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Nelson Township, MN

Township in Watonwan County, MN, US
Last updated
Key Indicators
A quick look at key numbers

Population

255
Source: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates

Median Age

54.8
years ∙ half population younger than 54.8, half older

Diversity Index

Low High
14.7%
chance two random people differ in race and ethnicity

Nativity

1.6%
foreign-born population
98.4%Native
1.6% Foreign-born

Geographic Context

Location, size, and surroundings

About

Nelson Township is a township in Watonwan County, Minnesota, United States.
Location
Township in Watonwan County, MN, US
Co-ordinates
DEC44.064225° N, 94.669634° W
DMS44° 03′ 51.21″ N, 94° 40′ 10.68″ W

Population Density & area

7.16/sq mi (2.76/km²)
Total Area
35.6 sq mi (92.3 km²)
Land Area
35.6 sq mi (92.3 km²) · 100%
Water Area
0 sq mi (0 km²) · 0%

Demographics & Living

Who lives here, how households are formed, and community composition

Population Composition

Key characteristics of the population

Sex Distribution

51.8% male
Male 51.8%
Female 48.2%
males per 100 females
Nelson Township 107.3
Watonwan County 103.1
Minnesota 100.4

Nativity

1.6%
foreign-born population
98.4%Native
1.6% Foreign-born
% Foreign-born
Nelson Township 1.6%
Watonwan County 13%
Minnesota 8.7%
Age Distribution
How the population is spread across age groups

Median Age

54.8
years ∙ half population younger than 54.8, half older
Nelson Township
54.8
Watonwan County
40.8
Minnesota
38.8

Dependency ratio

Low High
129.7
dependents per 100 working-age adults
Nelson Township 129.7
Watonwan County 87
Minnesota 67.1

AGE DISTRIBUTION

Distribution of age group
Median age
Nelson Township Watonwan County Minnesota
Age Group
Children (Under 18) 17.6% 26.3% 22.9%
Working age (18-64) 43.6% 53.5% 59.8%
Senior (65+) 38.8% 20.2% 17.3%
Dependency ratio
Total dependency ratio 129.7 87 67.1
Child dependency ratio 40.5 49.2 38.2
Old-age dependency ratio 89.2 37.8 28.9
Racial & Ethnic Composition
Racial and ethnic makeup and how it compares

Race & Ethnicity

White
92.2%
Black
0%
Asian
0%
Hispanic
2.7%
Other
5.1%
Note: White, Black, and Asian refer to individuals belonging to a single race and not of Hispanic origin. Hispanics may be of any race.

Diversity Index

Low High
14.7%
chance two random people differ in race and ethnicity
Nelson Township 14.7%
Watonwan County 44.9%
Minnesota 41%
Note: The Diversity Index (DI), based on the Blau Index, measures the probability that two randomly selected individuals differ in race and ethnicity. Values range from 0 (no diversity) to 1 (high diversity) and are shown as percentages.

RACIAL & ETHNIC COMPOSITION

Race & Ethnicity
Percentage of Nelson Township population
Nelson Township Watonwan County Minnesota
Hispanic or Latino 2.7% 30.4% 6.4%
Mexican 1.2% 21% 3.9%
Puerto Rican 1.6% 0.1% 0.3%
Cuban 0% 0% 0.1%
Other Hispanic / Latino 0% 9.2% 2%
Not Hispanic or Latino 97.3% 69.6% 93.6%
One race 92.2% 68.4% 89.1%
White 92.2% 67.7% 75.9%
Black or African American 0% 0% 6.9%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0% 0.1% 0.7%
Asian 0% 0.3% 5.1%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 0% 0% 0%
Some Other Race 0% 0.4% 0.5%
Two or more races (Multiracial) 5.1% 1.2% 4.5%
Household & Families Composition
Household size, type, and family structure

Household structure

87.6% family
Family 87.6%
Non family 12.4%
% family households
Nelson Township 87.6%
Watonwan County 67.6%
Minnesota 62.3%

Average household size

2.43
persons per household
Nelson Township
2.43
Watonwan County
2.61
Minnesota
2.43

Household & Family COMPOSITION

Households
Percentage of Nelson Township population
Nelson Township Watonwan County Minnesota
Total households 105 4,227 2,307,955
Average houshold size 2.43 2.61 2.43
Family households 92 2,858 1,438,404
Average family size 2.59 3.19 3.04
Married couple family 82 2,135 1,129,003
Other families 10 723 309,401
Male householder 5 270 102,922
Female householder 5 453 206,479
Non-family households 13 1,369 869,551
One-person households 13 1,251 686,475
Male householder 7 604 320,418
Senior (65+) living alone 3 300 97,557
Female householder 6 647 366,057
Senior (65+) living alone 5 419 186,557
Other living arrangements 0 118 183,076

