Clay County, Minnesota facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Clay County
U.S. county
Former Federal Courthouse and Post Office in Moorhead, Minnesota
Location within the U.S. state of Minnesota
Minnesota's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Minnesota
Founded	March 8, 1862 (created) 1872 (organized)
Named for	Henry Clay
Seat	Moorhead
Largest city	Moorhead
Area
• Total	1,053 sq mi (2,730 km2)
• Land	1,045 sq mi (2,710 km2)
• Water	7.3 sq mi (19 km2)  0.7%%
Population  (2020)
• Total	65,318
• Estimate  (2021)	65,574
• Density	62.5/sq mi (24.1/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	7th

Clay County is a county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 65,318. Its county seat is Moorhead.

Clay County is part of the Fargo, ND-MN Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,053 square miles (2,730 km²), of which 1,045 square miles (2,710 km²) are land and 7.3 square miles (19 km²) (0.7%) are covered by water.

Major highways

Adjacent counties

• Norman County (north)
• Becker County (east)
• Otter Tail County (southeast)
• Wilkin County (south)
• Richland County, North Dakota (southwest)
• Cass County, North Dakota (west)

Climate and weather

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Moorhead have ranged from a low of 0 °F (−18 °C) in January to a high of 82 °F (28 °C) in July, although a record low of −48 °F (−44 °C) was recorded in January 1887 and a record high of 114 °F (46 °C) was recorded in July 1936. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 0.64 inches (16 mm) in February to 3.90 inches (99 mm) in June.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 51,229 people, 18,670 households, and 12,340 families residing in the county. The population density was 49 people per square mile (19/km²). There were 19,746 housing units at an average density of 19 per square mile (7/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 93.99% White, 0.52% Black or African American, 1.44% Native American, 0.88% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 1.67% from other races, and 1.47% from two or more races. 3.65% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 40.4% were of Norwegian and 26.8% German ancestry.

There were 18,670 households out of which 33.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.90% were married couples living together, 8.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.90% were non-families. 26.10% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.07.

In the county, the population was spread out with 25.00% under the age of 18, 17.10% from 18 to 24, 25.70% from 25 to 44, 19.30% from 45 to 64, and 12.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 93.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.10 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $37,889, and the median income for a family was $49,192. Males had a median income of $34,176 versus $23,149 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,557. About 7.40% of families and 13.20% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.30% of those under age 18 and 7.50% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

Townships

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

Census-designated places

• Baker
• Oakport (former)

Other unincorporated communities

See also

In Spanish: Condado de Clay (Minnesota) para niños