St. James or Saint James is a city in and the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

Watonwan County Watonwan County is a county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 11,253. Its county seat is St. James. History In 1849, the new territorial legislature of the recently organized Minnesota Territory author ...

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

, United States. The population was 4,793 at the 2020 census. Minnesota State Highways 4, 30, and 60 are three of the main routes in the city.

History

In 1870, the directors of the St. Paul and Sioux City railroads chose the future townsite of St. James as the midpoint for a new railroad linking the two cities. Named for James Purington, an early settler, the new city was incorporated in 1871. It was the hometown of Minnesota Governor

Winfield Scott Hammond Winfield Scott Hammond (November 17, 1863December 30, 1915) was an American politician. He was a member of the Democratic Party. He was the last governor from Minnesota to have been a member of the Minnesota Democratic Party before it merged wi ...

, a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

who served in 1915. In the 1940s, Theodore S. Mondale, the father of future

Vice President of the United States The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest ranking office in the Executive branch of the United States government, executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks f ...

Walter Mondale Walter Frederick "Fritz" Mondale (January 5, 1928April 19, 2021) was the 42nd vice president of the United States serving from 1977 to 1981 under President Jimmy Carter. He previously served as a U.S. senator from Minnesota from 1964 to 1976. ...

, was the pastor at First Methodist Church of St. James. Tony Downs Foods Co. has been a major employer since 1947, processing poultry and frozen meals. St. James has two properties listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

: the Grand Opera House, completed in 1892, and the

Watonwan County Courthouse The Watonwan County Courthouse in St. James, Minnesota, United States, is the seat of government for Watonwan County, Minnesota, Watonwan County, in continual use since it was completed in 1896. It was listed on the National Register of Historic ...

, completed in 1896.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the city has an area of ; is land and is water.

Climate

Demographics

2010 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2010, there were 4,605 people, 1,839 households, and 1,145 families living in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was . There were 2,039 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 81.8%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.7%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.9% Native American, 0.6% Asian, 14.9% from other races, and 1.1% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 31.0% of the population. There were 1,839 households, of which 32.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.8% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 11.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.4% had a male householder with no wife present, and 37.7% were non-families. 33.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 17.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 3.17. The median age in the city was 37.8 years. 27.8% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.3% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 23.6% were from 25 to 44; 23.3% were from 45 to 64; and 17.9% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.7% male and 51.3% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 4,695 people, 1,845 households, and 1,186 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 2,006 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 83.24%

, 0.40%

, 0.15% Native American, 0.51% Asian, 14.27% from other races, and 1.43% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 23.77% of the population. There were 1,845 households, out of which 32.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.1% were

living together, 9.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.7% were non-families. 32.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 17.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 3.16. In the city, the population was spread out, with 27.9% under the age of 18, 9.5% from 18 to 24, 23.9% from 25 to 44, 20.0% from 45 to 64, and 18.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 88.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.4 males. The median income for a household in the city was $33,196, and the median income for a family was $40,993. Males had a median income of $30,036 versus $19,391 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $15,336. About 9.0% of families and 10.8% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 16.5% of those under age 18 and 9.9% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Transport

The city owns and operates the St. James Municipal Airport.

Notable people

* Moses K. Armstrong, businessman and legislator *

Becky Buller Becky Buller (born January 31, 1979) is an American Bluegrass music, bluegrass and roots singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist most known for her songwriting and fiddling. Early life Becky Buller was born January 31, 1979, in St. Jame ...

, bluegrass musician *

Brad Finstad Bradley Howard Finstad (born May 30, 1976) is an American politician, farmer, and agricultural consultant serving as the U.S. representative for since 2022. Finstad represents a large section of southern Minnesota situated along the border with ...

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

for Minnesota’s 1st congressional district * Peter Eckerstrom,

Arizona Court of Appeals The Arizona Court of Appeals is the intermediate appellate court for the state of Arizona. It is divided into two divisions, with a total of twenty-eight judges on the court: nineteen in Division 1, based in Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix, and nine in ...

judge * Henry Norman Graven, United States District Court judge, born in St. James *

, 18th Minnesota governor, established his home and his law practice in St. James * Mac Hegstrom, businessman and politician, born in St. James * Carl L. Johnson, businessman and legislator * Mike Kingery, professional baseball player, born in St. James * Gary Mielke, professional baseball player, born in St. James * Carl G. Olson, farmer and politician, born in St. James

Media

Television

References

External links

*
City WebsiteSt. James Public SchoolsSt. James Chamber of Commerce''St. James Plaindealer'' newspaper site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint James, Minnesota Cities in Watonwan County, Minnesota Cities in Minnesota County seats in Minnesota