St. Louis County, Minnesota
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Saint Louis County, Minnesota | |
| Map | |
 Location in the state of Minnesota |
|
 Minnesota's location in the U.S. |
|
| Statistics | |
| Founded | February 20, 1855 [1] |
|---|---|
| Seat | Duluth |
| Largest city | Duluth |
| Area - Total - Land - Water |
6,860 sq mi (17,767 km²) 6,225 sq mi (16,123 km²) 635 sq mi (1,644 km²), 9.25% |
| Population - (2000) - Density |
200,528 32.21/sq mi (12.44/km²) |
| Time zone | Central: UTC-6/-5 |
| Website: www.co.st-louis.mn.us | |
| Named for: Saint Louis River | |
St. Louis County is a county located in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of 2000, the population was 200,528. Its county seat is Duluth. It is the largest county by area in Minnesota, and the largest in the United States east of the Mississippi River; in land area alone, the second largest after Aroostook County, Maine.[1] Major industries include pulpwood production and tourism. Surface mining of high-grade iron-ore remains an important part of the economy of the Iron Range. Parts of the Bois Forte and Fond du Lac Indian reservations are in the county.
Contents |
[edit] History
St. Louis County was founded on February 20, 1855 as Doty County and had its name changed to Newton County on March 3, 1855. It originally consisted of the area east and south of the St. Louis River, while the area east of the Vermilion River and north of the St. Louis River was part of Superior County. Superior County was renamed St. Louis County. Then on March 1, 1856, that St. Louis County became Lake County, and Newton County was renamed St. Louis County and had that eastern area added to it; it was also expanded westward by incorporating parts of Itasca County, which then also included most of Carlton County. On May 23, 1857 St. Louis County took its current shape when Carlton County was formed from parts of St. Louis and Pine Counties.
[edit] Topography and vegetation
St. Louis County is known for its spectacular natural beauty. It currently includes parts of Voyageurs National Park, established in 1975, the Superior National Forest, established in 1909, and the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness within it on the U.S.-Canadian border, established in 1978. The BWCAW is a 1,090,000-acre (4,400 km2) wilderness area designated for fishing, camping, hiking, and canoeing and is one of the most visited wilderness areas in the United States. Voyageurs National Park, near the town of International Falls, is popular with canoeists, kayakers, other boaters and fishermen. St. Louis County also has over 500 lakes, including Kabetogama Lake, Namakan Lake, Rainy Lake, Sand Point Lake, and Crane Lake.
The "Hill of Three Waters" on the Laurentian Divide lies between Hibbing and Chisholm.[2]
St. Louis County also has one of the most important fresh-water ports in the United States, located in Duluth on Lake Superior.
The county forms part of the Iron Range, which has a significant taconite mining industry, particularly the city of Hibbing.
[edit] Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 6,860 square miles (17,767 km²), of which 6,225 square miles (16,123 km²) is land and 635 square miles (1,644 km²) (9.25%) is water. By area, it is the largest county in Minnesota and the largest east of the Mississippi; by land area, the second largest east of the Mississippi.
Voyageurs National Park is located in its northwestern corner, on the south shore of Rainy Lake, on the Ontario, Canada border.
[edit] Major highways
[edit] Adjacent counties
- Rainy River District, Ontario (north)
- Lake County (east)
- Douglas County, Wisconsin (southeast)
- Carlton County (south)
- Aitkin County (southwest)
- Itasca County (west)
- Koochiching County (northwest)
[edit] National protected areas
- Superior National Forest (part)
- Voyageurs National Park (part)
- Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (part)
[edit] Demographics
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1940 | 206,917 |
|
|
| 1950 | 206,062 | −0.4% | |
| 1960 | 231,588 | 12.4% | |
| 1970 | 220,693 | −4.7% | |
| 1980 | 222,229 | 0.7% | |
| 1990 | 198,213 | −10.8% | |
| 2000 | 200,528 | 1.2% | |
As of the census[3] of 2000, there were 200,528 people, 82,619 households, and 51,389 families residing in the county. The population density was 32 people per square mile (12/km²). There were 95,800 housing units at an average density of 15 per square mile (6/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 94.86% White, 0.85% Black or African American, 2.03% Native American, 0.66% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.22% from other races, and 1.35% from two or more races. 0.80% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 17.0% were of German, 13.7% Norwegian, 12.1% Finnish, 9.7% Swedish, 6.0% Irish, and 5.3% Italian ancestry according to Census 2000.
