Frazee, Minnesota

Frazee
City
Downtown Frazee
Nickname:  "The Hive" "Turkey Town"
Motto(s):  "Home of the World's Largest Turkey", "Stingers up"
Location of Frazee, Minnesota
Coordinates: 46°43′42″N 95°42′4″W / 46.72833°N 95.70111°W / 46.72833; -95.70111
Country	United States
State	Minnesota
County	Becker
Founded	1871
Government
• Mayor	Mike Sharp
Area [1]
• Total	1.11 sq mi (2.88 km2)
• Land	1.07 sq mi (2.78 km2)
• Water	0.04 sq mi (0.10 km2)
Elevation [2]	1,384 ft (422 m)
Population  (2020)[3]
• Total	1,335
• Estimate  (2022)[4]	1,316
• Density	1,245.34/sq mi (480.61/km2)
Time zone	UTC-6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP codes	56544
Area code	218
FIPS code	27-22472[5]
GNIS feature ID	0643899[2]
Website	frazeecity.com

Frazee (/freɪˈziː/ fray-ZEE) is a city in Becker County, Minnesota, United States. It is the second-most-populous city in Becker County. The population was 1,335 at the 2020 census.^[3]

The community was originally named Detroit and later Third Crossing before adopting the name Frazee. With Becker County not formally organized until 1871, it was the earliest settlement in the area. The city was incorporated on January 6, 1891.^[6] It was named after R. L. Frazee, owner of a sawmill.^[7]

Frazee was the birthplace of Kieth Engen, a noted operatic bass.^[8][9]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has an area of 1.11 square miles (2.87 km²), of which 1.06 square miles (2.75 km²) is land and 0.05 square miles (0.13 km²) is water.^[10]

As of the census of 2010, there were 1,350 people, 540 households, and 325 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,273.6 inhabitants per square mile (491.7/km²). There were 595 housing units at an average density of 561.3 per square mile (216.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 88.1% White, 1.6% African American, 5.1% Native American, 0.6% Asian, 0.2% from other races, and 4.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.4% of the population.

There were 540 households, of which 34.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.1% were married couples living together, 13.3% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.7% had a male householder with no wife present, and 39.8% were non-families. 34.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 3.00.

The median age in the city was 36.7 years. 25.9% of residents were under the age of 18; 8.1% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 24.2% were from 25 to 44; 23.5% were from 45 to 64; and 18.5% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 45.4% male and 54.6% female.

Frazee is governed by the Statutory City Plan A form of government (in Minnesota, 601 cities operate under Plan A). This plan removes the clerk from the council and replaces that position with a fourth (or sixth) elected council member. The city council appoints the clerk and treasurer to indefinite terms of office. A mayor and four council members are elected to three-year terms. The council meets on the second and fourth Wednesdays of each month at the Frazee Event Center.^[12]

Frazee's three largest employers are Frazee-Vergas Public Schools (160 employees), Frazee Care Center (160), and Daggett Truck Line (102). Daggett Truck Line has been operating for 80 years out of Frazee, carrying refrigerated and dry freight throughout the United States and southern Canada. It transports frozen foods, snack foods, pet food, produce, and manufactured goods. Its trucks return with processed foods or raw materials for local manufacturers.^[13]

Major roads are U.S. Route 10, a four-lane divided highway connecting the twin cities of Minneapolis-Saint Paul to the east and Fargo-Moorhead to the west; and Minnesota State Highway 87, a two-lane secondary road running east from the city.

Frazee is on the Northern Pacific Railway's former main line, now the Northern Transcon of the BNSF. In 2015, this line carried an average of 49 trains per day.^[14] Amtrak's Empire Builder runs through town in each direction in the early morning; its closest station stop is Detroit Lakes, ten miles (16 km) away.^[15]

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Frazee is best known as the home of Big Tom: the World's Largest Turkey.^[16] Frazee has long been part of the turkey industry. In 1984, turkey growers and committee members put up a giant turkey statue to honor the town. For $20,000, the group commissioned artist Shell Scott to construct the statue, which was built on a metal frame and covered in cement, fiberglass, cardboard, and insulation. The statue, named "Big Tom", was finished in 1986 and stood 22 feet (6.7 m) tall, earning Frazee the title "Home of the world's largest turkey."

Due to Big Tom's physical makeup, the statue needed frequent repairs. There were also complaints that Big Tom was not proportioned like a real turkey. The area committee decided it needed a new Big Tom and commissioned artist Dave Oswald. On July 1, 1998, during the removing process for Big Tom, the statue caught fire from a cutting torch that was being used to remove the wings.

On September 19, 1998, a new statue arrived in Frazee in three pieces on a flatbed trailer. The new "Big Tom" took eight hours to assemble, standing over 20 feet (6.1 m) tall and 17 feet (5.2 m) wide. It weighs over 5,000 pounds, having 1,000 pounds of steel reinforcement. It has 3,000 to 4,000 separate fiberglass feathers, which took the D.W.O. Fiberglass Company over 2,000 hours to make.

• "This 22-Foot Turkey Roosts in a Region of Roadside Giants". nytimes.com. Retrieved November 28, 2024. Frazee
• "The Storied History Of The 5,000-Pound Turkey In Frazee, Minnesota -- Nicknamed The 'Frazee Phoenix'". cbsnews.com. Retrieved November 28, 2024.

46°43′41″N 95°42′03″W / 46.72806°N 95.70083°W / 46.72806; -95.70083