Muscatine, IA

Muscatine is a Mississippi River city in eastern Iowa, set on bluffs and flats along the water. Its river setting impressed early observers, and it later became famous for pearl button manufacturing, preserved today at the Muscatine History and Industry Center and National Pearl Button Museum. The city also has minor league baseball history and a strong agricultural-industrial hinterland. Muscatine feels river-bound and workmanlike, with old factories, bridges, river views, and a distinctive history that goes well beyond a generic county seat.