Rock Island

Rock Island, town, Canada

Rock Island, town (1991 pop. 1,067), S Que., Canada, at the Vermont border. It is the seat of Stanstead College. Machine tools, dies, and textiles are made.

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Rock Island, city, United States

Rock Island, city (1990 pop. 40,552), seat of Rock Island co., NW Ill., on the Mississippi and Rock rivers, adjacent to Moline and opposite Davenport, Iowa; inc. 1841. These three cities, with Bettendorf, Iowa, are called the Quad Cities. Rock Island is a trade, transportation, and industrial center. Machinery, metal and wood products, and clothing are among its many manufactures. Railroad maintenance is also an important industry. Rock Island is the seat of Augustana College, and Black Hawk State Park adjoins the city. On a 1,000-acre (405-hectare) island in the Mississippi River is a huge U.S. arsenal (est. 1862), one of the largest manufacturing arsenals in the world and a major source of local employment. Arsenal Island was fortified by the British in the War of 1812 and by the Americans in 1816. In 1833, George Davenport built a palatial house there that still stands. During the Civil War, Arsenal Island was the site of a large northern military prison. A Confederate cemetery and a national cemetery are there. Bridges connect Arsenal Island, Rock Island, Davenport, and Moline.

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rock island [′räk ‚ī·lənd]

(geology)

meander core

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Rock Island 

a city in the USA, in Illinois. Population, 50,000 (1974; with the neighboring cities of Moline and Davenport and their common suburban area, 365,000). A port on the Mississippi River, the city is an important transportation junction. As of 1973, industry employed 44,000. Rock Island has plants producing agricultural machinery, road machines, and heating equipment. There are also metalworking, food-processing, and defense industries.