Carver County, Minnesota

Carver County, Minnesota
Location in the U.S. state of Minnesota
Minnesota's location in the U.S.
Founded	February 20, 1855[1]
Named for	Jonathan Carver
Seat	Chaska
Largest city	Chaska
Area
• Total	376 sq mi (974 km2)
• Land	354 sq mi (917 km2)
• Water	22 sq mi (57 km2), 5.8%
Population (est.)
• (2015)	98,741
• Density	257/sq mi (99/km²)
Congressional districts	3rd, 6th
Time zone	Central: UTC-6/-5
Website	www.co.carver.mn.us

Carver County is a county located in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2010 census, the population was 91,042.^[2] Its county seat is Chaska.^[3] Carver County is named after the explorer Jonathan Carver, who in 1766-67, traveled from Boston to the Minnesota River, and wintered among the Sioux near the site of New Ulm.^[4]

Carver County is part of the Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 376 square miles (970 km²), of which 354 square miles (920 km²) is land and 22 square miles (57 km²) (5.8%) is water.^[5] It is the second-smallest county in Minnesota by land area and third-smallest by total area.

Native vegetation based on NRCS soils information^[6]

Soils of Minnesota Landscape Arboretum area

Carver is one of seven southern Minnesota counties with no forest soils; only prairie ecosystems of savannas and prairies can be found in Carver County. It is also one of 17 Minnesota counties where savanna soils dominate.

Lakes

Lake Waconia

Carver County is home to seven lakes, 235 acres or larger. Carver's largest and most notable lake is Waconia Lake. The lake is Minnesota's 73rd largest lake and the Twin Cities' second largest lake, with an area of 2,996 acres.^[7]

Major highways

• U.S. Highway 212
• Minnesota State Highway 5
• Minnesota State Highway 7
• Minnesota State Highway 25
• Minnesota State Highway 41
• Minnesota State Highway 284

Adjacent counties

• Wright County (north)
• Hennepin County (northeast)
• Scott County (southeast)
• Sibley County (southwest)
• McLeod County (west)

National protected area

• Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge (part)

Climate and weather

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Chaska have ranged from a low of 4 °F (−16 °C) in January to a high of 81 °F (27 °C) in July, although a record low of −41 °F (−41 °C) was recorded in January 1970 and a record high of 105 °F (41 °C) was recorded in July 1988. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 0.66 inches (17 mm) in February to 5.05 inches (128 mm) in August.^[8]

Demographics

Age pyramid of county residents based on 2000 U.S. census data

2010

The ethnic makeup of the county, according to the 2010 U.S. Census, was the following:

• 93.7% White
• 1.5% Black
• 0.3% American Indian
• 2.9% Asian
• 0.0% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander
• 1.6% Two or more races
• 0.3% Other races
• 4.1% Hispanic or Latino (of any race)

There were 33,486 households out of which 42.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.9% were married couples living together, 7.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.9% were non-families. 21.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.74 and the average family size was 3.22.

The median income for a household in the county was $83,773, and the median income for a family was $96,913. Males had a median income of $66,150 versus $46,696 for females. The per capita income for the county was $37,457. About 3.3% of families and 4.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.5% of those under age 18 and 7.8% of those age 65 or over.^[14]

2000

As of the census of 2000, there were 70,205 people, 24,356 households, and 18,778 families residing in the county. The population density was 197 people per square mile (76/km²). There were 24,883 housing units at an average density of 70 per square mile (27/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 95.95% White, 0.59% Black or African American, 0.18% Native American, 1.56% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.87% from other races, and 0.82% from two or more races. 2.55% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 44.3% were of German, 12.1% Norwegian, 7.1% Irish and 6.2% Swedish ancestry.

There were 24,356 households out of which 45.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 66.40% were married couples living together, 7.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.90% were non-families. 18.10% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.84 and the average family size was 3.26.

In the county the population was spread out with 31.50% under the age of 18, 6.90% from 18 to 24, 34.70% from 25 to 44, 19.50% from 45 to 64, and 7.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 100.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.00 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $65,540, and the median income for a family was $73,577 (these figures had risen to $78,035 and $89,100 respectively as of a 2007 estimate). Males had a median income of $47,271 versus $32,107 for females. The per capita income for the county was $28,486. About 2.30% of families and 3.50% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.60% of those under age 18 and 6.90% of those age 65 or over.

Government and politics

Government

Like all counties in Minnesota, Carver is governed by an elected and nonpartisan board of commissioners. Each commissioner represents a district of approximately equal population.

County commissioners

The county commission elects a chair who presides at meetings. Commissioners as of July 2015:

Politics

Carver County has long been known as a Republican stronghold in state and federal elections. Since World War II, the county has never voted for a Democratic candidate for president. The last time Carver County voted for a Democrat was in 1936, Franklin D. Roosevelt's landslide re-election for a second term. Since 1944, the only time Carver County voted for a non-Republican candidate in a gubernatorial race was in 1998, Jesse Ventura's historic third party upset.^[16]

Carver County is divided into two congressional districts. While the eastern area, adjacent to Hennepin County and Scott County, is represented by Minnesota's 3rd congressional district (CPVI R+2) and the remainder of the county is represented by Minnesota's 6th congressional district (CPVI R+10).

Communities

Cities

Townships

Unincorporated communities

Ghost town

• San Francisco

Notable residents

• Abigail and Brittany Hensel
• Prince (musician)
• Wendelin Grimm
• Steve Strachan (sheriff)

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Carver County, Minnesota

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Carver County, Minnesota.

• Carver County government’s website
• Macaroni Kid Carver - family friendly events newsletter

		Wright County	Hennepin County
	McLeod County
		Carver County, Minnesota
	Sibley County		Scott County

Municipalities and communities of Carver County, Minnesota, United States
County seat: Chaska
Cities	Carver Chanhassen‡ Chaska Cologne Hamburg Mayer New Germany Norwood Young America Victoria Waconia Watertown
Townships	Benton Camden Dahlgren Hancock Hollywood Laketown San Francisco Waconia Watertown Young America
Unincorporated communities	Assumption‡ Augusta Bongards Coney Island Dahlgren East Union Gotha Hollywood Maple Oster‡
Ghost town	San Francisco
Footnotes	‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties

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Counties	Aitkin Anoka Becker Beltrami Benton Big Stone Blue Earth Brown Carlton Carver Cass Chippewa Chisago Clay Clearwater Cook Cottonwood Crow Wing Dakota Dodge Douglas Faribault Fillmore Freeborn Goodhue Grant Hennepin Houston Hubbard Isanti Itasca Jackson Kanabec Kandiyohi Kittson Koochiching Lac qui Parle Lake Lake of the Woods Le Sueur Lincoln Lyon Mahnomen Marshall Martin McLeod Meeker Mille Lacs Morrison Mower Murray Nicollet Nobles Norman Olmsted Otter Tail Pennington Pine Pipestone Polk Pope Ramsey Red Lake Redwood Renville Rice Rock Roseau Saint Louis Scott Sherburne Sibley Stearns Steele Stevens Swift Todd Traverse Wabasha Wadena Waseca Washington Watonwan Wilkin Winona Wright Yellow Medicine

Coordinates: 44°49′N 93°48′W / 44.82°N 93.80°W / 44.82; -93.80