Nerstrand, Minnesota

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Nerstrand is a small city in Rice County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 233 at the 2000 census.

1 History
2 Law/Government
3 Geography
4 Economy
5 Demographics
6 Notable natives
7 Bibliography

[edit] History

Nerstrand was founded in 1885 by Osmund Osmundson from Nedstrand in Tysvær, Norway. From the same year it was a stop on the Minnesota and North Western Railroad's first rail line, which extended from Lyle, Minnesota to St. Paul. The line was later acquired by the Chicago Great Western Railway Company. It has since been dismantled.

[edit] Law/Government

David Isaacson, who runs the implement dealership, is the mayor.

[edit] Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 3.7 km² (1.4 mi²).

The town features an elementary school with grades K-5, which is operated as a charter school under state law. There is also a highly rated volunteer fire department.

Nerstrand-Big Woods State Park is located nearby. The Valley Grove Church Building, located nearby, is considered an important historical site, though there are several active churches around the area that are better preserved:

St. John's United Church of Christ (3 mi southwest)
Grace Lutheran Church (ELCA) (in town)
Nerstrand United Methodist Church (in town)
Gol Lutheran Church (ELCA) (4 mi southeast)

The town was notorious for the nearby Nerstrand Hill, bane of the locomotive engineer, with the steepest grade on the line from St. Paul to Manley Junction, Iowa.

[edit] Economy

Throughout its history, the town has acted as a source of services to area farmers. An implement dealer and a full-service grain elevator are still present today carrying on this role. These two businesses together provide over half the employment in Nerstrand.

The business district declined with the advent of the automobile, with most area residents choosing to shop in Northfield which has always been more prominent because of the two colleges located there, or Faribault which is the county seat.

As businesses left, Nerstrand became more of a bedroom community for people working in Northfield, Faribault, or Kenyon. A few nonretail businesses, including a cabinet shop and two specialty construction firms, have come to the community, utilizing what would otherwise be vacant storefront space.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census ² of 2000, there were 233 people, 80 households, and 65 families residing in the city. The population density was 63.4/km² (164.3/mi²). There were 82 housing units at an average density of 22.3/km² (57.8/mi²).

There were 80 households out of which 45.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 72.5% were married couples living together, 7.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 18.8% were non-families. 16.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.91 and the average family size was 3.26.

In the city the population was spread out with 33.9% under the age of 18, 4.3% from 18 to 24, 33.9% from 25 to 44, 15.0% from 45 to 64, and 12.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 91.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.1 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $41,500, and the median income for a family was $50,156. Males had a median income of $32,500 versus $23,333 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,362. None of the families and 0.4% of the population were living below the poverty line.

[edit] Notable natives

Thorstein Veblen (1857-1929), usually characterized as an economist or sociologist, and best known for writing the book The Theory of the Leisure Class (ISBN 0-14-018795-2), lived about a mile northeast of town. His house and farm contained several innovations, including what is believed to be the first bucket elevator to be installed on a farm in Rice County. The house was renovated in 1994 as a historic site and is occasionally open to the public. As of November, 2003, it is for sale.