Buffalo, Minnesota

Buffalo is located 45 minutes NW of Minneapolis in Wright County, Minnesota. The population was 15,453 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Wright County.

Minnesota State Highways 25 and 55 are two of the main arterial routes in the city. The school district is called Buffalo-Hanover-Montrose Schools. It is composed of schools within the city of Buffalo and local towns of Hanover and Montrose. There are six elementary schools: Discovery Center, Northwinds Elementary, Parkside Elementary, Tatanka Elementary, Hanover Elementary, and Montrose Elementary. There is one middle school: Buffalo Community Middle School, and one high school Buffalo High School. There is also one private, catholic school; St. Francis Xavier school (K-8th grade).

History
Wright County was open up for settlement by white pioneers in 1855. The village of Buffalo was platted in 1856 to 1858. The town of Buffalo is actually named after the carp-like fish that were once abundant in this region. Buffalo remained a small town until the mid-19th century when it became a popular resort town for wealthy day-trippers from the Minneapolis-St. Paul metro area. There were several resorts located around Lake Pulaski, which along with Buffalo Lake is one of the two largest lakes in Buffalo. Visitors would take a train from the Twin Cities and arrive in Buffalo only an hour later. Buffalo remained a popular resort destination from the 1890s until the 1920s. During the summer months Buffalo's population would nearly double in size with all the visiting tourists. Today, many visitors still come to Buffalo for the fishing on Lake Pulaski and Buffalo Lake, as well as for shopping in the many boutiques and antique shops. Their monthly sales attract many non-residents.

Culture
Buffalo offers a relatively large and vibrant arts scene for the town's size. The Buffalo Community Theater is a local organization that has been producing plays since 1986. The Buffalo Community Theater stages several plays a year, and is funded and organized entirely by members of the surrounding community. The Buffalo Community Orchestra is another popular artistic outlet. The orchestra has been part of the Buffalo community since 1995 and has over 50 members. The orchestra is well known for the 'Concert in the Park' series they put on every summer for free to community members. The orchestra is also funded by business and residents of Buffalo and the surrounding area. Also in the area are the Wright County Chamber Chorus and the Wright Ringers bell choir.

Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 7.8 square miles (20.2 km²), of which, 6.0 square miles (15.6 km²) of it is land and 1.8 square miles (4.6 km²) of it (22.72%) is water.

Demographics
As of the census of 2008, there were 18,141 people, 6,612 households, and 6,313 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,675.8 people per square mile (646.5/km²). There were 3,871 housing units at an average density of 642.5 per square mile (247.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 96.74% White, 0.52% African American, 0.49% Native American, 0.67% Asian, 0.31% from other races, and 1.27% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.11% of the population. 38.1% were of German, 15.0% Norwegian, 8.0% Swedish and 5.4% Irish ancestry according to Census 2000.

There were 3,702 households out of which 40.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.9% were married couples living together, 10.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.2% were non-families. 24.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 3.17.

In the city the population was spread out with 29.2% under the age of 18, 8.7% from 18 to 24, 32.8% from 25 to 44, 18.0% from 45 to 64, and 11.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 96.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.7 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $49,573, and the median income for a family was $59,250. Males had a median income of $39,960 versus $27,793 for females. The per capita income for the city was $21,424. About 4.6% of families and 5.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.0% of those under age 18 and 5.1% of those age 65 or over.