Swain is a junior marketing and writing double major and can be contacted at [email protected]

Drake students typically live in Des Moines for at least eight months out of the year.  Although most of us live here for so long, a lot of us surprisingly know very little about the city that we call home.  Read on to learn eight new things about DSM that you may not have known before.

1. Des Moines is pronounced “Dee Mwan” and not “Dee Moyne,” the way most people pronounce it.

2. The downtown skywalk in Des Moines is nearly four miles long, one of  the longest in the nation.

3. The Principal Financial Group, Meredith Corporation, Allied Insurance, CDS Global, EMC Insurance, Tones Spices, Casey’s General Stores, Hy-Vee Corporation and Anderson Erickson Dairy were all established in Des Moines.

4. The Iowa State Capitol is the only state capitol in the United States to have five total domes.

5. The city was named after the Des Moines River, which literally means, “river of the monks” when translated from French.

6. According to Men’s Health magazine, Des Moines is the 42nd most socially networked city in the nation.

7. The U.S. News & World Report calls Des Moines the richest metro area in the nation.

8. According to Forbes, Des Moines is the No. 1 city for young professionals.