Detroit Lakes
Detroit Lakes is a city in the State of Minnesota and the county seat of Becker County. The population was 9,869 at the 2020 census. Its unofficial population during summer months is much higher, estimated by citizens to peak at 13,000 midsum ...
. Part of the White Earth Indian Reservation extends into the county. The county was created in 1858 and organized in 1871.
History
Becker County became a county on March 18, 1858. It was named for George Loomis Becker, one of three men elected to Congress when Minnesota became a state. Since Minnesota could only send two, Becker elected to stay behind, and he was promised to have a county named after him.
Colonel George Johnston founded the city of
Detroit Lakes
Detroit Lakes is a city in the State of Minnesota and the county seat of Becker County. The population was 9,869 at the 2020 census. Its unofficial population during summer months is much higher, estimated by citizens to peak at 13,000 midsum ...
in 1871. It grew quickly with the construction of the Northern Pacific Railroad. Johnston led settlers from New England to settle in this region. An 1877 election decided that Detroit Lakes, then known as Detroit, would become the county seat. Detroit won the election by a 90% majority. Frazee, Lake Park, and Audubon were also in the running.
In 1884, Detroit Lakes had many businesses, including two hotels, a bank, a newspaper, and an opera house. The first courthouse was built that year. In 1885, the first county fire department was constructed. In 1903, the Soo Line Railroad built a line through the county.
Detroit Lakes hosts a park dedicated to the Grand Army of the Republic. The city rededicated the park on April 15, 2015, marking the 150th anniversary of the end of the Civil War and the death of President Lincoln. Colonel Tom Mortenson and his wife, Pam, sponsored the rededication, representing the Women's Relief Corps, which spearheaded community support for the effort that included new signage for the park and a time capsule to be opened on the 200th anniversary.
Geography
The county terrain consists of low rolling hills, tree-covered and dotted with lakes and ponds.''Becker County MN'' Google Maps (accessed March 4, 2019) /ref> The terrain slopes to the west and north. Its highest point is a hill 2.1 miles (3.4 km) northeast of Wolf Lake, the site of the USFS Wolf Lake lookout tower, at 1,861' (567m) ASL. The next highest point is near its northwest corner, at 1,631' (497m) ASL. The county has an area of , of which is land and (9.0%) is water.
Becker County has diverse topography. It is home to several hundred lakes, many acres of fertile farm land, and forested areas. Much of the land consists of hills and deciduous trees.
Major highways
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U.S. Highway 10
U.S. Route 10 or U.S. Highway 10 (US 10) is an east–west United States highway located in the Midwest and Great Lakes regions of the United States. Unlike most U.S. routes with "0" as the last digit of its route number, US 10 ...
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U.S. Highway 59
U.S. Route 59 (US 59) is a north–south United States highway (though it was signed east–west in parts of Texas). A latecomer to the U.S. numbered route system, US 59 is now a border-to-border route, part of the NAFTA superhighway, NAFTA ...
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Minnesota State Highway 34
Minnesota State Highway 34 (MN 34) is a highway in west-central and north-central Minnesota, which runs from its Intersection (road), intersection with Minnesota State Highway 9, State Highway 9 (near Interstate 94 in Minnesota, Interstate 94 ...
Otter Tail County
Otter Tail County is a county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, its population was 60,081. Its county seat is Fergus Falls. Otter Tail County comprises the Fergus Falls micropolitan statistical area. With 1,048 lakes in it ...
- south
*
Clay County Clay County is the name of 18 counties in the United States. Most are named for Henry Clay, U.S. Senator and statesman:
* Clay County, Alabama
* Clay County, Arkansas (named for John Clayton, and originally named Clayton County)
* Clay County, Flor ...
* Atlanta State Wildlife Management Area
* Becker State Wildlife Management Area
* Callaway State Wildlife Management Area
* Frank State Wildlife Management Area
* Greenwater Lake Scientific and Natural Area
*
Hamden Slough National Wildlife Refuge
Hamden Slough National Wildlife Refuge is a National Wildlife Refuge of the United States in Minnesota. Eastern hardwood forests stretching from the Atlantic seaboard give way to the western prairie at the area, in Audubon Township, near Audubo ...
* Hasca State Park (part)
* Lunde State Wildlife Management Area
* Melbye State Wildlife Management Area
* Ogema Springs State Wildlife Management Area
* Pednor State Wildlife Management Area
* Riparia State Wildlife Management Area
* Smoky Hills State Forest
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Tamarac National Wildlife Refuge
Tamarac National Wildlife Refuge is a National Wildlife Refuge of the United States. It lies in the glacial lake country of northwestern Minnesota in Becker County, northeast of Detroit Lakes. It was established in 1938 as a refuge breeding gr ...
