Alexander Levi, a French

French people

The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...

 Jew of Sephardic origin, was the first foreigner to be naturalized in Iowa

Iowa

Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...

. He was born in 1809, in Hellimere, France near Strasbourg and settled in the town of Dubuque

Dubuque, Iowa

Dubuque is a city in and the county seat of Dubuque County, Iowa, United States, located along the Mississippi River. In 2010 its population was 57,637, making it the ninth-largest city in the state and the county's population was 93,653....

 in 1833 where he became a civic, business and religious leader. A grocer, miner, mine provisioner and successful department store owner, he founded the first two Jewish congregations in the city, was a loyal Whig, served a term as Justice of the Peace and was the first Mason to be sworn in after the Dubuque lodge received its charter. He was naturalized in 1837 and died in 1893.