Bemidji, Minnesota

Bemidji, Minnesota
	Bemidji, Minnesota
	Statues of Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox
	; Flag
	; Flag
	Nickname(s): B-town, Brrrmidji
	Location in Beltrami County and the state of Minnesota
	Coordinates: 47°28′25″N 94°52′49″W / 47.47361°N 94.88028°W
Country	United States
State	Minnesota
County	Beltrami
Founded
Incorporated	1896
	Government
- Mayor	Richard Lehmann
	Area
- City	13.0 sq mi (33.5 km2)
- Land	11.8 sq mi (30.5 km2)
- Water	1.2 sq mi (3.1 km2) 9.11%%
Elevation	1,365 ft (416 m)
	Population (2007)
- City	13,419
- Density	1,137.2/sq mi (390.6/km2)
- Urban	160,000 (roughly)
Time zone	Central (UTC-6)
- Summer (DST)	Central (UTC-5)
ZIP code	56601
Area code(s)	218
FIPS code	27-05068
GNIS feature ID	0655325
Website	www.ci.bemidji.mn.us

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Bemidji (pronounced /bəˈmɪdʒiː/) is a city in Beltrami County, Minnesota, United States. Its population was estimated at 13,419 in 2007.^[3] It is the county seat of Beltrami County.^[4] Bemidji lies on the southwest shore of Lake Bemidji, the northernmost lake feeding the Mississippi River and, as such, is deemed "the first city on the Mississippi." Bemidji is also dubbed the "curling capital," of the U.S.

Its name derives from the Ojibwe Bay-may-ji-ga-maug (Double-Vowel orthography: bemijigamaag)^[5], meaning "lake that traverses another body of water". On occasion, in Ojibwe, the city of Bemidji is called Wabigamaang ("at the lake channel/narrows"), because part of the city is situated on the Lakes Bemidji/Irving narrows, located on the south end of Lake Bemidji, and extends to the eastern shore of Lake Irving.

Bemidji is home to Bemidji State University, Northwest Technical College, and Oak Hills Christian College. It's also headquarters of Bemidji Woolen Mills. The statues of Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox, local landmarks, are downtown on the lakefront. Lake Bemidji State Park offers year-round recreation.

Bemidji is a base to one of five medivac helicopter flight stations in the state for AirCare, operated by North Memorial Medical Center in Robbinsdale, MN, a Level 1 Trauma Center located in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area. This station covers the northern part of Minnesota and eastern North Dakota. It's building is located at the Bemidji Regional Airport. North Country Health Services, which operates North Country Regional Hospital, and MeritCare Clinic are also here.

Paul Bunyan Broadcasting, a group of sixteen radio stations across northern Minnesota, has its headquarters here.

NFL Pro Football Hall of Famer Dave Casper was born in Bemidji, as was actress Jane Russell.

[edit] Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 12.9 square miles (33.5 km²), of which, 11.8 square miles (30.5 km²) of it is land and 1.2 square miles (3.1 km²) of it (9.11%) is water.

Four-lane U.S. Route 2, U.S. Route 71, and Minnesota State Highway 197 are three of the main routes in the city. Minnesota State Highways 89 and 371 are nearby.

The largest earthquake on record for the Bemidji area was recorded on September 3, 1917. It is claimed that it shook houses down in Bemidji and across northern Minnesota. (Little Falls Daily Transcript, September 4, 1917) The epicenter was about 95 miles away in Staples, Minnesota. It affected an area of 48,000 km², and was rated a magnitude 4.4 with a maximum intensity of VI to VII. The closest and most recent quake occurred in Walker, MN on September 27, 1982 with a magnitude of 2.0.[1]

[edit] Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1900	2,183		—
1910	5,099		133.6%
1920	7,086		39.0%
1930	7,202		1.6%
1940	9,427		30.9%
1950	10,001		6.1%
1960	9,958		−0.4%
1970	11,490		15.4%
1980	10,949		−4.7%
1990	11,245		2.7%
2000	11,917		6.0%
Est. 2007	13,419	^[3]	12.6%

As of the census^[1] of 2000, there were 11,917 people, 4,669 households, and 2,427 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,011.8 people per square mile (390.6/km²). There were 4,948 housing units at an average density of 420.1/sq mi (162.2/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 84.31% White American, 0.76% African American, 11.52% Native American, 1.12% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.20% from other races, and 2.06% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.14% of the population.

There were 4,669 households out of which 25.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 34.0% were married couples living together, 14.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 48.0% were non-families. 35.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.22 and the average family size was 2.87.

In the city the population was spread out with 21.2% under the age of 18, 24.9% from 18 to 24, 23.0% from 25 to 44, 15.4% from 45 to 64, and 15.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 28 years. For every 100 females there were 87.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.0 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $28,072, and the median income for a family was $37,250. Males had a median income of $28,312 versus $20,694 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,264. About 13.2% of families and 19.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.7% of those under age 18 and 10.9% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Culture

Bemidji is a college city with strong arts influences. The city's streets are lined with small shops and adorned with sculptures and other forms of public art.

The Concordia Language Villages are located near Bemidji and this has, perhaps, been influential in the existence of several language conversational groups (including French, Norwegian, Spanish, Italian, and German) that meet weekly in local coffee houses.

