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Welcome to Motley ...

The city of Motley is primarily located in Morrison County<1>. A portion of Motley extends into Cass County.

The pronunciation of Motley: MAHT-lee<2>

While we don't have a date for the founding of Motley, you might consider that their post office opened in 1873.

From the  Census Estimates for 2019, Motley has a population of 655 people<3> (see below for details).

Motley is 1,230 feet [375 m] above sea level.<4>.

Time Zone: Motley lies in the Central Time Zone (CST/CDT) and observes daylight saving time

Area Code for Motley: 218

The ZIP code for Motley: 56466<5>

Population Details ...

Taken from the 2019 Census Estimates, Motley had an population of 655 people. This is a decrease of 2.38% since the 2010 Census (or an increase of 11.97% since the 2000 Census).

At the time of the 2010 Census, Motley had a population of 671 people. This makes Motley the county's 4th most populous community.

The population of Motley represents 0.01% of the population of Minnesota (which has 5,303,925 people), making it the state's 442nd most populous community.

With a 2010 count of 671 people, the population of Motley increased 14.7% from the 2000 Census (with a count of 585 people).

More information can be found on the Census Page for Motley.

Communities Also Named Motley ...

Using our Gazetteer, we found that there are 8 communities that are also named Motley - they are located in Alabama (2), Kentucky (2), Michigan, Missouri, Texas and Virginia.

For more information, see our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Motley.

Communities near Motley ...

We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Motley.

  • Baxter
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
    • Baxter is located in Crow Wing County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baxter
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 8,483 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Baxter <6>
  • Staples
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
  • Lake Shore
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
  • East Gull Lake
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
  • Randall
    (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
  • Verndale
    (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
  • Pillager
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
  • Fort Ripley
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Aldrich
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Aldrich is located in Wadena County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aldrich
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 46 people
  • Philbrook
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Philbrook is located in Todd County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Philbrook

To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.

We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Motley. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Motley.

Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Motley. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around Motley.

We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Motley. See our Newspapers Page for Motley.

TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Motley ...

Looking for more information about Motley? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.

In addition to the Tourism page for Motley, there are neighboring communities that also have Tourism pages. More information about those communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for Motley.

Adding Motley to Our Gazetteer ...

We originally found mention of Motley in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.

From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found (so far) for Motley was in the document titled List of Post Offices from Cameron Blevins and Richard Helbock.<7>

From that list, the Motley post office opened in 1873.

For more details, see References and Mentions for Motley.

Footnotes ...

<1>If you're interested in how the shape of Minnesota's counties, including Morrison, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
<2>The pronunciation we've provided is our attempt to give a phonetic pronunciation for Motley. While it might not be exactly right, hopefully it will be close. If we have it wrong or there's a better way to pronounce the name, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
<3>Population counts have been provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. For more detail, please visit our Census Page for Motley.
<4>The elevation is an estimate for the area around Motley - it will be higher in some places and lower in others.
<5>ZIP Codes have been created by the United States Postal Service (USPS) as a way of grouping addresses to make delivery more efficient. The boundaries of the ZIP Code can be changed, re-assigned, eliminated or overlapped with other ZIP Codes. So keep in mind that any given ZIP Code is only 'loosely' associated with a city (such as Motley). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether Motley or elsewhere, it's always best to check the website of the United States Postal Service (USPS).
<6>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<7>A copy of the Blevins & Helbock Post Office list with background information can be found at:

      https://cblevins.github.io/us-post-offices/data-biography/