Gen. Reid.” Businesses popped up quickly after the railroad was built, including lumber yards and hardware, drug, grocery, and grain stores. Coal was discovered in Waukee in 1869, and soon, thereafter, a substantial mining camp community developed, comprised mostly of immigrants from Italy, Croatia, and Sweden. The Harris Mine opened in 1920. The Shuler Mine, owned and operated by the Shuler Coal Company, opened in 1921. It was the largest producer of coal in Iowa, and it had the deepest mine shaft at 387 feet. It employed up to 500 men and used 32 mules. Waukee was primarily a bustling coal mine community and many of the town’s residents worked in the coal mines and camp area businesses until the Shuler Mine closed down in 1949. Fast forward to today, and Waukee has continued to grow and develop. In both 2016 and 2017, the city’s Development Services Department issued more than $200 million in building permits. While residential development has been strong for years, Waukee is really making a name for itself, lately, in the realm of commercial development. Insurance company, Holmes Murphy, with 350 employees working in the Waukee location, opened in the Kettlestone development in 2018. Fridley Theatres’ Palms Theatres & IMAX multiplex went into construction in 2018, and Apple announced plans in 2017 to build its largest data center in the world on 2,000 acres in the western part of Waukee. Designed to highlight the natural beauty of the area, Waukee’s Kettlestone is an innovative, mixed-use development where visitors can find shopping, dining, and personal services as well as parks, ponds, and trails. Over the next 25 WAUKEE , IOWA Community & Economic Development Director, Dan Dutcher City Hall