A post office called Welcome has been in operation since 1881. The city was named after Alfred M. Welcome, who owned a farm on what became the city's southwest side.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of, all of it land. The original description of the site was "Section 1, Township 102, Range 32."
As of the census of 2010, there were 686 people, 310 households, and 193 families living in the city. The population density was. There were 341 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the city was 99.9% White and 0.1% African American. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.9% of the population. There were 310 households of which 23.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.4% were married couplesliving together, 9.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.8% had a male householder with no wife present, and 37.7% were non-families. 32.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.21 and the average family size was 2.77. The median age in the city was 44.3 years. 22% of residents were under the age of 18; 7% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 21.7% were from 25 to 44; 31% were from 45 to 64; and 18.4% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 49.7% male and 50.3% female.
2000 census
As of the census of 2000, there were 721 people, 310 households, and 200 families living in the city. The population density was 792.4 people per square mile. There were 347 housing units at an average density of 381.3 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 99.17% White, 0.14% from other races, and 0.69% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.97% of the population. There were 310 households out of which 28.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.8% were married couples living together, 6.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.2% were non-families. 31.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.33 and the average family size was 2.90. In the city, the population was spread out with 25.4% under the age of 18, 6.2% from 18 to 24, 24.5% from 25 to 44, 24.1% from 45 to 64, and 19.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 107.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.3 males. The median income for a household in the city was $32,125, and the median income for a family was $38,438. Males had a median income of $30,875 versus $20,536 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,539. About 3.9% of families and 6.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.4% of those under age 18 and 6.7% of those age 65 or over.
