Ringsted, Iowa, United States

🇺🇸 Ringsted is a city in Emmet County, Iowa, United States.

History Ringsted was platted in 1899. It was named after Ringsted, Denmark, the native home of an early settler.

Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1.08 square miles (2.80 km²), all land.

Demographics As of the census of 2010, there were 422 people, 193 households, and 113 families residing in the city. The population density was 390.7 inhabitants per square mile (150.9/km²). There were 221 housing units at an average density of 204.6 per square mile (79.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 97.6% White, 0.7% Native American, 0.9% from other races, and 0.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.4% of the population.

There were 193 households, of which 24.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.1% were married couples living together, 9.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 2.6% had a male householder with no wife present, and 41.5% were non-families. 36.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 17.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.19 and the average family size was 2.86.

Danish-Lutherans Ringsted is known for its Danish-American and Lutheran population. The St. Ansgar Danish Lutheran Church was organized by the city's original founders in 1882. In 1894, due to a theological debate about the word of God and activities such as dancing, the Danish Lutheran community was divided into two groups nicknamed "Happy Danes" and "Sad Danes". A folk dance troupe called "The Happy Dancing Danes" gained local popularity in the 1940s, given this name because "Happy Danes" did not believe dancing was sinful. The congregations were reunited in 2007.

Education North Union Community School District operates public schools. It was established on July 1, 2014, by the merger of the Armstrong–Ringsted Community School District and the Sentral Community School District. The latter formed on July 1, 1979, with the merger of the Armstrong and Ringsted school districts.

The median age in the city was 43.3 years. 23.7% of residents were under the age of 18; 5.4% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 23.3% were from 25 to 44; 27.7% were from 45 to 64; and 20.1% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 46.4% male and 53.6% female.