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State of Minnesota
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Flag of Minnesotasvg
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Flag Of Minnesota
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Minnesota state sealpng
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Map of USA MNsvg
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North Star State,<br/>The Land of 10,000 Lakes, The Gopher State
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L'Étoile Du Nord (French: The Star of the North)
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Saint Paul
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Minneapolis
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Tim Pawlenty ( R )
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Norm Coleman ( R )<br /> Amy Klobuchar ( DFL )
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MN
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12<sup>th</sup>
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87,014
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225,365
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79,682
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206,375
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7,332
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18,990
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84
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21<sup>st</sup>
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4,919,479
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31<sup>st</sup>
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6180
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2386
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$55,914
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5<sup>th</sup>
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32<sup>nd</sup>
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May 11 , 1858
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-6/ -5
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43°󈐆′ N to 49°󈏿′ N
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89°󈐅′ W to 97°󈏶′ W
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250
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400
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400
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645
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Eagle Mountain 1
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2,301
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701
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1,198
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365
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Lake Superior
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602
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183
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US-MN
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( located in the
Midwestern Region of the
United States . The twelfth-largest state by area in the U.S., it is the 21
st most populous, with just over five million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the
Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the 32
nd state on
May 11 ,
1858 . The state is known as the "Land of 10,000 Lakes," and those
Lakes and the other waters for which the state is named, together with state and national forests and parks, offer residents and tourists a vigorous outdoor lifestyle.
Nearly 60% of Minnesota's
Residents live in the
Minneapolis-Saint Paul Metropolitan Area known as the ''Twin Cities'', the center of
Transportation ,
Business , and
Industry , and home to an internationally known
Arts community. The remainder of the state, often referred to as "
Greater Minnesota " or "Outstate Minnesota," consists of western
Prairie s now given over to intensive
Agriculture ; eastern
Deciduous Forests , also heavily
Farmed and settled; and the less-populated northern
Boreal Forest . While the state's residents are primarily
White and of
Northern European ancestry, substantial influxes of
African ,
Asian , and
Latin America n immigrants have joined the descendants of
European immigrants and of the original
Native American inhabitants.
The extremes of the climate contrast with the moderation of Minnesota’s people. The state is known for its
Moderate -to-
Progressive Politics and social policies, its civic involvement, and high
Voter Turnout . It ranks among the healthiest states by a number of measures, and has one of the most highly educated and
Literate populations.
The name ''Minnesota'' comes from the word for the
Minnesota River in the
Dakota Language , ''Mnisota''. The Dakota word ''Mni'' (sometimes spelled ''mini'', or ''minne'') can be translated as "water." ''Mnisota'' is then translated as ''sky-tinted water'' or ''somewhat clouded water''.
34 Native Americans demonstrated the name to early settlers by dropping milk into water and calling it ''mnisota''. The names of many locations in the state contain the Dakota word for water, such as
Minnehaha Falls ("waterfall," not "laughing waters" as is commonly thought),
Minneiska ("white water"),
Minnetonka ("big water"),
Minnetrista ("crooked water"), and
Minneapolis , which is a combination of ''mni'' and ''polis'', the Greek word for "city."
5
Minnesota is the northernmost state outside of Alaska; its isolated
Northwest Angle in
Lake Of The Woods is the only part of the 48
Contiguous States lying north of the
49th Parallel . Minnesota is in the U.S. region known as the
Upper Midwest . The state shares a
Lake Superior water border with
Michigan and
Wisconsin on the northeast; the remainder of the eastern border is with
Wisconsin .
Iowa is to the south,
North Dakota and
South Dakota are west, and the
Canadian Province s of
Ontario and
Manitoba are north. With 87,014 square miles (225,365 km&
2), or approximately 2.25% of the United States,
6 Minnesota is the 12
th largest state.
7
See Also: Geology of Minnesota
See Also: List of lakes in Minnesota
List of Minnesota rivers
Thompson Formation in
Jay Cooke State Park .
8]]
Minnesota contains some of the oldest rocks found on earth,
Gneiss es some 3.6 billion years old, or 80% as old as the planet.
9 About 2.7 billion years ago,
Basalt ic
Lava poured out of cracks in the floor of the primordial
Ocean ; the remains of this
Volcanic rock formed the
Canadian Shield in northeast Minnesota.
10 The roots of these volcanic mountains and the action of
Precambrian seas formed the
Iron Range of northern Minnesota. Following a period of
Volcanism 1.1 billion years ago, Minnesota's geological activity has been more subdued, with no volcanism or mountain formation, but with repeated incursions of the sea which left behind multiple strata of sedimentary rock.
