Red Rock Township is a

township A township is a form of human settlement or administrative subdivision. Its exact definition varies among countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, this tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, Canad ...

Mower County Mower County () is a county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 40,029. The county seat is Austin. Mower County comprises the Austin Micropolitan Statistical Area and is included in the Rochester-Austin ...

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 715 at the 2000 census. The largest town in the township is Brownsdale with a

population Population is a set of humans or other organisms in a given region or area. Governments conduct a census to quantify the resident population size within a given jurisdiction. The term is also applied to non-human animals, microorganisms, and pl ...

of 718 people. All other area in the township is unincorporated. The township is named for a large,

red Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–750 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a seconda ...

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

in ''section 4''.

History

In 1855 John L. Johnson came to the township from

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

and built a

sod Sod is the upper layer of turf that is harvested for transplanting. Turf consists of a variable thickness of a soil medium that supports a community of turfgrasses. In British and Australian English, sod is more commonly known as ''turf'', ...

shanty in a grove of trees in section 4 that had a large,

in it. This grove eventually became known as Red Rock Grove and later the whole township took its name from this area. The rock can still be seen in section 5 (about 1.5 miles northwest of Brownsdale) in the southeast corner of the land owned by Craig Bauman. The area of Red Rock Township around the town of Brownsdale was the source of much of the

lumber Lumber is wood that has been processed into uniform and useful sizes (dimensional lumber), including beams and planks or boards. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, window frames). ...

which helped to build Mower County. Most of the wooded sections of the township were logged in the 1850s and 1860s and much that

wood Wood is a structural tissue/material found as xylem in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulosic fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin t ...

was cut in Brownsdale's

steam-powered A steam engine is a heat engine that performs mechanical work using steam as its working fluid. The steam engine uses the force produced by steam pressure to push a piston back and forth inside a cylinder. This pushing force can be tra ...

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logging, logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes ...

, one of the town's first permanent structures. The township is now largely treeless, with the only significant stands being along Roberts Creek and Dobbins Creek.

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 35.4 square miles (91.7 km), all land.

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 715 people, 271 households, and 215 families residing in the township. 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 20.2 people per square mile (7.8/km). There were 286 housing units at an average density of 8.1/sq mi (3.1/km). The racial makeup of the township was 99.58%

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 ...

, 0.14%

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 ...

, 0.14% Native American, and 0.14% 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 0.84% of the population. There were 271 households, out of which 32.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 74.2% 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, 3.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 20.3% were non-families. 15.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.64 and the average family size was 2.96. In the township the population was spread out, with 24.8% under the age of 18, 5.6% from 18 to 24, 25.9% from 25 to 44, 29.7% from 45 to 64, and 14.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 106.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.3 males. The median income for a household in the township was $50,455, and the median income for a family was $55,833. Males had a median income of $37,656 versus $29,792 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 $19,519. About 0.9% of families and 1.8% 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 none of those under age 18 and 8.3% of those age 65 or over.

Nicolville

Nicolville is an

unincorporated area An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

on the southern border with Windom Township. It is located along Mower County Highway 46 (Old

U.S. Route 16 U.S. Highway 16 (US 16) is an east–west United States Numbered Highway between Rapid City, South Dakota, and Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. The highway's eastern terminus is at a junction with Interstate 90 (I-90)/ US&nb ...

) about a mile north and east of

Austin Austin refers to: Common meanings * Austin, Texas, United States, a city * Austin (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin (surname), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin Motor Company, a British car manufac ...

. At one time it had a gas/mechanic station, grocery store and possibly a hotel too.

Cemeteries

*Tanner Cemetery is located in the southeast corner of the southwest quadrant of section 12 of the township. It was used as a

burial Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objec ...

ground from 1861 to 1925. It is a private cemetery not open to the public. *Greenwood Cemetery is located in the far southeast corner of the southeast quadrant of section 16 of the township. Its oldest known

dates to 1863. *Brown Cemetery (formerly called Oak Park Cemetery) is in Brownsdale in section 9 of the township. It is on the corner of Malissa St. and Cedar Ave. Its oldest known

was prior to 1876.

History

Geography

Demographics

Nicolville

Cemeteries

References

Further reading