City in Minnesota, United States
City in Minnesota, United States
Silver Bay
is a city in
Lake County
,
Minnesota
, United States. The population was 1,857 at the time of the
2020 census
.
[6]
It is the largest population center in a natural tourism area which includes,
Tettegouche State Park
and the
Split Rock Lighthouse
. It is a port along Lake Superior for
iron ore
and has
taconite
mining facilities of its own.
The
North Shore National Scenic Drive
runs through town.
History
[
edit
]
The city of Silver Bay was founded on May 1, 1954, after previously being known as the
Beaver Bay
housing project. The company town was built to process
taconite
mined and shipped by train from
Babbitt, Minnesota
, sixty miles to the northwest.
[7]
Silver Bay attained widespread publicity in the 1960s when it was discovered that the Reserve Corporation was dumping
taconite
tailings into Lake Superior. In 1972 they were forced to stop and charged with violating the
Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899
, which prohibited the dumping of harmful materials into interstate waters. In 1977, after a long trial, a new waste-storage facility was built 7 miles inland. Often referred to as “Mile Post 7”
Black beach, named for the darkly-colored taconite tailings in the its sand, is now a popular tourist attraction
[8]
In 2015, the taconite tailing-rich Black Beach opened to the public,
[9]
the negotiation with the mining company for public access to the beaches in the area being brokered by the city of Silver Bay and the state
DNR
. Black Beach Park contains three beaches and a municipally-owned campground.
[10]
Geography
[
edit
]
According to the
United States Census Bureau
, the city has a total area of 8.36 square miles (21.65 km
2
), of which 7.89 square miles (20.44 km
2
) is land and 0.47 square miles (1.22 km
2
) is water.
[11]
Silver Bay is located 28 miles northeast of
Two Harbors
, 54 miles northeast of
Duluth
, 55 miles southwest of
Grand Marais
, and about 100 miles south of the Canadian border. It is about halfway between Duluth and Grand Marais, along the
North Shore
of
Lake Superior
.
Tettegouche State Park
, the
Baptism River
, and the
Palisade Head
rock formation are all nearby.
Summer hiking trails, winter cross country skiing, maintained snowmobile trails , multiple parks, a hockey arena, and 4 baseball/softball fields are located within Silver Bay.
Demographics
[
edit
]
2010 census
[
edit
]
Historical population
Census
| Pop.
| Note
| %±
|
1960
| 3,723
| | ?
|
---|
1970
| 3,504
| | ?5.9%
|
---|
1980
| 2,917
| | ?16.8%
|
---|
1990
| 1,894
| | ?35.1%
|
---|
2000
| 2,068
| | 9.2%
|
---|
2010
| 1,887
| | ?8.8%
|
---|
2020
| 1,857
| | ?1.6%
|
---|
2021 (est.)
| 1,858
| [3]
| 0.1%
|
---|
Silver Bay and its taconite tailings ponds, 2010
As of the
census
of 2010, there were 1,887 people, 836 households, and 542 families living in the city. The
population density
was 239.2 inhabitants per square mile (92.4/km
2
). There were 974 housing units at an average density of 123.4 per square mile (47.6/km
2
). The racial makeup of the city was 97.9%
White
, 0.2%
African American
, 0.3%
Native American
, 0.3%
Asian
, 0.3% from
other races
, and 1.0% from two or more races.
Hispanic
or
Latino
of any race were 0.9% of the population.
There were 836 households, of which 22.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.3% were
married couples
living together, 6.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.8% had a male householder with no wife present, and 35.2% were non-families. 31.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.17 and the average family size was 2.69.
The median age in the city was 50.1 years. 18.4% of residents were under the age of 18; 6.9% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 17.4% were from 25 to 44; 28.6% were from 45 to 64; and 28.8% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 51.8% male and 48.2% female.