During the summer the Paul Bunyan Playhouse operates a non-equity, summer stock theater.

The city is well known to fans of the sport of curling. Both men's and women's rinks from the Bemidji Curling Club won the right to represent the United States in the 2005 World Curling Championship and the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino, Italy. Pete Fenson, the skip of the U.S. curling team that took the bronze medal at the 2006 Olympics, is a native of Bemidji.

A city referendum for a Bemidji Regional Events Center passed by a slim majority of 43 votes out of 4583 votes cast in November 2006. The center is expected to cost $50 million. While the major tenant for the center is expected to be the Bemidji State University (BSU) hockey team, the current status of the men's hockey team is uncertain as it attempts to enter the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA). Information on this project can be found at Bemidji Events.

[edit] Education

Bemidji is home to Northwest Technical College and Bemidji State University.

[edit] Regional Center

The City of Bemidji acts as a regional center for shopping, arts, entertainment, educations, health services, worship, and government services. It is generally accepted that Bemidji serves an area of 60 miles radius from the city center, this fact places the Bemidji area population at around 160,000.

Bemidji continues to try to take advantage of this with the "City As A Park" concept and the construction of the Bemidji Regional Events Center, which began in March 2009.

[edit] Media

[edit] Newspapers

The Bemidji Pioneer - local daily newspaper www.bemidjipioneer.com

[edit] TV stations

Most of Bemidji's TV stations primarily rebroadcast the television stations of Minneapolis.

Channel	Digital Channel	Call sign	Affiliation	Owner
9	22	KAWE	PBS	Northern MN Public TV
12	20	KCCW	CBS (WCCO-TV relay)	CBS Corporation
26	26	KFTC	MyNetworkTV (WFTC relay)	Fox Television Stations
28	none	K28DD	ABC (KSAX translator)	Hubbard Broadcasting
30	none	K30DK	Fox (KMSP translator)	Fox Television Stations
42	none	K42FH	TBN	Trinity Brd. Network
48	48^*	K48KI	3ABN	Three Angels Brd. Network

* Digital channel has been assigned by the FCC, but will not be on the air until after February 17, 2009.

[edit] Radio stations

[edit] FM

FM radio stations
Frequency	Call sign	Name	Format	Owner
88.5 FM	KCRB	MPR/NPR	Classical music	Minnesota Public Radio
89.7 FM	KBSB	FM 90	College radio/Top 40 (CHR)	Bemidji State Univ.
91.3 FM	KNBJ	MPR/NPR	News/Talk	Minnesota Public Radio
92.1 FM	WMIS	The River 92.1	Talk	RP Broadcasting
92.7 FM	W224AB	Psalm 99:5	Christian (KBHW translator)	Oak Hills Fellowship
93.5 FM	K228EW	Lifetalk Radio	Christian (KOPJ translator)	We Have This Hope
94.9 FM	K235BP	Your Q FM	Contemporary Christian music (KKEQ translator)	Shine the Light, Inc.
95.5 FM	KKZY	KZY 95.5	Adult contemporary	Paul Bunyan Broadcasting
96.7 FM	KKCQ-FM	Q Country	Country	Pine to Prairie Broadcasting
98.3 FM	WBJI	Real Country 98.3	Country	RP Broadcasting
99.1 FM	KLLZ	Z99	Classic rock	Paul Bunyan Broadcasting
101.1 FM	KBHP	KB101	Country	Paul Bunyan Broadcasting
102.5 FM	KKWB	Coyote 102.5	Country	De La Hunt Broadcasting
103.1 FM	K276EP	Lifetalk Radio	Christian (KOPJ translator)	We Have This Hope
103.7 FM	KKBJ-FM	Mix 103.7	Hot AC	RP Broadcasting
104.5 FM	WQXJ	True Oldies 104.5	Oldies	Paul Bunyan Broadcasting
105.3 FM	K287AD	Northern Community Radio (NPR/IPR affiliate)	Public radio (KAXE translator)	Northern Community Radio
106.3 FM	KBJI-LP	--	3ABN affiliate (Christian format)	Bemidji Religious Ed. Brd.
107.1 FM	KKEQ	Your Q FM	Contemporary Christian music	Pine to Prairie Brd.

[edit] AM

AM radio stations
820 AM	WBKK	--	under construction	De La Hunt Broadcasting
1360 AM	KKBJ	Talkradio 1360	News/Talk	RP Broadcasting
1450 AM	KBUN	The Fan	Sports (KFAN/FSR programming)	Paul Bunyan Broadcasting

[edit] Magazine

Best of Bemidji Quarterly Magazine - direct mailed magazine to every home in the greater Bemidji area, BOB features ads from local businesses with no editorial copy. Most ads are coupons. www.bestofbemidji.com

Northwoods Woman - Bimonthly glossy magazine launched July 1, 2008 includes articles about women who live and work in northern Minnesota. Also available in Walker, Park Rapids and surrounding areas. www.northwoodswoman.com

[edit] Gallery

Paul And Babe	Courthouse	Bemidji Federal Building	A downtown street
Lake Bemidji	Paul Bunyan Drive SW	City Bass	Madeline Takes Flight
Blue Chain Jane	Ira Eagle Boy	Box Of Dreams	Escape From The Depths
Lake Bemidji In The Spring	Downtown Bemidji	Downtown Bemidji