Demographics

As of the census

Census

A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

of 2000, there were 921 people, 381 households, and 235 families residing in the city. The population density

Population density

Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...

 was 1,036.8 people per square mile (399.6/km²). There were 417 housing units at an average density of 469.4 per square mile (180.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 99.57% White, 0.33% Native American, and 0.11% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.43% of the population.

There were 381 households out of which 27.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.9% were married couples

Marriage

Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...

 living together, 5.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.1% were non-families. 36.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 23.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 2.99.

In the city the population was spread out with 23.8% under the age of 18, 5.4% from 18 to 24, 23.6% from 25 to 44, 20.8% from 45 to 64, and 26.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females there were 80.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.2 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $34,737, and the median income for a family was $46,354. Males had a median income of $33,906 versus $19,432 for females. The per capita income

Per capita income

Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...

 for the city was $17,037. About 5.2% of families and 6.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.7% of those under age 18 and 3.2% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

The economy of Osceola is based upon agriculture. Like most of Polk County, Osceola invests in dairy, cattle and pork production. Seed corn and soybean are among the grains produced by the city.

Osceola's largest employer is the "Annie Jeffrey Memorial County Health Center", which employs 56 individuals overall, 52 of which are female. The largest local employer of males is the Polk County government with 25 male employees.

Roughly $2.33 of tax were paid in the city for every $100.00. The tax rate has steadily decreased from 2005 to 2007. A 1% sales tax is imposed upon the citizens by the city government.

Government

The city government includes a mayor

Mayor

In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....

 and a city council

City council

A city council or town council is the legislative body that governs a city, town, municipality or local government area.-Australia & NZ:Because of the differences in legislation between the States, the exact definition of a City Council varies...

. The current mayor is Wendell Lindsley. City planning is conducted by a five member commission appointed by the mayor and approved by the city council. They serve for three year terms.

City services include, one fire station

Fire station

A fire station is a structure or other area set aside for storage of firefighting apparatus , personal protective equipment, fire hose, fire extinguishers, and other fire extinguishing equipment...

 located within the city, provided with twenty-five volunteers and twelve Emergency Medical Technicians. The Polk County Sheriff

Sheriff

A sheriff is in principle a legal official with responsibility for a county. In practice, the specific combination of legal, political, and ceremonial duties of a sheriff varies greatly from country to country....

's Department is also found in the city limits and includes seven sworn officers, four part-time officers and five support personnel.

The city of Osceola banned the ownership of certain dog breeds including Staffordshire bull terriers

Staffordshire Terrier

Staffordshire Terrier may refer to:*Staffordshire Bull Terrier*American Staffordshire Terrier...

, American Pit Bull Terriers, American Staffordshire terrier

American Staffordshire Terrier

The American Staffordshire terrier is a medium-sized, short-coated American dog breed. In the early part of the twentieth century the breed gained social stature and was accepted by the American Kennel Club as the American Staffordshire Terrier in 1936...

s, chow

Chow Chow

Chow chow is a breed of dog that was developed in China, where it is referred to as Songshi Quan , which literally means "puffy-lion dog".- Appearance :...

s, Doberman

Doberman

Doberman or Dobermann most commonly refers to Doberman Pinscher, a breed of dog, or to its creator, Karl Friedrich Louis Dobermann.It may also refer to:*Doberman , a 2003 album by Tomoyasu Hotei*Doberman , a Japanese ska/punk band...

s, Rottweiler

Rottweiler

The Rottweiler is a medium to large size breed of domestic dog that originated in Rottweil, Germany. The dogs were known as "Rottweil butchers' dogs" because they were used to herd livestock and pull carts laden with butchered meat and other products to market...

s, American Bandog mastiff

Bandog

The term Bandog originated around 1250-1300 in Middle England, referring to a mastiff type dog that was bound by a chain during the daytime and was released at night to guard against intruders...

s and Neapolitan Mastiff

Neapolitan Mastiff

The Neapolitan Mastiff, Italian Mastiff, is a large, ancient dog breed. This massive breed is often used as a guard and defender of family and property due to their protective instincts and their fearsome appearance....

s within city limits during the summer of 2008. Citizens were given 48 hours to transfer the dogs from their residence.

Education

Osceola Public Schools operates two schools: Jeffrey Elementary and the Osceola Middle/High School.

Notable natives

• Stanley K. Hathaway
  Stanley K. Hathaway
  Stanley Knapp Hathaway served as 27th Governor of Wyoming from 1967–1975, and as United States Secretary of the Interior under President Gerald R. Ford.- Early life and military service :Stanley K...
  
   - former Wyoming Governor and U.S. Secretary of the Interior
  United States Secretary of the Interior
  The United States Secretary of the Interior is the head of the United States Department of the Interior.The US Department of the Interior should not be confused with the concept of Ministries of the Interior as used in other countries...
  
  
• John Hopwood Mickey - former Governor of Nebraska
• Albinus Nance
  Albinus Nance
  Albinus Roberts Nance served as a soldier during the American Civil War, and is well known for being the fourth Governor of Nebraska.-Early life and Civil War:...
  
   - former Governor of Nebraska
• Ashton Shallenberger - former Governor of Nebraska