27.60% of households included children under the age of 18, 49.30% were married couples living together, 9.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.80% were non-families. 31.20% of all households consisted of individuals and 13.00% of individuals 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.32 and the average family size was 2.90.
The population spread by age was 22.40% under the age of 18, 11.40% from 18 to 24, 25.90% from 25 to 44, 24.30% from 45 to 64, and 16.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 96.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.80 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $36,306, and the median income for a family was $47,134. Males had a median income of $37,934 versus $24,235 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,982. About 7.20% of families and 12.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.10% of those under age 18 and 8.90% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Governance
Like all counties in Minnesota, Saint Louis is governed by an elected and nonpartisan board of commissioners. In Minnesota, county commissions usually have five members, but Saint Louis, Hennepin, and Ramsey counties have seven members. Each commissioner represents a district of equal population.
The county commission elects a chair who presides at meetings.
Commissioners as of January 2009:
| District | Commissioner | In office since | Current term expires |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Dennis Fink | 1997 | December 31, 2010 |
| 2nd | Steven O'Neil | 2005 | December 31, 2012 |
| 3rd | Chris Dahlberg | 2009 | December 31, 2012 |
| 4th | Mike Forsman (chair) | 1995 | December 31, 2010 |
| 5th | Peg Sweeney | 1997 | December 31, 2012 |
| 6th | Keith Nelson | 2003 | December 31, 2010 |
| 7th | Steve Raukar | 1989 | December 31, 2010 |
[edit] Politics
The county board of commissioners is currently experiencing high levels of conflict. Disputes among commissioners have created a situation that makes it very difficult for them to accomplish their work in a responsible manner. Two commissioners have recently been charged with sexual harassment and another has articulated his willingness to support slavery if his constituents wanted it.[citation needed]
St. Louis County is considering doing a study about dividing the county into two counties.[4]
[edit] Presidential elections
The county has consistently favored the Democratic candidate in the last twenty Presidential elections. The last Republican to carry the county was Herbert Hoover in 1928.[5] In the last five Presidential elections the Republican candidate has never received more than 34% of the county's vote.[6]
| Year | Democrat | Republican |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 65.10% 77,351 | 32.61% 38,742 |
| 2004 | 65.20% 77,958 | 33.55% 40,112 |
| 2000 | 59.78% 64,237 | 32.96% 35,420 |
| 1996 | 60.60% 60,736 | 25.50% 25,553 |
| 1992 | 56.80% 61,813 | 22.60% 24,579 |
[edit] Cities and towns
[edit] Cities
| Cities | Unincorporated communities | CDP | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
[edit] Townships
[edit] Unorganized
[edit] References
- ^ Duluth News Tribune September 22, 2004, p. 2B. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Arostook County has a smaller overall area but a greater land area.
- ^ "Lookout Mountain - Laurentian Divide Recreation Area - The Hill of Three Waters". wikimapia. 2007. http://wikimapia.org/5841044/Lookout-Mountain-Laurentian-Divide-Recreation-Area-The-Hill-of-Three-Waters. Retrieved on 2009-03-28.
- ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2007/07/27/countysplit/
- ^ Geographie Electorale
- ^ The New York Times electoral map (Zoom in on Minnesota)
[edit] External links
 |
Koochiching County | Rainy River District, Ontario, Canada |
|
||||
| Itasca County |  |
Lake County | |||||
 St. Louis County, Minnesota  |
|||||||
 |
|||||||
| Aitkin County | Carlton County | Douglas County, Wisconsin and Lake Superior |
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
