Hennepin County, Minnesota

Hennepin County is a county located in the state of Minnesota, named in honor of the 17th-century French explorer Louis Hennepin. As of 2000, the population is 1,116,200. Its county seat is Minneapolis⁶.

On February 15th, 1956, the comic strip Peanuts showed a trophy labelled "Awarded to Lucille Van Pelt, 1954..Outstanding Fussbudget of Hennepin County."

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,571 km² (606 mi²). 1,442 km² (557 mi²) of it is land and 129 km² (50 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 8.21% water. The highest waterfall on the Mississippi River, the Saint Anthony Falls, discovered by Louis Hennepin, are in Hennepin County next to downtown Minneapolis, but in the 19th century, the falls were converted to a series of dams. Barges and boats now pass through locks to pass between the parts of the river above and below the dams.

• Anoka County (northeast)
• Ramsey County (east)
• Dakota County (southeast)
• Scott County (south)
• Carver County (southwest)
• Wright County (northwest)

As of the census² of 2000, there are 1,116,200 people, 456,129 households, and 267,291 families residing in the county. The population density is 774/km² (2,005/mi²). There are 468,824 housing units at an average density of 325/km² (842/mi²). The racial makeup of the county is 80.53% White, 8.95% Black or African American, 1.00% Native American, 4.80% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 2.06% from other races, and 2.60% from two or more races. 4.07% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 456,129 households out of which 28.80% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.30% are married couples living together, 9.90% have a female householder with no husband present, and 41.40% are non-families. 31.80% of all households are made up of individuals and 8.40% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.39 and the average family size is 3.07.

In the county the population is spread out with 24.00% under the age of 18, 9.70% from 18 to 24, 33.70% from 25 to 44, 21.70% from 45 to 64, and 11.00% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 35 years. For every 100 females there are 97.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 94.70 males.

The median income for a household in the county is $51,711, and the median income for a family is $65,985. Males have a median income of $42,466 versus $32,400 for females. The per capita income for the county is $28,789. 8.30% of the population and 5.00% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 10.50% of those under the age of 18 and 5.90% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.

Hennepin County Government website