Lewis and Clark Park, Council Bluffs (No. 2)
The first Council Bluff (singular) was on the Nebraska side of the river at Fort Atkinson (Nebraska), about 20 miles northwest of the current city of Council Bluffs. It was named by Lewis and Clark for a bluff where they met the Otoe tribe on August 2, 1804.
The Iowa side of the river became an Indian Reservation in the 1830s for members of the Council of Three Fires of Chippewa, Ottawa and Potawatomi, who were forced to leave the Chicago area under the Treaty of Chicago, which cleared the way for the city of Chicago to incorporate.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 43.62 square miles (112.98 km2), of which 40.97 square miles (106.11 km2) is land and 2.65 square miles (6.86 km2) is water.
Council Bluffs covers a unique topographic region originally composed of prairie and savanna in the Loess Hills with extensive wetlands and deciduous forest along the Missouri River. Excellent vistas can be had from KOIL Point at Fairmont Park, the Lincoln Monument, Kirn Park, and the Lewis and Clark Monument. Lake Manawa State Park is located at the southern edge of the city.
