Nessel Township, Chisago County, Minnesota

Nessel Township, Minnesota
—  Township  —
Nessel Township, Minnesota Location within the state of Minnesota
Coordinates: 45°41′11″N 93°4′16″W / 45.68639°N 93.07111°W / 45.68639; -93.07111Coordinates: 45°41′11″N 93°4′16″W / 45.68639°N 93.07111°W / 45.68639; -93.07111
Country	United States
State	Minnesota
County	Chisago
Area
- Total	43.2 sq mi (111.8 km2)
- Land	38.1 sq mi (98.7 km2)
- Water	5.1 sq mi (13.1 km2)
Elevation	919 ft (280 m)
Population (2000)
- Total	1,765
- Density	46.3/sq mi (17.9/km2)
Time zone	Central (CST) (UTC-6)
- Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
FIPS code	27-45250[1]
GNIS feature ID	0665081[2]

Nessel Township is a township in Chisago County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 1,765 at the 2000 census.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 43.2 square miles (111.8 km²), of which, 38.1 square miles (98.7 km²) of it is land and 5.1 square miles (13.1 km²) of it (11.74%) is water.

History

Nessel Township was organized in 1870, bears the name of its earliest pioneer farmer, Robert Nessel, who was born in Germany, 1834, came to the United States in 1847 and to Minnesota in 1854, and settled here in 1856. The township itself was organized in 1871 and had been a voting precinct since July 8, 1855.

The first Board of Supervisors were: Wm. H. McCray, John M. Berit, and Matts Collin. Alice Draper was the first school teacher. The first marriage was Wm. Vanetter and Anna Johnson in 1861. Nels and Peter Anderson had the first steam threshing outfit.

Rush Lake, and the soil, attracted people to settle in the Township and many of the farms are still owned by the decedents of the early settlers. When Mr. Nessel filed for a homestead of his place, he found that many Indians occupied the land and Mr. Nessel had to bargain with the Indians to get possession of the land. He reportedly paid 150.00 for the initial 160 acres (0.65 km²) to Alexis LaPrairie. This was a great camping place for the Indians as the lower lake was full of wild rice which the Indians gathered. Also, at the narrows between the two lakes, was a gathering place for the Indians during rice harvesting time.

Demographics

As of the census^[1] of 2000, there were 1,765 people, 668 households, and 509 families residing in the township. The population density was 46.3 people per square mile (17.9/km²). There were 921 housing units at an average density of 24.2/sq mi (9.3/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 98.75% White, 0.06% African American, 0.11% Native American, 0.17% Asian, 0.28% from other races, and 0.62% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.68% of the population.

There were 668 households out of which 31.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 69.2% were married couples living together, 3.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.8% were non-families. 17.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.61 and the average family size was 2.97.

In the township the population was spread out with 25.4% under the age of 18, 3.9% from 18 to 24, 27.8% from 25 to 44, 28.3% from 45 to 64, and 14.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 109.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 106.9 males.

The median income for a household in the township was $47,578, and the median income for a family was $52,443. Males had a median income of $39,712 versus $27,100 for females. The per capita income for the township was $20,953. About 1.8% of families and 5.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.7% of those under age 18 and 9.5% of those age 65 or over.

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
2. ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. http://geonames.usgs.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.