Encyclopedia Dubuque
"Encyclopedia Dubuque is the online authority for all things Dubuque, written by the people who know the city best.”
Marshall Cohen—researcher and producer, CNN
Affiliated with the Local History Network of the State Historical Society of Iowa, and the Iowa Museum Association.
DUBUQUE (spelling)
DUBUQUE (spelling) Several spellings of "Dubuque" have occurred. Julien DUBUQUE wrote his name as we know it today, "Dubuque." In the published records of the commissioners who adjusted Spanish claims within the LOUISIANA PURCHASE, there is one instance of the name being written "Dubuc" and several occurrences of "Dubugue." These errors have generally been blamed on a copyist or proofreader.
The name has also been written Du Buque. People writing the name in this manner believed the "du" meant "of' in French. The prefix "du" is not, however, capitalized if used in this way, and the word "Dubuque" as a French name would be spelled "Debuc" without the use of the capital "B."