Willmar, Minnesota

Willmar is a city in and the county seat of Kandiyohi County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 19,610 at the 2010 census.

Willmar has been assigned ZIP code 56201 by the United States Postal Service.

U.S. Routes 12 and 71 and Minnesota State Highways 23 and 40 are four of the main routes in the city.

Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 13.6 square miles (35.2 km²), of which, 11.8 square miles (30.7 km²) of it is land and 1.8 square miles (4.6 km²) of it is water. The total area is 12.94% water.

The 45º latitude line passes just south of Willmar, placing it just halfway between the equator and the North Pole.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 18,351 people, 7,302 households, and 4,461 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,549.9 people per square mile (598.4/km²). There were 7,789 housing units at an average density of 657.8 per square mile (254.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 88.12% White, 0.90% African American, 0.46% Native American, 0.53% Asian, 0.11% Pacific Islander, 8.52% from other races, and 1.36% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 15.86% of the population.

There were 7,302 households out of which 31.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.3% were married couples living together, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.9% were non-families. 31.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 3.08.

In the city the population was spread out with 26.2% under the age of 18, 12.0% from 18 to 24, 26.4% from 25 to 44, 19.0% from 45 to 64, and 16.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 91.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.6 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $33,455, and the median income for a family was $45,415. Males had a median income of $31,575 versus $22,158 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,515. About 8.4% of families and 13.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.2% of those under the age of 18 and 8.0% of those 65 and older.

History
Agricultural expansion and the establishment of Willmar as a division point on the Great Northern Railway determined the growth of the community. The first settlers arrived during the 1850s attracted to the fertile land and an abundance of timber and game. The Dakota War of 1862 left the township abandoned for several years. The advent of the railroad in Kandiyohi County in 1869 brought new settlers. Many were of Swedish and Norwegian origins; hence the predominance today of residents of Scandinavian heritage. In 1870, Leon (Chadwick) Willmar, a Belgian acting as a European bondholder of the St. Paul and Pacific Railroad, purchased the title to Section 1 of Willmar Township. Willmar was established as the county seat in 1871 and was incorporated as a village in 1874 and as a city in 1901.

Willmar was the site of The Great Willmar, Minnesota Raid, a famous bank robbery by the Machine Gun Kelly gang on July 15, 1930. They robbed the Bank of Willmar (now Bremer Bank) of about $70,000, and wounded 3 people during the robbery.

From 1977 to 1979, Willmar was the site of the Willmar 8, a famous strike of female workers confronting sexual discrimination at a local bank. The story of the strike was featured in mainstream media and made into a documentary.

Willmar native and composer, Bradley Joseph, often references the past when he names his songs and his music is frequently reminiscent of his rural Minnesota roots. "Wind Farmer" was inspired by childhood visits to a relative's farm near Olivia, and his company, Robbins Island Music, is named after a city park in Willmar, says Anne Polta of the West Central Tribune.

Willmar is home to the annual Sonshine Festival, a Christian music festival.

Willmar was the first U.S. city that used black & white police squad cars. The officers thoughts were if the cab of the car was painted white it would reduce the heat generated from sunlight. Today, the Police Chief will not use black & whites.

Education
Willmar is home to Ridgewater College est. 1996, a community and technical college with campuses in both Willmar and Hutchinson, MN. The college enrolls over 5,500 students and provides a moderate range of programs, in addition to providing access to some four-year programs through relationships with universities in the MnSCU system.

Immigration
Since October 15, 1989, the rural city has experienced a large influx of immigrants from Latin America and Northeast Africa, mostly due to the demand for labor at the Jennie-O poultry plant. In 2001, the city was recognized as an "All America City" by the National Civic League, in part for its success as growing numbers of immigrants became part of the community.

Also in 2005, the city received attention from national media after several Somali high school students gave Willmar High School its first Cross-Country State championship in twenty years. The team won the state tournament and attended the Nike Nationals consecutively in 2005 and 2006. Following the success of the team, the city gained attention from Sports Illustrated. Subsequently, NBC Nightly News conducted a story documenting the changing face of the rural city and its relative acceptance of the new makeup of its citizens.

Notable natives and residents

 * Dan Anderson – psychologist
 * Karlyn Kohrs Campbell – academic
 * Bonnie Henrickson – head women's college basketball coach at the University of Kansas
 * Dean Johnson – politician
 * Carl O. Jorgenson – politician
 * Bradley Joseph – composer and recording artist
 * George Nelson – astronaut
 * Alec G. Olson – politician
 * Earl B. Olson – founder of the Jennie-O Turkey company
 * Kenneth L. Olson – United States Army soldier
 * Albert E. Rice – politician
 * Marion Ross – actress
 * Henrik Shipstead – politician
 * Paul Stagg – radio professional KWLM (formerly of WCCO)
 * Curt Swan – illustrator of Superman comics from the '50s to the '80s
 * Rick Swenson – dog musher and Iditarod participant
 * Buck Zumhofe – wrestler

Newspapers
West Central Tribune

La Gran America (Trilingual newspaper) Founded in September 2008.

Magazines
Seasons of Minnesota

Coup

Television stations
Refer to UHF-TV Inc.

Pay television services
Charter Communications

En-Tel Communications

DirecTV

Dish Network

Sister cities

 * 🇧🇪 Frameries, Belgium
 * 🇧🇾 Vileyka, Belarus