Belle Prairie Township, Morrison County, Minnesota

Belle Prairie Township, Minnesota
Township
Belle Prairie Township, Minnesota Location within the state of Minnesota
Coordinates:
Country	United States
State	Minnesota
County	Morrison
Area
• Total	45.5 sq mi (117.9 km2)
• Land	44.5 sq mi (115.2 km2)
• Water	1.0 sq mi (2.6 km2)
Elevation	1,161 ft (354 m)
Population (2000)
• Total	1,647
• Density	37.0/sq mi (14.3/km2)
Time zone	Central (CST) (UTC-6)
• Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
FIPS code	27-04888
GNIS feature ID	0663557

Belle Prairie Township is a township in Morrison County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 1,647 at the 2000 census.

Belle Prairie Township was organized in 1858. Belle Prairie is a name derived from French meaning "beautiful prairie".

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 117.9 km² (45.5 mi²). 115.2 km² (44.5 mi²) of it is land and 2.6 km² (1.0 mi²) of it (2.24%) is water.

Minnesota State Highway 371 serves as a main route in the township.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 1,647 people, 590 households, and 483 families residing in the township. The population density was 14.3/km² (37.0/mi²). There were 603 housing units at an average density of 5.2/km² (13.6/mi²). The racial makeup of the township was 98.91% White, 0.36% African American, 0.12% Native American, 0.18% Asian, 0.06% from other races, and 0.36% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.36% of the population.

There were 590 households out of which 38.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 72.4% were married couples living together, 4.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 18.0% were non-families. 15.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.79 and the average family size was 3.10.

In the township the population was spread out with 29.8% under the age of 18, 5.0% from 18 to 24, 25.1% from 25 to 44, 27.2% from 45 to 64, and 12.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 102.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.2 males.

The median income for a household in the township was $50,156, and the median income for a family was $56,797. Males had a median income of $38,073 versus $26,250 for females. The per capita income for the township was $21,809. About 2.9% of families and 4.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.2% of those under age 18 and 6.9% of those age 65 or over.