Barnesville is a city in Clay County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 2,759 at the 2020 census, and was estimated at 2,765 in 2024. A post office called Barnesville has been in operation since 1877. Barnesville was incorporated as a city in 1889.
|align-fn=center
|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census<br>2020 Census
! colspan=2|Population<br>2000
! colspan=2|Population<br>2010
!style=background-color:#FFFFE6 colspan=2|Population<br>2020
|-
! Number
! Percent
! Number
! Percent
! Number
! Percent
! style=background-color:#FFFFE6 |Number
! style=background-color:#FFFFE6 |Percent
|-
| White alone (NH)
|| 2,055 || 99.47% || 2,149 || 98.90% || 2,512 || 98.01% || style=background-color:#FFFFE6|2,584 || style=background-color:#FFFFE6|93.66%
|-
| Black or African American alone (NH)
|| 2 || 0.10% || 0 || 0.00% || 4 || 0.16% || style=background-color:#FFFFE6|5 || style=background-color:#FFFFE6|0.18%
|-
| Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)
|| 2 || 0.10% || 5 || 0.23% || 6 || 0.23% || style=background-color:#FFFFE6|9 || style=background-color:#FFFFE6|0.33%
|-
| Asian alone (NH)
|| 1 || 0.05% || 3 || 0.14% || 5 || 0.20% || style=background-color:#FFFFE6|8 || style=background-color:#FFFFE6|0.29%
|-
| Pacific Islander alone (NH)
|| — || — || 0 || 0.00% || 2 || 0.08% || style=background-color:#FFFFE6|2 || style=background-color:#FFFFE6|0.07%
|-
| Other race alone (NH)
|| 0 || 0.00% || 0 || 0.00% || 0 || 0.00% || style=background-color:#FFFFE6|1 || style=background-color:#FFFFE6|0.04%
|-
| Mixed race or multiracial (NH)
|| — || — || 1 || 0.05% || 16 || 0.62% || style=background-color:#FFFFE6|102 || style=background-color:#FFFFE6|3.70%
|-
| Hispanic or Latino (any race)
|| 6 || 0.29% || 15 || 0.69% || 18 || 0.70% || style=background-color:#FFFFE6|48 || style=background-color:#FFFFE6|1.74%
|-
! Total || 2,066 || 100.00% || 2,173 || 100.00% || 2,563 || 100.00% || style=background-color:#FFFFE6|2,759 || style=background-color:#FFFFE6|100.00%
|}
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, there were 2,759 people, 1,057 households, and 719 families residing in the city. The median age was 36.5 years. 28.9% of residents were under the age of 18 and 15.7% were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females, there were 95.8 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.9 males age 18 and over.
The population density was . There were 1,124 housing units at an average density of . Of housing units, 6.0% were vacant. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.5% and the rental vacancy rate was 12.2%.
There were 1,057 households, of which 37.7% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 57.2% were married-couple households, 16.4% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 21.2% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 28.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
As of the 2024 American Community Survey, there are 1,005 estimated households in Barnesville with an average of 2.70 persons per household. The city has a median household income of $97,917. Approximately 1.8% of the city's population lives at or below the poverty line. Barnesville has an estimated 71.9% employment rate, with 30.7% of the population holding a bachelor's degree or higher and 96.6% holding a high school diploma. There were 1,082 housing units at an average density of .
The top five reported languages (people were allowed to report up to two languages, thus the figures will generally add to more than 100%) were English (98.3%), Spanish (1.4%), Indo-European (0.0%), Asian and Pacific Islander (0.3%), and Other (0.0%).
Barnesville hosts the Clay County Fair in mid-July, featuring animals and produce of the county, as well as rides and displays.
Education
The Barnesville Public School District (ISD 146):
- Atkinson Elementary School (Kindergarten through 6th grades)
- Barnesville High School (7th through 12th grades)
There are 875 students at the school district in the School Year 2025-'26.
Gallery
Notable people
- Alta King (born 1899 in Barnesville), a dancer and Ziegfeld girl
- David Moe, basketball coach
- Sara Jane Olson, far-left activist
- Arlan Stangeland, U.S. representative from Minnesota
- Neil Wohlwend, Minnesota state legislator, football and basketball coach