List of counties in Minnesota

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There are 87 counties in the U.S. state of Minnesota. There are also several historical counties.

Contents

On October 27, 1849, nine counties were established: Benton, Dahkotah, Itasca, Ramsey, Mahkahta, Pembina, Wabasha, Washington, and Wahnata. Six of these names still exist. With the foundation of Kittson County on March 9, 1878, Pembina County no longer existed. [1] When Minnesota was organized as a state, 57 of the present 87 counties were established. The last county to be created was Lake of the Woods County in 1923. [2]

The names of many of the counties allude to the long history of exploration. Over ten counties are named for Native American groups residing in parts of what is now Minnesota. Another fifteen counties are named after physical geographic features, and the remainder for politicians.

The FIPS county code is the five-digit Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) code which uniquely identifies counties and county equivalents in the United States. The three-digit number is unique to each individual county within a state, but to be unique within the entire United States, it must be prefixed by the state code. This means that, for example, the number 001 is shared by Aitkin County, Minnesota, Adams County, Wisconsin, and Adair County, Iowa. To uniquely identify Aitkin County, Minnesota, one must use the state code of 27 plus the county code of 001; therefore, the unique nationwide identifier for Aitkin County, Minnesota is 27001. The links in the column FIPS County Code are to the Census Bureau Info page for that county. [3]

List

Historical counties

The new Seal of Minnesota contains 98 gold "boxes" around the edge, symbolizing the state's 87 counties and 11 recognized Native American tribes. Seal of Minnesota.svg
The new Seal of Minnesota contains 98 gold "boxes" around the edge, symbolizing the state's 87 counties and 11 recognized Native American tribes.

Before statehood

After statehood

References

  1. 1 2 "Minnesota Place Names". Minnesota Historical Society. Archived from the original on August 14, 2007. Retrieved September 17, 2007.
  2. ↑ "Minnesota County History". Association of Minnesota Counties. Archived from the original on August 13, 2007. Retrieved September 2, 2007.
  3. 1 2 "EPA County FIPS Code Listing". EPA. Retrieved April 9, 2007.
  4. 1 2 3 National Association of Counties. "NACo – Find a county". Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved February 24, 2012.
  5. ↑ Upham, Warren (1969). Minnesota Geographic Names. St. Paul: Minnesota Historical Society.
  6. ↑ "County Name Origins". Association of Minnesota Counties. Archived from the original on May 27, 2008. Retrieved November 5, 2008.
  7. ↑ "Origin of Minnesota County Name". Minnesota Secretary of State. Archived from the original on November 8, 2008. Retrieved November 5, 2008.
  8. 1 2 "Minnesota QuickFacts". U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved March 15, 2025.
  9. ↑ "Dodge County History" (PDF). Dodge County website. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 11, 2008. Retrieved February 17, 2008.
  10. ↑ "The History of Goodhue County". Goodhue County, Minnesota website. Archived from the original on June 6, 2008. Retrieved February 17, 2008.
  11. ↑ MCHS – William Morrison – Fur Trader Archived July 23, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  12. ↑ Hacking, Sara (July 11, 2007). "Native history". Wadena Pioneer Journal. Retrieved January 31, 2025.
  13. ↑ "Wadena County Information and History". Wadena County. Retrieved January 31, 2025.

Further reading

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