1. Drake University was founded on April 23, 1881. Originally named Des Moines College, it was renamed in honor of Francis Marion Drake, a former governor of Iowa.
2. Iowa State University was established on April 23, 1858, as the Iowa Agricultural College and Model Farm. It was the first land-grant college in the United States.
3. In 1983, the longest game in baseball history took place at Sec Taylor Stadium in Des Moines. The game lasted 33 innings and lasted over two nights before being called due to curfew. It remains the longest professional baseball game in history.
4. On April 23, 1836, Iowa Territory was established by an act of Congress. It included all of present-day Iowa, as well as parts of Minnesota and the Dakotas.
5. Iowa native, Herbert Hoover, was born on April 23, 1874, in West Branch. He went on to become the 31st President of the United States, serving from 1929 to 1933.