In more recent times, massive ice sheets at least one
Kilometer thick ravaged the landscape of the state and sculpted its current terrain. The
Wisconsin Glaciation left 12,000 years ago. These glaciers covered all of Minnesota except the far southeast, an area characterized by steep hills and streams that cut into the
Bedrock . This area is known as the
Driftless Zone for its absence of glacial drift.
11 Much of the remainder of the state outside of the northeast has 50 feet (15 m) or more of
Glacial Till left behind as the last glaciers retreated. 13,000 years ago gigantic
Lake Agassiz formed in the northwest; the lake's outflow, the
Glacial River Warren , carved the valley of the
Minnesota River , and its bottom created the fertile lands of the
Red River valley. Minnesota is geologically quiet today; it experiences
Earthquake s infrequently, and most of them are minor.
12
on
Lake Superior formed from a
Precambrian Rhyolitic Lava flow.]]
The state's high point is
Eagle Mountain at 2,301 feet (701 m), which is only 13 miles (20.9 km) away from the low of 602 feet (183 m) at the shore of
Lake Superior .
13 Notwithstanding dramatic local differences in elevation, much of the state is a gently rolling
Peneplain .
Two
Continental Divide s meet in the northeastern part of Minnesota in rural
Hibbing , forming a triple
Watershed .
Precipitation can follow the
Mississippi River south to the
Gulf Of Mexico , the
St. Lawrence Seaway east to the
Atlantic Ocean , or the
Hudson Bay Watershed to the
Arctic Ocean .
14
The state's nickname, ''The Land of 10,000 Lakes,'' is no exaggeration; there are 11,842 lakes over 10
Acre s in size.
15 The Minnesota portion of
Lake Superior is the largest at 962,700 acres (3,896 km&
2) and deepest (at 1,290 ft, 393 m) body of water in the state. Minnesota has 6,564 natural rivers and streams that cumulatively flow for 69,000 miles (111,000 km). The
Mississippi River begins its journey from its
Headwaters at
Lake Itasca and crosses the
Iowa border downstream. It is joined by the
Minnesota River at
Fort Snelling , by the
St. Croix River near
Hastings , by the
Chippewa River at
Wabasha , and by many smaller streams. The
Red River , in the bed of glacial Lake Agassiz, drains the northwest part of the state northward toward Canada's
Hudson Bay . Approximately 10.6 million acres (42,900 km&
2) of wetlands are contained within Minnesota's borders, the most of any state except Alaska.
16
See Also: Ecology of Minnesota
seen in in the southwestern and western parts of the state, the
Big Woods Deciduous Forest of the southeast, and the northern
Boreal Forest .
17 The northern coniferous forests are a vast wilderness of
Pine and
Spruce trees mixed with patchy stands of
Birch and
Poplar . Much of Minnesota's northern forest has been logged, leaving only a few patches of
Old Growth Forest today in areas such as in the
Chippewa National Forest and the
Superior National Forest where the
Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness has some 400,000 acres (1,600 km&
2) of unlogged land.
18 Although logging continues, regrowth keeps about one third of the state forested.
19
While loss of habitat has affected native animals such as the
Pine Marten ,
Elk , and
Bison ,Bison disappeared in the mid 1800s; the last bison was reported in southwest Minnesota in 1879.
20 As referenced in
21 Whitetail Deer and
Bobcat thrive. The state has the nation's largest population of
Timber Wolves outside Alaska,
22
and supports healthy populations of
Black Bear and
Moose . Located on the
Mississippi Flyway , Minnesota hosts migratory waterfowl such as
Geese and
Ducks , and game birds such as
Grouse ,
Pheasants , and
Turkeys . It is home to
Birds Of Prey including the
Bald Eagle ,
Red-tailed Hawk , and
Snowy Owl . The lakes teem with the sport fish such as
Walleye ,
Bass ,
Muskellunge , and
Northern Pike , and streams in the southeast are populated by
Brook ,
Brown , and
Rainbow Trout .
See Also: Climate of Minnesota
campus]] Minnesota endures
Temperature Extremes characteristic of its
Continental Climate ; with cold winters and hot summers, the record high and low span 174 degrees
Fahrenheit (96.6 °C).
23 Meteorological events include
Rain ,
Snow ,
Hail ,
Blizzards ,
Polar Front s,
Tornadoes ,
Thunderstorms , and high-velocity
Straight-line Winds . The growing season varies from 90 days per year in the
Iron Range to 160 days in southeast Minnesota near the Mississippi River, and mean average temperatures range from 36 °F (2 °C) to 49 °F (9 °C).
