Houston ( ) is a city in Houston 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 997 at the 2020 census.

History

The community was named after

Sam Houston Samuel Houston (, ; March 2, 1793 – July 26, 1863) was an American general and statesman who played a prominent role in the Texas Revolution. He served as the first and third president of the Republic of Texas and was one of the first two indi ...

, first president of the

Republic of Texas The Republic of Texas (), or simply Texas, was a country in North America that existed for close to 10 years, from March 2, 1836, to February 19, 1846. Texas shared borders with Centralist Republic of Mexico, the Republic of the Rio Grande, an ...

. In 1852, William McSpadden platted the original site of the Village of Houston. McSpadden had served under Sam Houston in the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War (Spanish language, Spanish: ''guerra de Estados Unidos-México, guerra mexicano-estadounidense''), also known in the United States as the Mexican War, and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, ...

. Pioneers followed him into the area and by 1854 there were stores and a school among the approximately 40 buildings in the settlement. Houston was incorporated in 1874.

2007 flood

The

2007 Midwest flooding The 2007 Midwest flooding was a major flooding event that occurred in the Midwestern United States in the third week of August 2007. While Hurricane Dean was affecting the Yucatán Peninsula and the Gulf of Mexico, and Tropical Storm Erin (2007 ...

caused the Root River to rise to , which is about a foot short of the height of the dike protecting the town, necessitating evacuation of the community.

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 a total area of , of which is land and is water.

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 979 people, 418 households, and 239 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 456 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 99.5%

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 ...

, 0.4% Native American, and 0.1% 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 0.1% of the population. There were 418 households, of which 29.2% 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, 10.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.3% had a male householder with no wife present, and 42.8% were non-families. 39.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 18.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.23 and the average family size was 2.98. The median age in the city was 38.8 years. 25.5% of residents were under the age of 18; 6.5% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 24.8% were from 25 to 44; 20% were from 45 to 64; and 23.2% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 46.1% male and 53.9% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 1,020 people, 434 households, and 255 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 459 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 99.02%

, 0.49%

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 ...

, 0.29% Native American, 0.10% from other races, and 0.10% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 0.20% of the population. There were 434 households, out of which 27.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.6% were

living together, 11.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.2% were non-families. 37.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 23.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.19 and the average family size was 2.85. In the city, the population was spread out, with 22.7% under the age of 18, 6.4% from 18 to 24, 22.4% from 25 to 44, 19.8% from 45 to 64, and 28.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females, there were 81.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 75.1 males. The median income for a household in the city was $29,236, and the median income for a family was $38,462. Males had a median income of $31,161 versus $21,691 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 $17,087. About 8.2% of families and 10.3% 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 10.8% of those under age 18 and 16.9% of those age 65 or over.

Arts and culture

Annual cultural events

"Houston Hoedown Days" is the last full weekend in July. The event includes tractor pulls, the Minnesota State Horsepull, dances and flea markets. The "International Festival of Owls" is held each year in Houston, and is the only full-weekend, all-owl event in North America.

Parks and recreation

Houston is the eastern terminus of the Root River segment of the Blufflands State Trail.

Sports

In November 2008 the Houston Hurricanes won the Minnesota 9-Man Football State Championship. They ended their season with a 14–0 mark. This was the first state championship in school history, with the exception of five state appearances by the girls track team, which included a state title in 2006. Five seniors from the 2008 state championship football team went on to play college football—three at UW-La Crosse and two at Luther College.

Education

Houston Public Schools serves Houston. With the program K12 Inc., Houston Public Schools has developed the Minnesota Center for Online Learning and the Minnesota Virtual Academy. Open to students statewide, these programs are unique in that there are no others of their kind in Minnesota.

Infrastructure

Transportation

Minnesota State Highways 16 and 76 are two of the main routes in the city.

Notable people

* Everett Bidwell, Wisconsin legislator, served as a member of the

Wisconsin State Assembly The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The Assembly is controlled by the Republican ...

and

Wisconsin Senate The Wisconsin Senate is the upper house of the Wisconsin State Legislature. Together with the Wisconsin State Assembly they constitute the legislative branch of the state of Wisconsin. The powers of the Wisconsin Senate are modeled after those ...

; born in Houston. * John Q. Briggs, Minnesota legislator and businessman, lived in Houston, MN. *

Francis Martin Kelly Francis Martin Kelly (November 15, 1886 – June 24, 1950) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Winona in Minnesota from 1928 to 1949. Early life Francis Kelly was born in Houston, Minn ...

, third Bishop of the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Winona Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

; born in Houston. * Jeanne Poppe, Minnesota legislator and former member of the

Minnesota House of Representatives The Minnesota House of Representatives is the lower chamber of the U.S. state of Minnesota's Minnesota Legislature, legislature. It operates in conjunction with the Minnesota Senate, the state's upper chamber, to write and pass legislation, whic ...

; born in Houston. * John J. Sliter, Minnesota legislator, served as a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives, was a member of the Houston School Board.

Gallery

References

External links

City of Houston Minnesota Website

Houston Minnesota Chamber of Commerce

{{Authority control Cities in Minnesota Cities in Houston County, Minnesota