2000 census
[
edit
]
As of the
census
of 2000, there were 2,068 people, 844 households, and 589 families living in the city. The population density was 268.0 inhabitants per square mile (103.5/km
2
). There were 933 housing units at an average density of 120.9 per square mile (46.7/km
2
). The racial makeup of the city was 97.68%
White
, 0.05%
African American
, 1.11%
Native American
, 0.15%
Asian
, 0.05%
Pacific Islander
, 0.10% from
other races
, and 0.87% from two or more races.
Hispanic
or
Latino
of any race were 0.68% of the population.
Germans
comprised 22.2% of the population, 18.1%
Norwegian
, 11.5%
Swedish
, 6.5%
Finnish
, 6.4%
American
, 6.1%
Irish
, and 5.2%
English
ancestry.
There were 844 households, out of which 28.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.8% were
married couples
living together, 7.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.1% were non-families. Individuals comprised 27.6% of all households, and 14.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.85.
In the city, the population was spread out, with 24.4% under the age of 18, 4.3% from 18 to 24, 23.4% from 25 to 44, 20.8% from 45 to 64, and 27.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females, there were 104.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 105.8 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $36,524, and the median income for a family was $41,667. Males had a median income of $40,655 versus $25,809 for females. The
per capita income
for the city was $16,958. About 5.3% of families and 6.8% of the population were below the
poverty line
, including 8.5% of those under age 18 and 2.9% of those age 65 or over.
Infrastructure
[
edit
]
Transportation
[
edit
]
Silver Bay was served by the
Silver Bay Municipal Airport
until it closed on June 7, 2018, for an indefinite amount of time.
[13]
Outer Drive (County Road 5), Penn Boulevard, and
Minnesota Highway 61
are three of the main routes in Silver Bay.
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files"
. United States Census Bureau
. Retrieved
July 24,
2022
.
- ^
a
b
"Explore Census Data"
.
United States Census Bureau
. Retrieved
June 12,
2022
.
- ^
a
b
"City and Town Population Totals: 2020-2021"
. United States Census Bureau. June 8, 2022
. Retrieved
June 12,
2022
.
- ^
"U.S. Census website"
.
United States Census Bureau
. Retrieved
January 31,
2008
.
- ^
"US Board on Geographic Names"
.
United States Geological Survey
. October 25, 2007
. Retrieved
January 31,
2008
.
- ^
"Explore Census Data"
.
United States Census Bureau
. Retrieved
June 12,
2022
.
- ^
History of Silver Bay
Archived
July 11, 2010, at the
Wayback Machine
, Retrieved July 7, 2010
- ^
"Minnesota's unnaturally beautiful Black Beach"
.
Exploration Vacation
. June 11, 2023
. Retrieved
April 25,
2024
.
Black Beach officially opened to the public in 2015 and grows in popularity every year. It's not a local secret anymore ? these days it is very, very busy on summer weekends.
- ^
"Black Beach Campground and Recreational Park Information"
(PDF)
. City of Black Beach. p. 11
. Retrieved
April 25,
2024
.
The City of Silver Bay and the MN DNR, entered into a Lease Agreement with Northshore Mining for 31.6 acres (approximately 3500 feet of shoreline) of property along Lake Superior's North Shore for the purpose of public beaches. The agreement was fully executed in November 2014. ? Black Beach is known for the natural sediment transport of past taconite tailings into sand that gives a diamond like sparkle with black hue.
- ^
"Black Beach Campground"
. Retrieved
April 25,
2024
.
- ^
"US Gazetteer files 2010"
.
United States Census Bureau
. Archived from
the original
on July 2, 2012
. Retrieved
November 13,
2012
.
- ^
United States Census Bureau
.
"Census of Population and Housing"
. Retrieved
July 21,
2013
.
- ^
"Airport | City of Silver Bay, Minnesota"
. Retrieved
August 5,
2022
.
External links
[
edit
]
|
---|
International
| |
---|
National
| |
---|
Other
| |
---|