24 Average summer
Dewpoint s range from about 58 °F (14.4 °C) in the south to about 48 °F (8.9 °C) in the north.
25 Depending on location, average annual precipitation ranges from 19 in (48.3 cm) to 35 in (88.9 cm), and droughts occur every 10 to 50 years.
]]
Minnesota is home to a variety of wilderness, park, and other open spaces. Minnesota's first state park,
Itasca State Park , was established in 1891, and is the
Source of the Mississippi River.
26 Today Minnesota has
72 State Parks and recreation areas,
58 State Forests covering about four million acres (16,000 km&
2), and numerous state wildlife preserves, all managed by the
Minnesota Department Of Natural Resources . There are 5.5 million acres (22,000 km&
2) in the
Chippewa and
Superior National Forest s. The Superior National Forest in the northeast contains the
Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness , which encompasses over a million acres (4,000 km&
2) and a thousand lakes. To its west is
Voyageurs National Park , the state's only national park.
See Also: History of Minnesota
1849–1858]]
Before European settlement, Minnesota was populated by the
Anishinaabe , the
Dakota , and other
Native Americans . The first
Europe ans were
French Fur Trade rs who arrived in the 1600s. Late that century, the
Ojibwe Indians migrated westward to Minnesota, causing tensions with the Sioux.
27 Explorers such as
Daniel Greysolon, Sieur Du Lhut , Father
Louis Hennepin ,
Jonathan Carver ,
Henry Schoolcraft , and
Joseph Nicollet , among others, mapped out the state.
The portion of the state east of the
Mississippi River became a part of the United States at the end of the
American Revolutionary War , when the
Second Treaty Of Paris was signed. Land west of the Mississippi River was acquired with the
Louisiana Purchase , although a portion of the
Red River Valley was disputed until the
Treaty Of 1818 . In 1805,
Zebulon Pike bargained with Native Americans to acquire land at the
Confluence of the
Minnesota and
Mississippi rivers. The construction of
Fort Snelling followed between 1819 and 1825.
28 Its soldiers built a
Grist Mill and a
Sawmill at
Saint Anthony Falls , the first of the water-powered industries around which the city of
Minneapolis later grew. Meanwhile, squatters, government officials, and tourists had settled in the vicinity of the fort. In 1839, the Army forced them to move downriver, and they settled in the area that became
St. Paul .
29 Minnesota Territory was formed on
March 3 ,
1849 . Thousands of people had come to build
Farm s and cut
Timber , and Minnesota became the
32nd U.S. State on
May 11 ,
1858 .
Treaties between whites and the Sioux and Ojibwe gradually forced the natives off their lands and onto smaller reservations. As conditions deteriorated for the Sioux, tensions rose, leading to the
Dakota War Of 1862 . The result of the six-week war was the execution of 38 Indians—the largest mass execution in United States history—and the exile of most of the rest of the Sioux to the
Crow Creek Reservation in
Nebraska .
30
played a pivotal role in Minnesota's history and in the development of the cities of
Minneapolis and
Saint Paul .]]
Logging and farming were mainstays of Minnesota's early economy. The sawmills at Saint Anthony Falls, and logging centers like
Marine On St. Croix ,
Stillwater , and
Winona , processed high volumes of lumber. These cities were situated on rivers that were ideal for transportation. Later, Saint Anthony Falls was tapped to provide power for
Flour Mills . Innovations by Minneapolis millers led to the production of Minnesota "patent" flour, which commanded almost double the price of "bakers" or "clear" flour, which it replaced.
31 By 1900, Minnesota mills, led by
Pillsbury and the Washburn-Crosby Company (a forerunner of
General Mills ), were grinding 14.1% of the nation's grain.
32
The state's
Iron -mining industry was established with the discovery of iron in the
Vermilion Range and the
Mesabi Range in the 1880s, and in the
Cuyuna Range in the early 1900s. The ore was shipped by rail to
Two Harbors and
Duluth , then loaded onto ships and transported eastward over the
Great Lakes .
Industrial development and the rise of manufacturing caused the population to shift gradually from rural areas to cities during the early 1900s. Nevertheless, farming remained prevalent. Minnesota's economy was hard-hit by the
Great Depression , resulting in lower prices for farmers, layoffs among iron miners, and labor unrest. Compounding the adversity, western Minnesota and the Dakotas were hit by
Drought from 1931 to 1935.
New Deal programs provided some economic turnaround. The
Civilian Conservation Corps and other programs around the state established some jobs for Indians on their reservations, and the
Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 provided the tribes with a mechanism of self-government. This provided natives a greater voice within the state, and promoted more respect for tribal customs because religious ceremonies and native languages were no longer suppressed.
