EXHIBIT 23




INDEPENDENT AUDITORS' CONSENT



The Board of Directors and Stockholders
Heartland Financial USA, Inc.:

We consent to incorporation by reference in the Registration
Statement on Form S-8 for the 1993 Stock Option Plan of Heartland
Financial USA, Inc. of our report dated on January 22, 1998,
relating to the consolidated balance sheets of Heartland
Financial USA, Inc. and subsidiaries as of December 31, 1997 and
1996, and the related consolidated statements of operations,
stockholders' equity, and cash flows for each of the years in the
three-year period ended December 31, 1997 which report appears in
the December 31, 1997 annual report on Form 10-K of Heartland
Financial USA, Inc. and subsidiaries.



KPMG Peat Marwick LLP

Des Moines, Iowa
March 27, 1998