It all began with a name . . .
Elkader's founders had no way of knowing that selecting the name for their city had set the stage for a great international experience for the residents of Elkader.Elkader, a Northeast Iowa community of some 1500 inhabitants, was founded in 1846 by Timothy Davis, John Thompson and Chester Sage. Davis was an admirer of the courageous and world-famous Algerian, Emir Abd Elkader, who in 1830 began a fight against French colonialism in his country that would last for more than 130 years. Davis, challenged with the task of choosing a name for the new Iowa community, Americanized "Abd Elkader" and proposed the name "Elkader".
Abd Elkader - scholar, statesman and warrior
Abd Elkader (1807-1883) was born in Mascara, Algeria, receiving a broad education including theology, linguistics and philosophy. He was a highly trained horseman, a poet, statesman, great orator and a natural leader.
At the time the town of Elkader was platted, Abd Elkader was an international hero, justly recognized for his tremendous conviction and leadership in the cause of uniting and freeing his people from French occupation. For sixteen years, commanding diplomatic as well as military fronts, Abd Elkader worked brilliantly and unceasingly to unite the Arabs of Algeria while driving the French and Turks from the area.
The political situation in Algeria was so complex that at one point the French rescued Abd Elkader's army from the forces of an Arab chieftain who was resisting unification. Years later, after being captured by the French and exiled to Damascus, he was responsible for saving thousands of Christians from being slaughtered by Muslims. Consequently, his old enemy the French government awarded him the Grand Cross of the Legion d'honneur, France's highest commendation. He received commendations and decorations from England, Russia, Prussia, Greece, the Ottoman Empire, The Holy See and from President Abraham Lincoln.
Abd Elkader was a man of deep faith without exclusivity or fanaticism which he proved by rescuing Christians during the riots in Damascus. His values and personal character seemed appropriate ideals for Elkader's founders as they formed a new community in a young country that shared those values.
More of Abd Elkader's life
The complex and varied life of Abd Elkader has been the object of more than a thousand books, studies, theses, etc. Here are a few titles: The Arab Who Conquered France, The Life and Times of Emir Abdel-Kader 1808-1883, by John Kiser
The Life of Abdelkader by Colonel Charles-Henry Churchill
The Desert Hawk by W. Blunt
The Elkader-Mascara Sister City connection
The Elkader-Mascara Sister Cities relationship began in 1979 when a staff member of the United States Information Agency in Washington D.C. contacted Donna Menken, editor of the Clayton County Register in Elkader inquiring how Elkader received its name. Ms. Menken submitted a story to U.S.I.A. which was then published in the agency's Arabic language magazine, "Al Majal".Several years later Benaoumer Zergaoui, a native of Mascara working for the U.S. Embassy in Algiers found Menken's article in "Al Majal" and subsequently visited Elkader in 1983. Zergaoui took his message of friendship offered by the people of Elkader back to the people of Mascara and to the U.S. Embassy in Algiers. The U.S. Embassy suggested that Elkader and Mascara become twin communities under the Sister Cities International program.
The City of Elkader applied to Sister Cities International for affiliation and sent an invitation and resolution to Mascara in 1983. In 1984 the Algerian government approved the twinning of Mascara and Elkader and invited a delegation from Elkader to visit Mascara and to sign official documents.
On January 19, 1984 ten Elkader citizens arrived in Mascara. Elkader Mayor, Ed Olson, and Mascara Mayor, M'Hamed Khaldi, signed the joint Sister City documents on January 25, 1984.
Chronological History of Elkader's Sister Cities Friendship Club
1846 - Timothy Davis selects "Elkader" as the name of our community.1915 - Elkader High School senior class of 1915 publishes a short story about Elkader's naming and background about Abd Elkader entitled, "The Sheik".
1979 - An official at the United States Information Agency in Washington, D.C. commissions Donna Menken, at that time editor of the Clayton County Register, to write the story of Elkader's naming for the agency's Arabic language magazine, "Al Majal".
May 1983 - U.S.I.A. and Sister Cities International contact the City of Elkader to ascertain interest in hosting an Algerian employee of the U.S. Embassy staff from Algiers and to extend and invitation to join the Sister Cities movement.
May 9, 1983 - Elkader signs a resolution to join Sister Cities International and to twin with Mascara, Algeria.
more events of your choice here. . .
March 2007 - Badria Jazairi, a storyteller in Michigan and descendant of Abd Elkader is scheduled to perform her program about Abd Elkader at the Elkader Opera House.
April 2007 - A new committee is formed to plan the Badria Jazairi event and to rebuild the Elkader Sister Cities Friendship club.
Information on this page provided by Ed Olson, Charles Schiller and Ben and Noura Benhouna
Other References:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abd_al-Qadir