Bettendorf began as a quiet rural village called Gilbert. In 1903, the town's future changed with the arrival of the Bettendorf Axle and Wagon Company, which became the largest manufacturer of railroad cars west of the Mississippi. The growing city changed its name in honor of the company. Today Bettendorf, on the Mississippi River, is part of the Quad Cities metropolitan area that includes Davenport, Iowa, and Moline and Rock Island, Illinois.