Sleepy Eye, Minnesota facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Sleepy Eye
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1899 Q. Berg Hotel (NRHP), 2012
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| Nickname(s):
The eye
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Location of Sleepy Eye, Minnesota
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| Country | United States |
| State | Minnesota |
| County | Brown |
| Government | |
| • Type | Mayor – Council |
| Area | |
| • Total | 2.14 sq mi (5.54 km2) |
| • Land | 1.87 sq mi (4.85 km2) |
| • Water | 0.27 sq mi (0.69 km2) |
| Elevation | 1,034 ft (315 m) |
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 3,452 |
| • Density | 1,845.00/sq mi (712.35/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| ZIP code |
56085
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| Area code(s) | 507 |
| FIPS code | 27-60844 |
| GNIS feature ID | 2395898 |
Sleepy Eye is a small city in Brown County, Minnesota, United States. It is located in a rural area. The city gets its name from a famous local Dakota chief from the 1800s. In 2020, about 3,452 people lived there.
Contents
History of Sleepy Eye
Sleepy Eye is named after Sleepy Eye Lake. This lake was named after Chief Sleepy Eye. He was known as a kind person with eyelids that looked a bit droopy.
Chief Sleepy Eye's Role
Chief Sleepy Eye was an important Sioux Native American leader. In 1824, he was one of four Sioux (and four Ojibwe) chosen to meet President James Monroe. This meeting took place in the nation's capital.
Later, Chief Sleepy Eye played a key part in signing the Treaty of Traverse des Sioux in 1851. This treaty gave a lot of land to the U.S. government. Only a 10-mile wide strip on each side of the upper Minnesota River was kept.
The chief also helped settlers find a good place for the city of Mankato. He suggested a spot away from flood areas. Eventually, Chief Sleepy Eye settled his own people near the lake that is now called Sleepy Eye Lake.
City Development
The area of Sleepy Eye was first planned out in 1872. It officially became a city in 1903.
Geography of Sleepy Eye
Sleepy Eye covers an area of about 2.02 square miles (5.23 square kilometers). Most of this area is land, about 1.75 square miles (4.53 square kilometers). The rest, about 0.27 square miles (0.70 square kilometers), is water. This information comes from the United States Census Bureau.
Population Changes
| Historical population | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1880 | 997 | — | |
| 1890 | 1,513 | 51.8% | |
| 1900 | 2,048 | 35.4% | |
| 1910 | 2,247 | 9.7% | |
| 1920 | 2,449 | 9.0% | |
| 1930 | 2,576 | 5.2% | |
| 1940 | 2,923 | 13.5% | |
| 1950 | 3,278 | 12.1% | |
| 1960 | 3,492 | 6.5% | |
| 1970 | 3,461 | −0.9% | |
| 1980 | 3,581 | 3.5% | |
| 1990 | 3,694 | 3.2% | |
| 2000 | 3,515 | −4.8% | |
| 2010 | 3,599 | 2.4% | |
| 2020 | 3,452 | −4.1% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census | |||
2010 Population Details
In 2010, the city of Sleepy Eye had 3,599 people living there. There were 1,475 households. A household is a group of people living in the same home.
The average number of people in each household was 2.36. The average family size was 3.04 people. The median age of people in the city was 42.2 years old.
Sleepy Eye in Pop Culture
Sleepy Eye has appeared in popular culture.
MTV Controversy
In the early 1990s, residents of Sleepy Eye made national news. They tried to ban the music television channel MTV in their town.
Little House on the Prairie
The city was also featured in the TV series Little House on the Prairie. In the show, Charles Ingalls sometimes delivered goods to Sleepy Eye. It was shown as the closest larger town to Walnut Grove, where the Ingalls family lived.
Sleepy Eye was also the fictional home of a school for the blind. Mary Ingalls and her TV-husband, Adam Kendall, ran this school later in the series.
Transportation in Sleepy Eye
Several main roads pass through Sleepy Eye. These include U.S. Route 14. Also, Minnesota State Highways 4 and 68 are important routes in the city.
Notable People from Sleepy Eye
Many interesting people have connections to Sleepy Eye:
- Helen Fischer was born in Sleepy Eye. She signed the Alaska Constitution.
- Scott Jensen was born and grew up in Sleepy Eye. He is a Minnesota state senator and a doctor.
- Dana Kiecker is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He was born in Sleepy Eye.
- Bernard F. Mathiowetz was born in Sleepy Eye. He was a Wisconsin legislator and lawyer.
- John Louis Nuelsen was a Methodist pastor, professor, and author.
- Ingerval M. Olsen was a Minnesota Supreme Court justice. He practiced law in Sleepy Eye.
- Harvey N. Paulson was a farmer and Minnesota state legislator. He lived in Sleepy Eye.
Gallery
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1901 W. W. Smith House (NRHP), 2010.
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1901–20 Sleepy Eye Milling Company (NRHP), 2011.
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1902 Chicago and North Western Depot (NRHP), 2010.
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1887 Winona and St. Peter Freight Depot (NRHP), 2012.
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Postmark from City of Sleepy Eye
See also
In Spanish: Sleepy Eye (Minnesota) para niños
