Meadowlands, Minnesota

History

Meadowlands, as its name would suggest, is one of the few areas of arable land in Saint Louis County. While Meadowlands prospered and grew due to the support it provided to the region's farms, the steady decline in those same farms (and the large families they supported) during the mid-late 1980s and early 1990s heralded the beginning of the town's gradual decline.

During its heyday, Meadowlands was home to a number of businesses including a Ford dealership (which also carried New Holland farm machinery), a bank, a farmer's cooperative store, a grocery store, a commercial laundry, a cheese factory, various restaurants, a movie theater and the Toivola–Meadowlands School, a K–12 institution. However, the loss of the large farm families gradually reduced the student population until Independent School District 710 chose to close the school. An attempt was made to covert T–M into a "Charter School", but it ultimately proved unsuccessful. Before closing, the school sent its 9-man football team to the Minnesota State Finals twice in the 1980s.

Currently it possesses only a single bar/grill establishment, and four places of worship.

The retail and service related facilities have seen a slight increase in business due to the recent expansion of tourism related to bird-watching. The rivers, lakes, fields and arboreal bog areas around Meadowlands offer visitors the opportunity to view species ranging from small song birds, such as the waxwing, to Bald Eagles.

Also winter brings with it increased snowmobile traffic, as a former Duluth, Missabe and Iron Range Railroad line runs along the eastern edge of the town. Now converted to an ATV–snowmobile trail, this former rail line runs from Alborn in the south, north to Pengilly on the Iron Range.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 0.39 square miles (1.01 km²), all of it land.

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 134 people, 67 households, and 33 families residing in the city. The population density was 343.6 inhabitants per square mile (132.7/km²). There were 78 housing units at an average density of 200.0 per square mile (77.2/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 94.0% White, 3.7% African American, 0.7% Native American, and 1.5% from two or more races.

There were 67 households of which 23.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 29.9% were married couples living together, 16.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.0% had a male householder with no wife present, and 50.7% were non-families. 50.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 32.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.00 and the average family size was 2.82.

The median age in the city was 47 years. 23.9% of residents were under the age of 18; 9% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 14.9% were from 25 to 44; 25.4% were from 45 to 64; and 26.9% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 43.3% male and 56.7% female.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 111 people, 53 households, and 28 families residing in the city. The population density was 291.1 people per square mile (112.8/km²). There were 61 housing units at an average density of 159.9 per square mile (62.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 97.30% White and 2.70% Native American. 24.7% were of German, 9.6% Finnish, 9.6% Norwegian, 8.2% Czech, 6.8% Slovak and 5.5% Italian ancestry.

There were 53 households out of which 22.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.5% were married couples living together, 11.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 45.3% were non-families. 37.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 34.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.09 and the average family size was 2.72.

In the city, the population was spread out with 23.4% under the age of 18, 1.8% from 18 to 24, 32.4% from 25 to 44, 10.8% from 45 to 64, and 31.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 82.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.1 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $20,625, and the median income for a family was $23,750. Males had a median income of $35,000 versus $23,750 for females. The per capita income for the city was $11,682. There were 3.7% of families and 14.0% of the population living below the poverty line, including 16.0% of under eighteens and 26.9% of those over 64.

Arts and culture

The annual Sax–Zim Winter Birding Festival is held near Meadowlands in February. The event is organized for birdwatching. The nearby "Sax –Zim Bog" is home to one of the world's best birdwatching places. It was named for the two nearby communities of Sax and Zim. Every February, the habitat hosts a three-day festival for birdwatchers.