**
Tamarac Wilderness
The Tamarac Wilderness is a wilderness area in the U.S. state of Minnesota. Established by the United States Congress in 1976, Tamarac Wilderness is composed primarily of small lakes, wooded potholes, bogs and marshes.2000 census, there were 30,000 people, 11,844 households, and 8,184 families in the county. The population density was 22.8/sqmi (8.81/km2). There were 16,612 housing units at an average density of 13 per square mile (5/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 89.35% White, 0.19% Black or African American, 7.52% Native American, 0.36%
Asian
Asian may refer to:
* Items from or related to the continent of Asia:
** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia
** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia
** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
Latino
Latino or Latinos most often refers to:
* Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America
* Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States
* The people or cultures of Latin America;
** Latin A ...
of any race. 32.2% were of
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
Swedish
Swedish or ' may refer to:
Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically:
* Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland
** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...
ancestry.
There were 11,844 households, of which 31.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.1% were
married couples
Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...
living together, 7.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.9% were non-families. 26.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.6% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.02.
The county population contained 26.6% under age 18, 7.1% from 18 to 24, 24.9% from 25 to 44, 24.9% from 45 to 64, and 16.4% 65 or older. The median age was 39. For every 100 females there were 99.4 males. For every 100 females 18 and over, there were 97.8 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $34,797, and the median income for a family was $41,807. Males had a median income of $29,641 versus $20,693 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,085. About 8.5% of families and 12.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.4% of those under 18 and 11.8% of those 65 and over.
Detroit Lakes
Detroit Lakes is a city in the State of Minnesota and the county seat of Becker County. The population was 9,869 at the 2020 census. Its unofficial population during summer months is much higher, estimated by citizens to peak at 13,000 midsum ...
Runeberg Township
Runeberg Township is a township in Becker County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 387 as of the 2000 census.
History
Runeberg was organized in 1887. It was named for J. L. Runeberg, a Swedo-Finnish national poet of Finland.
Geograp ...
Osage The Osage Nation, a Native American tribe in the United States, is the source of most other terms containing the word "osage".
Osage can also refer to:
* Osage language, a Dhaegin language traditionally spoken by the Osage Nation
* Osage (Unicode b ...
Richwood Richwood may refer to:
Places
;United States
* Richwood, Georgia
* Richwood, Kentucky
* Richwood, Louisiana
* Richwood Township, Minnesota
* Richwood, New Jersey
* Richwood, Ohio
* Richwood, Texas
* Richwood, West Virginia
* Richwood, Wisconsin
...
Cormorant Lake (Minnesota)
Big Cormorant Lake is located in northwestern Minnesota's Becker County, about an hour's drive due east of the Fargo, North Dakota and Moorhead, Minnesota metropolitan area. Public access boat ramps are located on the northeast and west sides o ...
* Middle Cormorant Lake
* Upper Cormorant Lake
* Little Cormorant lake
* Nelson lake
* Erickson Lake
* Lake Melissa
* Detroit Lake
* Lake Sallie
* Lake Maud
Government and politics
Becker County voters have voted Republican in recent decades. As of 2020, the county has selected the Democratic nominee for president in only one election since 1980.
In popular culture
Becker County is the setting of the 2006 independent film ''
Sweet Land
''Sweet Land'' is a 2005 American independent period drama film written and directed by Ali Selim. It is an adaptation of the 1989 short story "A Gravestone Made of Wheat" by Will Weaver. The film stars Elizabeth Reaser, Tim Guinee, Lois Smi ...
CBOYSTV
CboysTv is an American motorsports and comedy YouTube group headquartered on Cormorant Lake (Minnesota) United States. The "C" in CBoys stands for "Cormorant" and the groups motto is "''Life Wide Open''" In 2021 the Group passed 1 million subsc ...
films, is headquartered in Becker County. CBoysTV is an American comedy and motorsports channel run by five men. The channel has amassed over a million subscribers.
Images
File:Becker County MN County Public Works Center at Detroit Lakes.jpg, The County Public Works Center for Becker County in Detroit Lakes
File:Becker County Highway Department Building.jpg, Highway Department building for Becker County
See also
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National Register of Historic Places listings in Becker County, Minnesota
This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Becker County, Minnesota. It is intended to be a complete list of the properties and districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Becker County, Minnesota, Unite ...