Cook is a city in Saint Louis County,

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

, United States. The population was 534 at the 2020 census.

U.S. Highway 53 U.S. Route 53, or U.S. Highway 53 (U.S. 53), is a north–south U.S. highway that runs for 404 miles (650 km) from La Crosse, Wisconsin to International Falls, Minnesota. It is the primary north–south route in northwestern Wisconsi ...

and State Highway 1 (MN 1) are the two main routes through the city. Cook serves as the gateway to the western half of

Lake Vermilion Lake Vermilion is a shallow freshwater lake in northeastern Minnesota, United States. The Ojibwe originally called the lake Onamanii-zaaga'iganiing (occasionally anglicized as Nee-Man-Nee), which means “the evening sun tinting the water a reddi ...

History

The city of Cook was known initially as ''Little Fork'', because of the river of the same name that runs through the city,"Chronology: Cook", http://www.cookmn.com/L-History.htm later known as ''Ashawa'', which means "by the river or across the river"; its name was changed to Cook on August 1, 1908, at the request of the U.S. Postal Service "because of confusion with a village in southern Minnesota named

Oshawa Oshawa is a city in Ontario, Canada, on the Lake Ontario shoreline. It lies in Southern Ontario, approximately east of downtown Toronto. It is commonly viewed as the eastern anchor of the Greater Toronto Area and of the Golden Horseshoe. It ...

". The town was named in honor of Wirth Cook, an owner of the railroad that was constructed through Cook in 1903 and 1904. Cook was incorporated on May 13, 1926.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the city has an area of , all land.

Demographics

2019 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2019, there were 515 people, 268 households, and 134 families living in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was . There were 306 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 92.0%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.2%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 4.9% Native American, 0.2%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.3% from other races, and 2.4% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 0.9% of the population. There were 268 households, of which 23.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.1% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 10.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 1.5% had a male householder with no wife present, and 50.0% were non-families. 43.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 20.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.04 and the average family size was 2.84. The median age in the city was 47 years. 19.5% of residents were under the age of 18; 6.6% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 22.3% were from 25 to 44; 28.5% were from 45 to 64; and 23% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 47.6% male and 52.4% female.

2000 census

As of the 2000 census, there were 622 people, 275 households, and 158 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 302 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 96.8%

, 0.2%

, 1.6% Native American, 0.8% from other races, and 0.6% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 0.6% of the population. 20.3% were of Norwegian, 16.7% Finnish, 13.9%

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

, 12.7%

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

, 6.6%

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

and 4.9% Irish ancestry. There were 275 households, out of which 27.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.9% were

living together, 13.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.5% were non-families. 39.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 24.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.11 and the average family size was 2.82. In the city, the population was spread out, with 21.5% under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 24.1% from 25 to 44, 19.8% from 45 to 64, and 26.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 80.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.1 males. The median income for a household in the city was $21,607, and the median income for a family was $34,643. Males had a median income of $30,833 versus $22,232 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $15,848. About 9.5% of families and 13.0% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 18.8% of those under age 18 and 9.2% of those age 65 or over.

Infrastructure

Transportation

and State Highway 1 (MN 1) are two of the main routes in Cook.

Education

North Woods School serves the Cook area. The mascot is the Grizzly.

Notable people

* Doug Johnson, Minnesota state legislator and high school counselor * Rachel Latuff, educator *

Noel Wien Noel Wien (June 8, 1899July 19, 1977) was an American pioneer aviator. He was the founder of Wien Alaska Airways. Biography Wien was born in Lake Nebagamon, Wisconsin, but the family moved to a homestead in 1905, to a place now called Cook, Min ...

, aviator *

Keith Secola Keith Secola (born 1957) is an Ojibwe- American musician who plays rock and roll, folk rock, and folk. A singer-songwriter, he also plays guitar and flute. Secola was born in Cook, Minnesota. He is married and has two children. In 1982 he gradu ...

, musician

References

External links

Cook, Minnesota – City Government website

Cook Minnesota Chamber of Commerce
{{Coord, 47, 51, 09, N, 92, 41, 23, W, type:city_region:US-MN, display=title Cities in Minnesota Cities in St. Louis County, Minnesota