What did Des Moines Iowa look like?

Answer 1

It is relatively flat with two rivers meeting in town (the Des Moines and the Raccoon). There are lots of bridges accross the Des Moines, with the downtown region on the west bank and the state capitol on the east bank. The river valleys are not deep, but they are deep enough that the capitol building is on a distinct hill above the level of the town. Downtown has scattered buildings over 10 stories and a few taller, so it looks distinctly like a mid-sized big city. There are long tree-shaded avenues in the older developed parts of town, mostly on a strict north-south / east-west grid.