Clearwater County, Minnesota facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Clearwater County
U.S. county
Clearwater County Building and Courthouse in Bagley, Minnesota.
Location within the U.S. state of Minnesota
Minnesota's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Minnesota
Founded	December 20, 1902
Named for	Clearwater Lake Clearwater River
Seat	Bagley
Largest city	Bagley
Area
• Total	1,030 sq mi (2,700 km2)
• Land	999 sq mi (2,590 km2)
• Water	31 sq mi (80 km2)  3.0%%
Population  (2020)
• Total	8,524
• Estimate  (2021)	8,576
• Density	8.5/sq mi (3.3/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	7th

Clearwater County is a county in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 8,524. Its county seat is Bagley.

Clearwater County is home to Lake Itasca, the source of the Mississippi River. Parts of the Red Lake and White Earth Indian reservations extend into the county.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,030 square miles (2,700 km²), of which 999 square miles (2,590 km²) is land and 31 square miles (80 km²) (3.0%) is water.

Major highways

• U.S. Highway 2
• Minnesota State Highway 1
• Minnesota State Highway 92
• Minnesota State Highway 113
• Minnesota State Highway 200
• Minnesota State Highway 223

Adjacent counties

• Beltrami County (northeast)
• Hubbard County (southeast)
• Becker County (south)
• Mahnomen County (southwest)
• Polk County (northwest)
• Pennington County (northwest)

	Polk County and Pennington County		Beltrami County
		Clearwater County, Minnesota
	Mahnomen County	Becker County	Hubbard County

Climate and weather

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Bagley have ranged from a low of −5 °F (−21 °C) in January to a high of 79 °F (26 °C) in July, although a record low of −53 °F (−47 °C) was recorded in February 1996 and a record high of 103 °F (39 °C) was recorded in August 1976. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 0.64 inches (16 mm) in December to 4.62 inches (117 mm) in June.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 8,423 people, 3,330 households, and 2,287 families residing in the county. The population density was 8 people per square mile (3/km²). There were 4,114 housing units at an average density of 4 per square mile (2/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 89.26% White, 0.19% Black or African American, 8.58% Native American, 0.25% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.24% from other races, and 1.47% from two or more races. 0.77% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 43.6% were of Norwegian, 15.6% German, 6.5% Swedish, and 6.2% American ancestry.

There were 3,330 households out of which 30.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.80% were married couples living together, 7.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.30% were non-families. 27.90% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 3.02.

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

In the county, the population was spread out with 26.00% under the age of 18, 7.60% from 18 to 24, 24.60% from 25 to 44, 24.30% from 45 to 64, and 17.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 101.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.30 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $30,517, and the median income for a family was $39,698. Males had a median income of $29,338 versus $20,417 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,694. About 11.00% of families and 15.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.90% of those under age 18 and 18.20% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

• Bagley (county seat)
• Clearbrook
• Gonvick
• Leonard
• Shevlin

Townships

Census-designated places

• Ebro
• Elbow Lake
• Rice Lake
• Roy Lake
• South End

Unincorporated communities

• Mallard
• Zerkel

Unorganized territories

• North Clearwater
• South Clearwater

See also

In Spanish: Condado de Clearwater (Minnesota) para niños