Meeker County, Minnesota facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Meeker County
U.S. county
Grand Army of the Republic Hall in Litchfield, Minnesota.
Location within the U.S. state of Minnesota
Minnesota's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Minnesota
Founded	February 23, 1856
Named for	Bradley B. Meeker, an associate justice of Minnesota Territorial Court
Seat	Litchfield
Largest city	Litchfield
Area
• Total	645 sq mi (1,670 km2)
• Land	608 sq mi (1,570 km2)
• Water	37 sq mi (100 km2)  5.7%%
Population  (2020)
• Total	23,400
• Estimate  (2021)	23,376
• Density	38.5/sq mi (14.9/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	7th

Meeker County is a county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 23,400. Its county seat is Litchfield.

History

The county was named after Bradley B. Meeker, an associate justice of the Minnesota Territorial Supreme Court from 1849 to 1853.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 645 square miles (1,670 km²), of which 608 square miles (1,570 km²) is land and 37 square miles (96 km²) (5.7%) is water.

Soils of Greenleaf Lake SRA

Major highways

• U.S. Highway 12
• Minnesota State Highway 4
• Minnesota State Highway 7
• Minnesota State Highway 15
• Minnesota State Highway 22
• Minnesota State Highway 24
• Minnesota State Highway 55

Adjacent counties

• Stearns County (north)
• Wright County (east)
• McLeod County (southeast)
• Renville County (southwest)
• Kandiyohi County (west)

Demographics

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

As of the census of 2000, there were 22,644 people, 8,590 households, and 6,133 families residing in the county. The population density was 37 people per square mile (14/km²). There were 9,821 housing units at an average density of 16 per square mile (6/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 97.35% White, 0.19% Black or African American, 0.18% Native American, 0.40% Asian, 1.40% from other races, and 0.48% from two or more races. 2.15% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 45.8% were of German, 12.2% Swedish and 11.3% Norwegian ancestry.

There were 8,590 households out of which 33.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.50% were married couples living together, 6.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.60% were non-families. 24.40% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 3.07.

In the county, the population was spread out with 27.00% under the age of 18, 7.40% from 18 to 24, 26.40% from 25 to 44, 23.00% from 45 to 64, and 16.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 101.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.90 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $40,908, and the median income for a family was $47,923. Males had a median income of $33,157 versus $22,743 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,628. About 4.70% of families and 7.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.40% of those under age 18 and 13.80% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

Townships

Unincorporated communities

See also

In Spanish: Condado de Meeker para niños