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Pennington County, Minnesota

Coordinates: 48°04′N 96°02′W / 48.07°N 96.04°W / 48.07; -96.04
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Pennington County
County
Old Carnegie Library, downtown Thief River Falls, Minnesota.
Old Carnegie Library, downtown Thief River Falls, Minnesota.
Map of Minnesota highlighting Pennington County
Location within the U.S. state of Minnesota
Map of the United States highlighting Minnesota
Minnesota's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 48°04′N 96°02′W / 48.07°N 96.04°W / 48.07; -96.04
Country United States
State Minnesota
FoundedNovember 23, 1910
Named forEdmund Pennington
SeatThief River Falls
Largest cityThief River Falls
Area
 • Total
618 sq mi (1,600 km2)
 • Land617 sq mi (1,600 km2)
 • Water1.7 sq mi (4 km2)  0.3%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total
13,992
 • Estimate 
(2023)
13,714 Decrease
 • Density22.7/sq mi (8.8/km2)
Time zoneUTC−6 (Central)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district7th
Websiteco.pennington.mn.us

Pennington County is a county in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 13,992.[1] Its county seat is Thief River Falls.[2]

History

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The Wisconsin Territory was established by the federal government effective July 3, 1836, and existed until its eastern portion was granted statehood (as Wisconsin) in 1848. The federal government set up the Minnesota Territory in the remaining territory, effective March 3, 1849. The newly organized territorial legislature created nine counties across the territory in October of that year. One of those original counties, Pembina, had its lower portion partitioned in 1858 by the newly organized Minnesota State legislature to create Polk County. On December 24, 1896, the legislature partitioned the northern portion of Polk to create Red Lake County. Then on November 23, 1910,[3] the northern part of Red Lake was sectioned off to create Pennington County, the penultimate Minnesota county to be created (followed by Lake of the Woods in 1922). The county was named for Edmund Pennington (1848-1926), a longtime Minnesota railroad executive, who was serving as president of the Minneapolis, St. Paul, and Sault Ste. Marie Railway when the county was formed. Thief River Falls, the area's major settlement (platted in 1887), was specified as the county seat.[4]

Geography

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Soils of Pennington County[5]
Soils of Oriniak WMA neighborhood

The Red Lake River flows westward into the county from Beltrami County through Pennington's central portion. Near Thief River Falls it is joined by the Thief River, flowing southward into the county from Marshall County. The combined flow exits Pennington County toward the south, then swings west- and northwestward as it moves to its confluence with the Red River near Grand Forks, North Dakota. The county terrain consists of low rolling hills, lightly wooded, with all available areas devoted to agriculture.[6] The terrain slopes to the west and south,[7] with its highest point near the lower east border, at 1,186 ft (361 m) ASL.[8] The county has a total area of 618 square miles (1,600 km2), of which 617 square miles (1,600 km2) is land and 1.7 square miles (4.4 km2) (0.3%) is water.[9] Pennington is one of 17 Minnesota savanna region counties with more savanna soils than either prairie or forest soils.

Major highways

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Airports

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Adjacent counties

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Protected areas

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  • Higinbotham State Wildlife Management Area
  • Pembina State Wildlife Management Area

Demographics

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Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
19109,376—
192012,09129.0%
193010,487−13.3%
194012,91323.1%
195012,9650.4%
196012,468−3.8%
197013,2666.4%
198015,25815.0%
199013,306−12.8%
200013,5842.1%
201013,9302.5%
202013,9920.4%
2023 (est.)13,714[10]−2.0%
U.S. Decennial Census[11]
1790-1960[12] 1900-1990[13]
1990-2000[14] 2010-2020[1]

2020 Census

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Pennington County Racial Composition[15]
Race Num. Perc.
White (NH) 12,241 87.5%
Black or African American (NH) 177 1.3%
Native American (NH) 166 1.2%
Asian (NH) 121 0.9%
Pacific Islander (NH) 6 0.04%
Other/Mixed (NH) 610 4.4%
Hispanic or Latino 671 4.8%

2000 census

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2022 US Census population pyramid for Pennington County, from ACS 5-year estimates

As of the census of 2000, there were 13,584 people, 5,525 households, and 3,552 families in the county. The population density was 22.0 per square mile (8.5/km2). There were 6,033 housing units at an average density of 9.78 per square mile (3.78/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 97.02% White, 0.21% Black or African American, 0.82% Native American, 0.59% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.51% from other races, and 0.81% from two or more races. 1.24% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 49.0% were of Norwegian, 15.4% German and 7.2% Swedish ancestry.

