Sauk Rapids
| Sauk Rapids | |
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 Entrance to Sauk Rapids from the Mississippi River . |
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| Sauk Rapids in Benton County | |
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| Basic data | |
| Foundation : | 1851 |
| State : | United States |
| State : | Minnesota |
| County : | Benton County |
| Coordinates : | 45 ° 36 ′ N , 94 ° 10 ′ W |
| Time zone : | Central ( UTC − 6 / −5 ) |
| Residents : | 10,213 (as of: 2000) |
| Population density : | 865.5 inhabitants per km 2 |
| Area : | 12.5 km 2 (approx. 5 mi 2 ) of which 11.8 km 2 (approx. 5 mi 2 ) are land |
| Height : | 315 m |
| Postal code : | 56379 |
| Area code : | +1 320 |
| FIPS : | 27-58684 |
| GNIS ID : | 0651235 |
| Website : | www.ci.sauk-rapids.mn.us |
| Mayor : | Mark Campbell |
Sauk Rapids is a city in Benton County in the US state of Minnesota .
history
Sauk Rapids was originally little more than a forest of oak , maple, and linden on the banks of the Mississippi River until the first residential home was built in 1851. It was a mansion called Lynden Terrace , which was built by WH Wood. Other settlers followed shortly afterwards. The settlement got its name after the rapids below the mouth of the Sauk River in the Mississippi. A warehouse was soon built, followed by a hotel and prison. In 1856 the county seat was moved to Watab , but renewed in 1859. A new courthouse was built, but in 1897 the county seat was permanently relocated to Foley , where it is still today. In 1917 the courthouse burned down. The first settlers built a congregational church , which was soon followed by a Methodist church, and later by the Episcopal and Lutheran churches . The first newspaper in Minnesota outside of St. Paul was the Sauk Rapids Frontiersman , first published in 1854. In 1876 the first bridge was built over the Mississippi River. which was destroyed later in the same year and rebuilt in 1879. The flour mill was built in 1875, but was destroyed in 1886. In 1874 Sauk Rapids was the terminus of a railway line . The city was a transshipment point for goods from the settlers of the northern Red River Valley . There was a bi-weekly stagecoach connection to St. Cloud and Crow Wing. The first school was built in 1886. Sauk Rapids was one of the most important cities in Minnesota until 1886, but a tornado swept through the city on the afternoon of April 14 . The Windhose made its way through the center of town and destroyed all local businesses, killing 44 residents and injuring hundreds. The disaster was a setback for the place and despite the reconstruction it has not regained its former importance.
geography
According to the United States Census Bureau , the city has an area of 12.5 km², 11.8 km² of which is land and 0.6 km² is water.
Demographic data
In the United States Census 2000 Sauk Rapids 10,213 inhabitants in 3921 households and 2599 families were counted. The population density was 862.9 inhabitants / km². The number of residential units was 4017, which corresponds to a density of 339.4 apartments / km².
The inhabitants passed in 2000 to 97.11% of White , 0.57% African American , 0.31% Native American , 0.78% Asian , 0.04% Pacific Islander , 0.23% from other races , and 0.96% from two or more races. In the census, 1.08% of the population said they were Hispanic or Latino .
Children under the age of 18 lived in 37.9% of households and married couples lived together in 52.1% of households, 10.9% of households had a female head without a husband present, and 33.7% of households were non-families. 26.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.3% had someone 65 years of age or older living alone. The average household size was 2.53 people and the average family consisted of 3.09 people.
Of the population, 28.1% were less than 18 years old, 9.6% were in the 18 to 24 age group, 33.4% were between 25 and 44 years old and 17.8% were between 45 and 64 years old. 11.2% were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 women there were 91.5 men; For every 100 women over 18, there were 86.1 men.
The average income per household was 45,857 US $ and the median family income was 53,938 US $. The men had an average income of $ 36,074, compared to $ 24,657 for women. The per capita income was US $ 19,510. About 2.8% of families and 4.9% of the population are below the poverty line ; this affected 4.5% of those under 18 years of age and 10.2% of those aged 65 or older.