Housing Profile

Housing stock, ownership, rentals, and cost burdens

Total housing units

113
housing units
Nelson Township 113
Watonwan County 4,881
Minnesota 2,545,030

Occupancy status

92.9% occupied
Occupied 92.9%
Vacant 7.1%
vacancy rate
Nelson Township 7.1%
Watonwan County 13.4%
Minnesota 9.3%
Housing Characteristics
How the housing supply is structured and used

Types of Housing unit

100%
Single family houses
Single family houses
100%
Apartments in multi-unit structures
0%
Mobile homes
0%
Boat, RV, van, etc
0%

Median Year Built

1968
Half of houses were built before 1968, and half after.
Historic ∙ 1939 or earlier
38.1%
Postwar & mid-century ∙ 1940 - 1969
17.7%
Late 20th century ∙ 1970 - 1999
21.2%
Modern ∙ 2000 or later
23%
Note: Median year built reflects occupied units only; distribution includes all units.

Housing Characteristics

Units, rooms & bedrooms
Physical characteristics of housing units
Nelson Township Watonwan County Minnesota
Rooms per unit
Median rooms 8.2 6.3 6.1
1–3 rooms 1.8% 8.5% 14.9%
4–6 rooms 19.5% 45.4% 41.4%
7+ rooms 78.7% 46% 43.7%
Bedrooms
No bedroom / studio 0% 2.2% 2.7%
1 bedroom 0% 7.8% 11.4%
2 bedrooms 29.2% 24.2% 24.5%
3 bedrooms 24.8% 38% 32.2%
4+ bedrooms 46% 27.8% 29.1%
At a glance
Median year built 1968 1961 1979
Total housing units 113 4,881 2,545,030
Occupancy Profile
Who is inside and how they use it

Homeownership

91.4% owners
Renter-occupied 8.6%
Owner-occupied 91.4%
homeownership rate
Nelson Township 91.4%
Watonwan County 77.8%
Minnesota 72.2%

Average household size

2.49
Owner-occupied
1.78
Renter-occupied
owner-occupied average size
Nelson Township 2.49
Watonwan County 2.72
Minnesota 2.59

Housing Characteristics

Occupied unit characteristics
Tenure, crowding, and utilities
Nelson Township Watonwan County Minnesota
Total occupied units 105 4,227 2,307,955
Year moved in
2020 or later 3.8% 14.5% 23.8%
2010 to 2019 21% 35.2% 38.9%
2000 to 2009 21.9% 21% 16.1%
1999 or earlier 53.3% 29.3% 21.2%
Occupants per room
1.00 or fewer 100% 97.8% 97.7%
1.01 to 1.50 0% 1.8% 1.5%
1.51 or more 0% 0.4% 0.8%
Vehicles availability
No vehicles 3.8% 7.9% 6.7%
1 vehicle 10.5% 21.6% 30.8%
2 vehicles 35.2% 34.4% 39.5%
3 or more vehicles 50.5% 36.1% 23.1%
House heating fuel used
Gas 81.9% 77.4% 75.9%
Electricity 10.5% 15.7% 19.4%
Solar 0% 0% 0.1%
Fuel oil, kerosene etc 1% 2.2% 1.3%
All other fuels 6.7% 3.5% 2.5%
No fuel used 0% 1.1% 0.9%
Selected characteristics
Lacking complete plumbing 0% 0.5% 0.4%
Lacking complete kitchen 0% 1.4% 0.7%
No telephone service available 1.9% 1.2% 0.7%
Housing Value
What owner-occupied units are worth

Median home value

$300,000
owner-occupied units
Median value(USD)
Nelson Township
$300,000
Watonwan County
$162,400
Minnesota
$329,300

Housing Cost Burden

20.9%
of homeowners with a mortgage are cost-burdened
% Cost-Burdened Households
Owners with a mortgage
20.9%
Owners without a mortgage
7.5%
Renters
75%
Note: Households spending 30% or more of their income on housing costs are considered cost-burdened.