There were 5,525 households, out of which 30.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.70% were married couples living together, 9.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.70% were non-families. 29.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 2.95.

The county population contained 24.50% under the age of 18, 10.30% from 18 to 24, 26.50% from 25 to 44, 22.90% from 45 to 64, and 15.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 97.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.60 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $34,216, and the median income for a family was $43,936. Males had a median income of $30,771 versus $21,078 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,346. About 7.70% of families and 11.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.70% of those under age 18 and 14.80% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

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Cities

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Unincorporated communities

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Townships

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Politics

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In the first five elections after its founding, Pennington County had mixed results in presidential elections, voting for four different parties at least once in that span. From 1932 to 1996, the county voted Democratic, typically by moderately healthy margins, in every election save for three nationwide Republican landslides, Richard Nixon in 1972 and Ronald Reagan in both 1980 and 1984. Beginning in 2000, Pennington County has favored Republicans in six of the seven elections, with the exception being Barack Obama winning the county in 2008 by a plurality and a fairly small margin of about 2%.

United States presidential election results for Pennington County, Minnesota[16]
Year Republican Democratic Third party(ies)
No.  % No.  % No.  %
2024 4,756 64.44% 2,439 33.04% 186 2.52%
2020 4,532 62.28% 2,568 35.29% 177 2.43%
2016 4,000 59.57% 2,147 31.97% 568 8.46%
2012 3,305 50.71% 3,024 46.40% 188 2.88%
2008 3,248 47.61% 3,394 49.75% 180 2.64%
2004 3,767 53.68% 3,117 44.42% 133 1.90%
2000 3,380 53.48% 2,458 38.89% 482 7.63%
1996 2,129 35.99% 2,814 47.57% 972 16.43%
1992 2,155 33.89% 2,578 40.54% 1,626 25.57%
1988 2,920 48.10% 3,105 51.14% 46 0.76%
1984 3,536 54.49% 2,913 44.89% 40 0.62%
1980 3,715 50.09% 3,101 41.81% 600 8.09%
1976 3,023 43.51% 3,787 54.50% 138 1.99%
1972 3,548 53.76% 2,892 43.82% 160 2.42%
1968 2,247 41.12% 2,998 54.86% 220 4.03%
1964 1,630 29.45% 3,894 70.37% 10 0.18%
1960 2,537 44.05% 3,204 55.63% 18 0.31%
1956 2,408 44.93% 2,947 54.99% 4 0.07%
1952 2,726 48.55% 2,802 49.90% 87 1.55%
1948 1,759 31.37% 3,402 60.66% 447 7.97%
1944 1,525 31.09% 3,330 67.89% 50 1.02%
1940 1,857 31.79% 3,886 66.53% 98 1.68%
1936 1,258 24.40% 3,736 72.47% 161 3.12%
1932 1,212 28.12% 2,743 63.64% 355 8.24%
1928 2,506 65.29% 1,198 31.21% 134 3.49%
1924 1,126 31.20% 146 4.05% 2,337 64.75%
1920 2,320 60.70% 768 20.09% 734 19.20%
1916 868 40.47% 1,004 46.81% 273 12.73%
1912 244 13.03% 423 22.60% 1,205 64.37%

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved April 19, 2023.
  2. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  3. ^ "Minnesota Place Names". Minnesota Historical Society. Archived from the original on June 20, 2012. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
  4. ^ Upham, Warren. Minnesota Geographic Names (1920), pp. 406-408 (accessed April 29, 2019)
  5. ^ Nelson, Steven (2011). Savanna Soils of Minnesota. Minnesota: Self. pp. 57-60. ISBN 978-0-615-50320-2.
  6. ^ a b Pennington County MN Google Maps (accessed April 29, 2019)
  7. ^ ""Find an Altitude/Pennington County MN" Google Maps (accessed April 29, 2019)". Archived from the original on May 21, 2019. Retrieved April 29, 2019.
  8. ^ High Point of Pennington County, Minnesota. PeakBagger.com (accessed April 29, 2019)
  9. ^ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Archived from the original on September 21, 2013. Retrieved October 24, 2014.
  10. ^ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023". Retrieved March 18, 2024.
  11. ^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved October 24, 2014.
  12. ^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved October 24, 2014.
  13. ^ "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved October 24, 2014.
  14. ^ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 27, 2010. Retrieved October 24, 2014.
  15. ^ "P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Pennington County, Minnesota".
  16. ^ Leip, David. "Atlas of US Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved October 10, 2018.

48°04′N 96°02′W / 48.07°N 96.04°W / 48.07; -96.04

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