After
World War II , industrial development quickened. New technology increased farm productivity through automation of
Feedlot s for hogs and cattle, machine milking at dairy farms, and raising chickens in large buildings. Planting became more specialized with
Hybrid ization of corn and wheat, and the use of farm machinery such as
Tractor s and
Combines became the norm.
University Of Minnesota professor
Norman Borlaug contributed to these developments as part of the
Green Revolution .
Suburb an development accelerated due to increased postwar housing demand and convenient transportation. Increased mobility, in turn, enabled more specialized jobs.
Minnesota became a center of technology after the war.
Engineering Research Associates was formed in 1946 to develop computers for the
United States Navy . It later merged with
Remington Rand , and then became
Sperry Rand .
William Norris left Sperry in 1957 to form
Control Data Corporation (CDC).
33 Cray Research was formed when
Seymour Cray left CDC to form his own company. Medical device maker
Medtronic also started business in the Twin Cities in 1949.
See Also: List of cities in Minnesota
List of townships in Minnesota
in
Owatonna by
Louis Sullivan ]]
Saint Paul , located in east-central Minnesota along the banks of the Mississippi River, has been Minnesota's
Capital City since 1849, first as capital of the
Territory Of Minnesota , and then as state capital since 1858.
Saint Paul is adjacent to Minnesota's most populous city,
Minneapolis ; they and their suburbs are known collectively as the
Twin Cities Metropolitan Area , the 16
th largest metropolitan area in the United States and home to about 60% of the state's population (as of April 2005).
3435 The remainder of the state is known as "
Greater Minnesota " or "Outstate Minnesota".
Minnesota has 17 cities with populations above fifty thousand (based on 2005 estimates). In descending order they are
Minneapolis ,
Saint Paul ,
Rochester ,
Duluth ,
Bloomington ,
Plymouth ,
Brooklyn Park ,
Eagan ,
Coon Rapids ,
St. Cloud ,
Burnsville ,
Eden Prairie ,
Maple Grove ,
Woodbury ,
Blaine ,
Lakeville , and
Minnetonka . Of these listed, only Rochester, Duluth, and St. Cloud are outside the Twin Cities metropolitan area.
Minnesota's population continues to grow, primarily in the urban centers. The populations of metropolitan
Sherburne and
Scott Counties doubled between 1980 and 2000, while 40 of the state's 87 counties lost residents over the same decades.
36
See Also: Demographics of Minnesota
.]]
From fewer than 6,100 people in 1850, Minnesota's population grew to over 1.75 million by 1900. Each of the next six decades saw a 15% rise in population, reaching 3.41 million in 1960. Growth then slowed, rising 11% to 3.8 million in 1970, and an average of 9% over the next three decades to 4.91 million in the 2000 census. As of
July 1 ,
2006 , the state's population was estimated at 5,167,101 by the U.S. Census Bureau.
37 The rate of population change, and age and gender distributions, approximate the national average. Minnesota's growing minority groups, however, still form a significantly smaller proportion of the population than in the nation as a whole.
38 The
Center Of Population of Minnesota is located in
Hennepin County , in the city of
Rogers .
39
Over 75% of Minnesota's residents are of
Western European descent, with the largest reported ancestries being
German (39%),
Norwegian (17.2%),
Irish (11.9%), and
Swedish (9.6%).
40 As of 2005, 6.3% of residents were foreign-born, compared to 12.4% for the nation.
41 The state has had the reputation of being relatively homogeneous, but that is changing. The Hispanic population of Minnesota is increasing rapidly,
42 and recent
Immigrant s have come from all over the world, including
Hmongs ,
43 Somalis ,
Vietnamese ,
India ns and emigrants from the former
Soviet Bloc .
style
Cathedral Of St. Paul in the city of St. Paul.]]
The state's racial composition in 2005 was:
44
A 2001 survey indicated that 25% of Minnesota's population was
Roman Catholic , and 24% was
Lutheran . Other religious groups represented were
Baptists (5%),
Methodists (4%),
Presbyterian s (2%), the
Assembly Of God (2%), and the
Church Of God (2%). Christians with unstated or other denominational affiliations, including other
Protestants , totaled 13%, bringing the total Christian population to 77%. Non-Christian religions, such as
Judaism ,
Islam ,
Buddhism , and
Hinduism , together represented 3% of the population. Fourteen percent of respondents answered "no religion" on the survey, and 6% refused to answer.
45
See Also: Economy of Minnesota
in
Otter Tail County ]]