Financial characteristics

Property value and housing costs
Tenure, crowding, and utilities
Nelson Township Watonwan County Minnesota
Property value
Median Value $300,000 $162,400 $329,300
Under $100,000 5.2% 30.4% 7.7%
$100,000 - $200,000 27.1% 32.9% 13.3%
$200,000 - $300,000 17.7% 17% 22.6%
$300,000 - $500,000 32.3% 14.3% 36.9%
$500,000 - $1,000,000 15.6% 4.3% 17%
$1,000,000 and more 2.1% 1% 2.6%
Owner-occupied households
With a mortgage 44.8% 48.4% 64%
Without a mortgage 55.2% 51.6% 36%
Median monthly owner costs
With a mortgage $1,982 $1,453 $1,947
Without a mortgage $690 $557 $698
Gross rent
Median rent $— $834 $1,280

Education Profile

How educated is the community and how education pays off

Adults with a college degree

21.3%
of adults 25+ with a bachelor's degree or higher
Nelson Township 21.3%
Watonwan County 17.2%
Minnesota 39.4%

Adults without a high school diploma

3.8%
of adults (25+) without a high school diploma
Nelson Township 3.8%
Watonwan County 13.8%
Minnesota 6.1%
School Enrollment
Who is enrolled in school and at what level

School enrollment

55
population (age 3+) enrolled in school
Nursery / Preschool
0%
K–12
74.5%
College / Undergraduate
23.6%
Graduate / Professional
1.8%

College-going rate (18-24 yr olds)

100%
of 18-24-year-olds in college or graduate school
Nelson Township
100%
Watonwan County
16.1%
Minnesota
39.1%

Enrollment & school type

Enrollment levels, college-going rate, and public vs private school split
Population 3+ currently enrolled in a school
Nelson Township Watonwan County Minnesota
Total enrolled (age 3+) 55 2,531 1,385,086
Nursery / preschool 0% 10.4% 6.2%
K–12 74.5% 79% 69.9%
Kindergarten 0% 8.3% 5.2%
Elementary: Grades 1–4 18.2% 20.7% 20.6%
Elementary: Grades 5–8 21.8% 21.6% 21.7%
High School: Grades 9–12 34.5% 28.4% 22.4%
College or graduate school 25.5% 10.5% 23.9%
College, undergraduate 23.6% 9.3% 18.8%
Graduate, professional school 1.8% 1.3% 5.1%
College-going rate · 18-24 yr olds 100% 16.1% 39.1%
School type
Public school 83.6% 86.2% 83.3%
Private school 16.4% 13.8% 16.7%
Education Attainment by Level & Gender
What is the highest level of education completed among adults

Education attainment

207
population 25 years and over
Total adults (25+)
Less than 9th grade
2.4%
9th-12th, no diploma
1.4%
HS graduate
31.9%
Some college no degree
27.5%
Associates degree
15.5%
Bachelors degree
17.4%
Graduate or professional degree
3.9%

Attainment by gender

Male vs Female
Adults (25+) · Share within each education level
% male · % female
Less than 9th grade
100% · 0%
9th-12th, no diploma
33.3% · 66.7%
HS graduate
47% · 53%
Some college no degree
66.7% · 33.3%
Associates degree
37.5% · 62.5%
Bachelors degree
36.1% · 63.9%
Graduate or professional degree
50% · 50%

Educational Attainment Overview

Distribution and key education attainment rates for adults (25+)
Highest credential completed · adults 25+
Nelson Township Watonwan County Minnesota
Population (25+) 207 7,379 3,923,744
Less than 9th grade 2.4% 7.5% 2.7%
9th–12th, no diploma 1.4% 6.3% 3.4%
High school diploma or GED 31.9% 31.1% 23.3%
Some college, no degree 27.5% 26.5% 19.5%
Associate's degree 15.5% 11.3% 11.8%
Bachelor's degree or higher 21.3% 17.2% 39.4%
Bachelor's degree 17.4% 12.9% 25.6%
Graduate or professional 3.9% 4.3% 13.8%
High School or higher 96.1% 86.2% 93.9%
Earnings by education level
percentage as applicable

Median Earnings

$58,000
Median earnings for adults 25+, by level
Less than HS graduate
$—
HS graduate
$58,750
Some college or associates
$62,917
Bachelors degree
$—
Graduate or professional degree
$—

Poverty Rate

6.8%
for ages 25+, with bachelors degree or higher
Less than HS graduate
12.5%
HS graduate
0%
Some college or associates
6.7%
Bachelors degree or higher
6.8%

Outcomes by Education Level

Earnings and poverty rates across education levels (25+)
Adults 25+
Nelson Township Watonwan County Minnesota
Median earnings
Population 25+, with earnings $58,000 $46,345 $58,615
Less than high school graduate $— $40,135 $36,257
High school graduate (includes equivalency) $58,750 $38,580 $42,951
Some college or associate's degree $62,917 $46,875 $51,845
Bachelor's degree $— $56,290 $73,301
Graduate or professional degree $— $77,375 $89,644
Poverty rates
Less than high school graduate 12.5% 22.3% 23.7%
High school graduate (includes equivalency) 0% 7.9% 12.3%
Some college or associate's degree 6.7% 7.7% 7.8%
Bachelor's degree or higher 6.8% 3.7% 3.2%
Insights for Nelson Township, by topic

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