Baudette is a city in, and the county seat of,
Lake of the Woods County,
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. As of the
2020 census, its population was 966.
Baudette is known as the
Walleye
The walleye (''Sander vitreus'', Synonym (taxonomy), synonym ''Stizostedion vitreum''), also called the walleyed pike, yellow pike, yellow pikeperch or yellow pickerel, is a freshwater perciform fish native to most of Canada and to the Northern ...
Capital of the World.
History
Baudette was incorporated in 1907. It was started by European Americans as a
steamboat
A steamboat is a boat that is marine propulsion, propelled primarily by marine steam engine, steam power, typically driving propellers or Paddle steamer, paddlewheels. The term ''steamboat'' is used to refer to small steam-powered vessels worki ...
landing and lumber town with a sawmill, after the railroad was constructed through this area in 1901. It was named for Joseph Beaudette, a
trapper of French-Canadian descent who had been in the area since the early 1880s. The post office at Baudette began in 1900, first called "Port Hyland", after postmaster Daniel Hyland. The name was changed to "Baudette" in 1901. Baudette had a station of the
Minnesota and Manitoba Railroad, now absorbed by the
Canadian National Railway
The Canadian National Railway Company () is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States.
CN is Canada's largest railway, in terms of both revenue a ...
.
Baudette was largely destroyed in the
Baudette Fire of 1910, but was quickly rebuilt.
Many of its people were saved by a train with boxcars sent across the river from
Rainy River, Ontario, which pulled survivors to safety on the other side.
Geography
The city is along the
Rainy River at its confluence with the
Baudette River. It lies across the river from
Rainy River,
Ontario
Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...
, and southeast of
Lake of the Woods
Lake of the Woods (; ) is a lake occupying parts of the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Manitoba and the U.S. state of Minnesota. Lake of the Woods is over long and wide, containing more than 14,552 islands and of shoreline. It is fed by t ...
.
Baudette and Rainy River are connected by the
Baudette–Rainy River International Bridge.
Minnesota Highway 11,
Minnesota Highway 72, and
Minnesota Highway 172 are three of the community's main routes. Highway 11 leads northwest to
Warroad at the southwest end of Lake of the Woods and east to
International Falls, while Highway 72 leads south to
Blackduck and Highway 172 leads north to Wheelers Point at the mouth of the Rainy River into Lake of the Woods.
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 , of which are land and are water.
Climate
Baudette has a
humid continental climate
A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers, and cold ...
(
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer
* Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan
* Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...
''Dfb'') with mild to warm
summers
Summer or summertime is the hottest and brightest of the four temperate seasons, occurring after spring and before autumn. At or centred on the summer solstice, daylight hours are the longest and darkness hours are the shortest, with day ...
along with dry and severely cold
winters.
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 1,106 people, 489 households, and 273 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 577 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 94.4%
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 ...
, 0.1%
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 ...
, 0.7%
Native American, 0.8%
Asian, 0.5% from
other races, and 3.4% 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 1.8% of the population.
There were 489 households, of which 27.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.9% 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, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.9% had a male householder with no wife present, and 44.2% were non-families. 39.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 18.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.17 and the average family size was 2.95.
The median age in the city was 46.1 years. 23.5% of residents were under the age of 18; 5.4% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 19.8% were from 25 to 44; 29% were from 45 to 64; and 22.2% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 46.3% male and 53.7% female.
2000 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 2000, there were 1,104 people, 490 households, and 271 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 540 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 94.02%
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 ...
, 0.54%
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 ...
, 2.90%
Native American, 0.36%
Asian, 0.18% from
other races, and 1.99% 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 0.72% of the population.
There were 490 households, out of which 28.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.1% 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, 9.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 44.5% were non-families. 41.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 22.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.16 and the average family size was 2.97.
In the city, the population was spread out, with 24.7% under the age of 18, 5.9% from 18 to 24, 23.0% from 25 to 44, 21.9% from 45 to 64, and 24.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 86.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.2 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $31,281, and the median income for a family was $43,000. Males had a median income of $32,500 versus $22,500 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 $16,653. About 6.5% of families and 9.1% 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 7.6% of those under age 18 and 17.6% of those age 65 or over.
Economy
Baudette was home to
Rowell Laboratories, Inc., a manufacturer of pharmaceutical products, from 1935 to 1986. Rowell initially achieved success by processing and selling
burbot
The burbot (''Lota lota''), also known as bubbot, mariah, loche, cusk, freshwater cod, freshwater ling, freshwater cusk, the lawyer, coney-fish, lingcod, or eelpout, is a species of coldwater ray-finned fish native to the subarctic regions of ...
liver oil, after it was discovered to improve the fur of foxes living in the Rowell family fox farm. Rowell's downtown location is now home to ANI Pharmaceuticals Inc.
Automotive Enviro Testing, a cold weather test facility used by Honda, Acura, and Tesla, is in Baudette.
Media
Radio
*
KRWB (AM) 1410 Roseau
*
KKWQ 92.5 Warroad
*
KPMI-FM 94.5 Baudette
*
KCAJ-FM 102.1 Roseau
Television
Notable people
*
Keith Ballard, ice hockey defenseman for the
Minnesota Wild
The Minnesota Wild are a professional ice hockey team based in Saint Paul, Minnesota. The Wild compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Confer ...
*
Alex Lyon, ice hockey goaltender
*
Wally Olds, ice hockey defenseman, 1972 Silver Medal Olympian and All-American; also has his likeness painted on the side of the VFW
*
Theodore H. Rowell, pharmaceutical industrialist and politician
See also
*
Baudette International Airport
References
External links
Official websiteBaudette Chamber of Commerce
{{Authority control
Cities in Minnesota
Cities in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota
County seats in Minnesota
1907 establishments in Minnesota