Plow City

Moline takes its name from the French word for mill, moulin, and the earliest settlers here came for exactly that: water power from the Mississippi River. The site was laid out in eighteen forty-three and incorporated in eighteen forty-eight. That same year, John Deere moved his steel plow operation here from Grand Detour, Illinois, to take advantage of the river's power.

Moline quickly became one of the most productive manufacturing cities in the Midwest, earning a reputation as a plow-making center. John Deere's company never left. Its world headquarters remains here today, and the company remains a major employer in the region.

Moline is one corner of what's known as the Quad Cities, sharing the Mississippi with Rock Island on the Illinois side and Davenport and Bettendorf across the river in Iowa.