St. John's Lutheran Church · National Register of Historic Places
Bradford Township’s story
Bradford Township in pictures
The archive holds a map from 1961 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Explore the history →Bradford TownshipMN
A town of 3,549.
6 bordering townsMap →
St. John's Lutheran Church · Photo: Elkman · CC BY-SA 3.0
Population
3,549
2025 Census estimate · +4% since 2020
Median home value
$337K
Census ACS
Household income
$93K
median
Median age
47.5
years
Jobs based here
400
A commuter town
TownGrade
B−
#215 of 271 in MN
Is Bradford Township a good place to live?
Bradford Township gives you more for your money than most places: a typical home costs about $337K, 3.4 years of the Minneapolis metro’s $100K median household income. It grades B− overall, ranked 215th of 271 in Minnesota. Bradford Township’s average trip to work is 31 minutes, against 23 minutes in Minnesota’s towns and 25 minutes across U.S. towns. St. John's Lutheran Church is on the National Register of Historic Places. Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 74% of U.S. towns.
WeakestCWalkability
A commuter town
98% of working residents leave Bradford Township for work
Where Bradford Township’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
400jobs based in Bradford Township
2%of working residents work in town
25 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
How Bradford Township grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Minnesota), ordered by how far Bradford Township is from typical.
WalkabilityEPA walkability 5.4 of 20; 0.7% of households have no car; 1.2% of workers walk, bike or ride transitCOpen →HealthCambridge Medical Center 6.2 miles awayB+Open →Cost of livingBOpen →Hazard riskinland flooding tops the listC+Open →Jobs & income$93K median household incomeB−Open →SchoolsBehind 54% of Minnesota districts on tests and graduationB−Open →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
Outdoors1% conserved landC−Open →History1 place on the National RegisterBOpen →Civic life1.9 community nonprofits per 1,000 residentsC−Open →
Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Named after Bradford
Bradford Township takes its name from Bradford in West Yorkshire, England, 3,840 miles across the Atlantic.
UKUK editionWest Yorkshire, EnglandBradfordA city of 333,968
Photo: Stephen Craven · CC BY-SA 2.0Bradford Township takes its name from Bradford, a city in West Yorkshire, England.
Bradford Township, MN3,840 miles · Bradford, West Yorkshire
People333,9683,549 here
Typical home£155,000
Listed buildings9595 of them Grade I
TownGradeC−against UK towns#80 of 91 in West Yorkshire · here B− against U.S. towns
1 more U.S. town is named after Bradford:Bradford, RI1,511
Named after: each U.S. town’s Wikipedia article. Grades compare each town with towns in its own country, so they aren’t a head-to-head.
Getting set up
The full setup list →Moving to Bradford Township: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Bradford Township, and how to reach them.
PowerConnexus Energy14.1¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
Internet7 providers91% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & dumpNot on file yetWe don’t have Bradford Township’s trash rules yet
Register to voteOnlineIn Minnesota you can register online until 21 days before Election Day, in person up to and including Election Day, or by mail (received 21 days before).vote.govWho runs elections hereIsanti County Auditor-Treasurer's OfficeIsanti County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Apr 2022
ZIP codes55040, 5500855040 68% · 55008 32%Census 2020
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Bradford Township.
Bradford Township sends most of its workers to Cambridge and beyond and is healthy by national standards but mid-pack in Minnesota; it also has little public open land.
Work & commuteJobs & income grade B−
Most working residents commute out of Bradford Township
Bradford Township has 400 jobs for its 1,670 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out. The average commute takes 30.5 minutes, against 22.7 across Minnesota.
Most working residents leave Bradford Township for work: only 2% work in town. Jobs based in Bradford Township grew to 400 in 2023, 230 more than in 2013. 4.5% of residents live below the poverty line in Bradford Township.
2%work in town
| Bradford Township | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 17% | 14% | 11% |
| Working residents who work in town | 1.6% | 9.9% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 4.5% | 7.1% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $93,000 | $90,000 | $80,000 |
Where working residents work
In Bradford Township2%
Cambridge9%
Minneapolis7%
Isanti5%
Blaine4%
25 mi
median commute distance
400
jobs based in Bradford Township
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
C
Walkability grade: more walkable than 26% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
HealthB+
Bradford Township is healthier than 66% of U.S. towns
Within Minnesota it is less healthy than 64% of the 271 graded towns: Minnesota sets a high bar.
