Fern Township is a township in Hubbard 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. The population was 209 at the 2000 census. Fern Township was named for Fern Smith, the daughter of Seth Smith, an early homesteader.

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 township has a total area of , of which is land and (1.88%) is water.

Township history

The township of Fern was surveyed in 1879 and organized jointly with Lake Hattie Township on August 6, 1898. The first homesteaders in the township were Seth Smith in May 1896 and Lars Lind, who filed in the fall of 1896. The Becida store and post office was established in 1899 and operated by Christen A. Olson and Even K. Nyhus. Olson and Nyhus were brothers-in-law, their wives being sisters Christi and Anna Haugan. The original school opened in 1899, with Cora Crawford the first teacher, who went on to become Hubbard County superintendent of schools. Brothers Even K. and Knute Nyhus each gave an acre of farmland for the Fern Township Cemetery.Fern Township by Verna C. Haines
/ref> The first officials of Fern Township included: *E.O. Howe; Clerk *Lars Lind; Treasurer *Christen A. Olson and Seth Smith; Justices of the peace *Seth Smith and Louis E. Hanson; Constables *Christen A. Olson; Postmaster

Demographics

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 209 people, 79 households, and 54 families residing in the township. The population density was . There were 109 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the township was 99.04%

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 ...

and 0.96% Native American. There were 79 households, out of which 34.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.2% 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, 7.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.4% were non-families. 21.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.65 and the average family size was 3.20. In the township the population was spread out, with 26.8% under the age of 18, 9.1% from 18 to 24, 31.1% from 25 to 44, 26.3% from 45 to 64, and 6.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 106.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 104.0 males. The median income for a household in the township was $41,000, and the median income for a family was $43,333. Males had a median income of $32,083 versus $21,406 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 township was $14,764. About 3.3% of families and 5.7% 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 none of those under the age of eighteen or sixty five or over.

References

{{authority control Townships in Hubbard County, Minnesota Townships in Minnesota