Mount Ayr is a city in Ringgold County, Iowa, United States. The population was 1,691 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Ringgold County. Mount Ayr is a rural community in Southwestern Iowa, 22 miles west of Interstate 35 on State Highway 2. Mount Ayr was founded in 1875 and the community was named in honor of poet Robert Burns’ birthplace in Ayr, Scotland.