Overview
Cedar Rapids was built on the banks of the beautiful Cedar River, and the city – the second largest metro area in Iowa – owes much to the water. In 1837, woodsman Osgood Shepard chose an idyllic site overlooking the falls on which to build an inn and tavern. This infamously rowdy spot was the first structure in what would become Cedar Rapids. After a dam was built to power mills processing local corn, oats and wheat, Robert and John Stuart moved their oat milling company, the North Star Oatmeal Mill, to Cedar Rapids. Today, this North Star plant is more familiarly known as "Quaker Oats" and is the world's largest cereal manufacturing facility. The Cedar River flows through recreational life too. The city operates the largest parks department in the state, and both residents and visitors take advantage of fitness trails, a children's zoo, the soccer complex, a dog park and the state's only urban trout stream.
