Wright County, Minnesota

Wright County, Minnesota
Location in the state of Minnesota
Minnesota's location in the U.S.
Founded	February 20, 1855
Named for	Silas Wright
Seat	Buffalo
Largest city	St. Michael (2005 est.)
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	714.39 sq mi (1,850 km²) 660.75 sq mi (1,711 km²) 53.63 sq mi (139 km²), 7.51%
Population  - (2010)  - Density	124,700 136/sq mi (53/km²)
Time zone	Central: UTC-6/-5
Website	www.co.wright.mn.us

Wright County is a county located in the U.S. state of Minnesota, founded in 1855. As of 2010, the population was 124,700. Its county seat is Buffalo.

History

The County was established in 1855, and was named after New York Politician Silas Wright. The first County seat was Monticello, then in 1868 the County seat was changed to Buffalo. The Majority of people to first settle this area were German and Swedish. The population of the county in 1860 was 3729 people.

The 1998 thriller A Simple Plan was set in Wright County though the specific town name is never mentioned.

Presidential Election Results 2000-2008

Year	Democrat	Republican
2008	40.7% 26,343	57.6% 37,779
2004	37.99% 22,618	60.77% 36,176
2000	38.65% 16,762	55.02% 23,861

Geography

According to the 2000 census, the county has a total area of 714.39 square miles (1,850.3 km²), of which 660.75 square miles (1,711.3 km²) (or 92.49%) is land and 53.63 square miles (138.9 km²) (or 7.51%) is water.

Major highways

Interstate 94 U.S. Highway 12 U.S. Highway 52 Minnesota State Highway 24

Minnesota State Highway 25 Minnesota State Highway 55 Minnesota State Highway 101 Minnesota State Highway 241

Adjacent counties

• Sherburne County (northeast)
• Hennepin County (east)
• Carver County (southeast)
• McLeod County (southwest)
• Meeker County (west)
• Stearns County (northwest)

Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1860	3,729		—
1870	9,457		153.6%
1880	18,104		91.4%
1890	24,164		33.5%
1900	29,157		20.7%
1910	28,082		−3.7%
1920	28,685		2.1%
1930	27,119		−5.5%
1940	27,550		1.6%
1950	27,716		0.6%
1960	29,935		8.0%
1970	38,933		30.1%
1980	58,681		50.7%
1990	68,710		17.1%
2000	89,986		31.0%
2010	124,700		38.6%
U.S. Decennial Census

As of the census of 2000, there were 89,986 people, 31,465 households, and 23,913 families residing in the county. The population density was 136 people per square mile (53/km²). There were 34,355 housing units at an average density of 52 per square mile (20/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 97.85% White, 0.26% Black or African American, 0.28% Native American, 0.44% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.36% from other races, and 0.80% from two or more races. 1.10% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 42.3% were of German, 11.9% Norwegian, 7.4% Swedish and 6.6% Irish ancestry according to Census 2000.

There were 31,465 households out of which 42.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.50% were married couples living together, 7.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.00% were non-families. 18.80% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.83 and the average family size was 3.26.

Age pyramid of county residents based on 2000 U.S. census data.

In the county the population was spread out with 31.10% under the age of 18, 7.60% from 18 to 24, 32.60% from 25 to 44, 19.90% from 45 to 64, and 8.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 101.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.90 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $53,945, and the median income for a family was $60,940. Males had a median income of $40,630 versus $28,201 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,844. About 3.60% of families and 4.70% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.50% of those under age 18 and 7.40% of those age 65 or over.

Cities and towns

Cities		Townships		Ghost town
Albertville Annandale Buffalo Clearwater † Cokato Dayton ‡ Delano Hanover † Howard Lake	Maple Lake Monticello Montrose Otsego Rockford † South Haven St. Michael Waverly	Albion Buffalo Chatham Clearwater Cokato Corinna Franklin French Lake Maple Lake	Marysville Middleville Monticello Rockford Silver Creek Southside Stockholm Victor Woodland	Dickinson

† Located in Wright County, the city extends into neighboring counties as well.
‡ Based in an adjacent county, part of Dayton extends into Wright County.

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Wright County, Minnesota

External links

• Wright County government’s website
• Wright County community website