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Des Moines

8 Facts About Des Moines You Never Knew Were True

By dpaulson | Published August 15, 2016

There’s so much about Des Moines to be learned and explored. Here are eight facts about Des Moines that you’d never believe are true.

1. Between the years of 1942 and 2009, a city ordinance made dancing illegal between the hours of 2 and 6 a.m.

2. The Des Moines Blank Park Zoo became home to a third red panda, Razz, in 2012. It is estimated that there are only about 2,500 to 20,000 red pandas left in the wild.

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3. The Iowa State Capitol’s dome contains roughly 100 ounces of gold.

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4. Ronald Reagan held one of his first entertainment jobs as an announcer of Chicago Cubs games for WHO radio in Des Moines.

5. In 2012, famed Iowa native Ashton Kutcher was part of a $5 million funding round for Dwolla, a Des Moines-based startup looking to provide an alternative to credit cards.

6. Opened in 1901, Des Moines’ Waveland Golf Course is the oldest municipal golf course in the country west of the Mississippi river.

7. The guy who played Superman in “Superman Returns,” (Brandon Routh) was born in the Des Moines area.

8. Des Moines was originally named Fort Raccoon. It then became Fort Des Moines, and finally, in 1857, was shortened to Des Moines.

Do you know any other little known facts about Des Moines? Want to learn more about our great state? Here are 14 Incredible, Almost Unbelievable Facts About Iowa.

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