Bradford Township beats the Minnesota average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 3. 73% of Bradford Township adults had a checkup this year.
66%healthier than U.S. townsB+Health Grade
| Bradford Township | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 73% | 75% | 79% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 18% | 16% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 14% | 14% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 30% | 36% |
32 measures vs. Minnesota
0 better29 too close to call3 worse
| What stands out | Bradford Township | MN |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 13.2% | 8.9% |
| More smokers | 16.5% | 13.1% |
| More adults with COPD | 6.3% | 5.4% |
Cambridge Medical Center
6.2 mi away · emergency room
1 of 3
care shortages: mental health
35th
percentile among MN towns
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Climate
Snowy winters and pleasant summers in Bradford Township
Bradford Township has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. Bradford Township’s July high is 81°F.
44″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter8–25°
Spring33–54°
Summer58–79°
Fall37–56°
Oct 4
typical first frost
May 2
typical last frost
+1.5°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade C+
Moderate risk in Bradford Township, with inland flooding at the top
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 56% of U.S. communities. Since 1997, 2 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Bradford Township.
56risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Inland floodingTornadoesCold waves
2
paid flood claims since 1997
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
OutdoorsC−
0.6% of Bradford Township is conserved land
Just 144 of its 22,822 acres are conserved, so there is little public open land in Bradford Township itself; its outdoors grade is C−.
0.1 miles of trail in 3 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Marget Lake Wildlife Management Area, at 91 acres.
0.6%conserved
0.6%
conserved · 144 of 22,822 acres
0.1 mi
of trails · 0 per sq mi
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Marget Lake Wildlife Management Area | — | 91 |
| 2. Wayside Prarie Park | — | 62 |
| 3. Spectacle Wildlife Management Area, Spectacle Lake Annex Unit | — | 51 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Bradford Township
18pages on Bradford Township
The big questions
Out and about
The story
Day to day
After high school
Colleges nearby
None within 15 miles of Bradford Township; the nearest are
Anoka Technical CollegeCommunity college · Public · Anoka20.9 mi$6,267 in-state tuitionUniversity of Minnesota-Twin CitiesUniversity or college · Public · Minneapolis37.6 mi$17,214 in-state tuition
About 2 of every 100 Bradford Township residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Minnesota.
About Bradford Township
Unincorporated community in Minnesota, United States
Bradford is an unincorporated community in Bradford Township, Isanti County, Minnesota, United States. The community is located west of Cambridge and Isanti and north of St. Francis on State Highway 47 (MN 47). The center of Bradford is generally considered at the junction of Highway 47 and Isanti County Road 40. Other routes include County Roads 5, 10, and 17. Bradford currently has a gas station, a used car lot, a few small industries, which include, but are not limited to, Heat Mizer Glass, and has a restaurant "Bradford Roadhouse" on the site of the former Bradford Store.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Elevation
- 938 ft
Bradford Township’s neighbors
6 towns share a border with Bradford Township.
IsantiIsanti TownshipSpringvale TownshipStanford TownshipSpencer Brook TownshipCambridgeBradford Township
How the neighbors grade
| Town | MN rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bradford Township | #215 | B− | B | — | B− | B+ |
| Isanti | #70 | A | B+ | A− | B− | B+ |
| Isanti Township | — | — | B | — | B− | B+ |
| Springvale Township | — | — | C+ | — | B− | B |
| Stanford Township | — | — | C | — | B | B+ |
| Spencer Brook Township | — | — | B+ | — | B− | B+ |
| Cambridge | #197 | B | B− | B | B− | B |
Isanti Township, Springvale Township, Stanford Township and Spencer Brook Township have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Bradford Township, Isanti Township, Springvale Township, Stanford Township and Spencer Brook Township report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Bradford Township with a neighbor →
Questions about Bradford Township
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Bradford Township, MN a good place to live?
Bradford Township grades B− overall, better than 53% of U.S. towns and #215 of 271 in Minnesota. It grades B+ for health and B− for schools.
Is Bradford Township, MN expensive?
Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.