Guide to Perham Minnesota

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2.6 square miles (6.8 km²), all of it land. U.S. Highway 10, Minnesota Highway 78, and Minnesota Highway 108 are three of the main routes in the community.

As of the census of 2000, there were 2,559 people, 1,104 households, and 642 families residing in the city. The population density was 976.2 people per square mile (377.1/km²). There were 1,167 housing units at an average density of 445.2/sq mi (172.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 96.99% White, 0.35% African American, 1.02% Native American, 0.27% Asian, 0.66% from other races, and 0.70% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.13% of the population. 50.3% were of German and 14.8% Norwegian ancestry according to Census 2000.

There were 1,104 households out of which 29.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.5% were married couples living together, 8.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.8% were non-families. 37.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 20.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.23 and the average family size was 2.95.

In the city the population was spread out with 25.1% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 25.7% from 25 to 44, 17.6% from 45 to 64, and 24.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 87.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.9 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $28,397, and the median income for a family was $40,184. Males had a median income of $29,087 versus $20,817 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,444. About 8.1% of families and 13.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.3% of those under age 18 and 13.9% of those age 65 or over.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

PERHAM Township, organized March 19, 1872, was then called Marion Lake Township, for the lake adjoining its southwest corner, but March 1, 1877, it was renamed, to be like its village, by an act of the legislature. Josiah Perham, commemorated in this name, was the first president of the Northern Pacific Railroad company, in 1864-65. He was born in Wilton, Maine, in 1803 and died in Boston, Mass., in 1868. Very interesting biographic notes, with narration of his enthusiastic efforts for construction of this transcontinental railway line, are given in Eugene V. Smalley's History of the Northern Pacific Railroad (1883, pp. 97-132). Perham, a city in sections 14 and 15, on this railroad, platted March 6, 1873, was incorporated February 14, 1881. Its original townsite was laid out in June 1872 by the Lake Superior and Puget Sound Land Company; the post office began in 1872, with Henry Kemper as postmaster.