Elkader /ɛlˈkeɪdər/[2] is a city in Clayton County, Iowa, United States.

[4] It is the site of Iowa's lowest recorded minimum temperature, −44 °C (−47 °F) on February 3, 1996.

The city is named after a Muslim Algerian leader, the Emir Abdelkader.

When the community was platted in 1846, the founders, Timothy Davis, John Thompson and Chester Sage decided to name it for the young Algerian who was leading his people in resisting the French conquest of Algeria.

[citation needed] The city is also home to the renovated Victorian-era Elkader Opera House, and the Turkey River Mall, a 29-room hotel converted into antique stores.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1.39 square miles (3.60 km2), all land.

There were 653 housing units at an average density of 477.7 per square mile (184.4/km2).

There were 627 housing units at an average density of 451.1 per square mile (174.2/km2).

There were 693 housing units at an average density of 496.2 per square mile (191.6/km2).