White Bear Lake, Minnesota
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
White Bear Lake is a city in Ramsey County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 24,325 at the 2000 census.
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[edit] Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 22.5 km² (8.7 mi²). 21.2 km² (8.2 mi²) of it is land and 1.3 km² (0.5 mi²) of it (5.87%) is water.
[edit] Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 24,325 people, 9,618 households, and 6,646 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,148.2/km² (2,974.3/mi²). There were 9,813 housing units at an average density of 463.2/km² (1,199.9/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 95.31% White, 1.08% African American, 0.37% Native American, 1.54% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.35% from other races, and 1.31% from two or more races. 1.75% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 9,618 households out of which 32.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.2% were married couples living together, 10.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.9% were non-families. 25.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 2.99.
In the city the population was spread out with 24.8% under the age of 18, 8.6% from 18 to 24, 29.3% from 25 to 44, 22.8% from 45 to 64, and 14.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 92.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.8 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $52,934, and the median income for a family was $60,196. Males had a median income of $41,699 versus $31,797 for females. The per capita income for the city was $24,338. About 3.3% of families and 4.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.5% of those under age 18 and 5.7% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] History
Some say that White Bear Lake was the object of writer F Scott Fitzgerald's Winter Dreams, as he describes life in Black Bear Lake, Minnesota. What is not in doubt is that White Bear Lake became a sort of de facto gangster haven during the Prohibition era. Those gangsters in Chicago who felt the need to get out of town until "things cooled off," would frequent White Bear Lake, a fact that is not lost on today's Chamber of Commerce who tout this as a reason to visit.
White Bear Lake High School and White Bear Mariner High School combined in the 1980s to form White Bear Lake Area High School or WBLAHS. The school has nearly 3,000 students in four grades.
The murder of three year-old Dennis Jurgens at the hands of his adopted mother Lois Jurgens was the arguably the biggest scandal to ever hit the town. The story was recounted in prolific journalist Barry Siegel's true crime novel A Death in White Bear Lake.
Paul Mork, former football and baseball coach, led the Bears for 20 + years and is known for his "Paw Power" chants. The usual chant was "1-2-3, Paw Power", but on those special nights, such as Homecoming vs. Stillwater, he would pull out the "1-2-3----4...PAW POWER!". Unfortunately after a poor 0-9 season in 1990, Paul Mork stepped down as Football Coach. In recent years he has been making a strong come back push as head coach of the Irondale girls’ basketball team.
[edit] Notable natives and/or residents
- Tony Benshoof - Olympic athlete
- Brian Bonin - Mr. Hockey & Hobey Baker award winner
- James Brunzell - Wrestler
- Moose Goheen - Hockey Hall of Fame
- Bradley Joseph - Recording artist
- Joe Miller (baseball) - Baseball player
- Elwyn Romnes - Hockey player
- David Tanabe - Hockey player
- Jesse Ventura - Politician
[edit] External links
- City Website
- White Bear Press (local newspaper)
- Shakespeare & Company
