Carver County is a

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over t ...

. The county is mostly farmland and wilderness with many unincorporated townships. As of the 2020 census, the population was 106,922. Its

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US ...

is Chaska. Carver County is named for explorer

Jonathan Carver Jonathan Carver (April 13, 1710 – January 31, 1780) was a captain in a Massachusetts colonial unit, explorer, and writer. After his exploration of the northern Mississippi valley and western Great Lakes region, he published an account of his exp ...

, who in 1766–67, traveled from

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

to the

Minnesota River The Minnesota River ( dak, Mnísota Wakpá) is a tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately 332 miles (534 km) long, in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It drains a watershed of in Minnesota and about in South Dakota and Iowa. It ris ...

and wintered among the Sioux near the site of New Ulm. Carver County is part of the

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origin ...

St. Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...

- Bloomington, MN- WI

Metropolitan Statistical Area In the United States, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are neither legally incorporated as a city or tow ...

Statistics

In 2017, Carver County was ranked by the

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) is an American philanthropic organization. It is the largest one focused solely on health. Based in Princeton, New Jersey, the foundation focuses on access to health care, public health, health equi ...

as the healthiest county in the State of Minnesota for the fifth year in a row. The foundation explained health outcomes represent “how healthy counties are within the state,” whereas health factors represent “an estimate of the future health of counties as compared with other counties within a state,” based on health behaviors, clinical care, and other environmental factors. Carver County continued to rank as the number one healthiest county throughout the state for 2018, 2019, and 2020. In 2018, Carver County was ranked as the #1 "Happiest Place in America" according to a study conducted by the data firm Smart Asset. Carver County was one of three United States counties to receive a top 5 ranking for the third straight year. The other two counties were

Loudoun Loudoun ( gd, Lughdan) is a parish in East Ayrshire, Scotland and lies between five and ten miles east of Kilmarnock. The parish roughly encompasses the northern half of the Upper-Irvine Valley and borders Galston Parish (which encompasses the ...

and Fairfax counties in

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth are ...

. The study compared counties across the country using the following eight factors:

unemployment rate Unemployment, according to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), is people above a specified age (usually 15) not being in paid employment or self-employment but currently available for work during the refere ...

, poverty rate, affordability ratio, marriage rate, divorce rate, bankruptcy rate,

life expectancy Life expectancy is a statistical measure of the average time an organism is expected to live, based on the year of its birth, current age, and other demographic factors like sex. The most commonly used measure is life expectancy at birth ...

, and physical activity rate. In particular, Carver County scored well thanks to strong economic conditions with an unemployment rate of only 3.1% and a poverty rate of only 4.1%. Additionally, according to the data, 62% of residents were married and only 8% divorced. In each of those metrics, Carver ranked in the top 40 in the country.

Geography

The

flows east-northeasterly along the county's southern border. The South Fork of the Crow River flows northeasterly through the upper western and central portions of the county. Carver Creek flows southeasterly from the county's central area, discharging into the Minnesota at the county's southern border. The terrain consists of low rolling hills, dotted with lakes in the eastern portion. The area is devoted to agriculture.''Carver County MN'' Google Maps (accessed 6 March 2019)
/ref> The terrain slopes to the east and south, with its northwest corner at 1,024' (312m) ASL. A small hill 1.6 miles (2.6 km) northeast of Miller Lake rises to 1,080' (329m) ASL, for the county's highest point. The county has a total area of , of which is land and (5.8%) is water. It is Minnesota's second-smallest county by land area and third-smallest by total area. Carver is one of seven southern Minnesota counties with no forest soils; only prairie ecosystems of savannas and prairies can be found in Carver County. It is also one of 17 Minnesota counties where savanna soils dominate.

Lakes

Carver County is home to seven lakes of 235 acres or larger. The largest is Lake Waconia, Minnesota's 73rd largest lake and the Twin Cities' second largest lake, with an area of 2,996 acres. 2009-0713-Waconia-LakeWaconia

Major highways

U.S. Highway 212 U.S. Route 212 (US 212) is a spur of US 12. It runs for from Yellowstone National Park to Minnesota Highway 62 at Edina, Minnesota. It does not intersect US 12 now, but it once had an eastern terminus at US 12 in St. Paul, Minnesota ...

Minnesota State Highway 5 Minnesota State Highway 5 (MN 5) is a highway in Minnesota, which runs from its intersection with MN 19 and MN 22 in Gaylord and continues east and northeast to its eastern terminus at its intersection with MN 120 in Maplewood ...

Minnesota State Highway 7 Minnesota State Highway 7, or Trunk Highway 7, (MN 7, TH 7) is a state highway in Minnesota, which runs from its intersection with MN 28 near Beardsley and continues east to its terminus with MN 100 and County Road&nb ...

Minnesota State Highway 25 Minnesota State Highway 25 (MN 25) is a highway in Minnesota, which runs from its interchange with U.S. Highway 169 in Belle Plaine and continues north to its intersection with State Highway 210 in Brainerd. Route description State High ...

Minnesota State Highway 41 Minnesota State Highway 41 (MN 41) is a highway in Minnesota, which runs from its intersection with U.S. Highway 169 in Jackson Township near Shakopee and continues north to its northern terminus at its intersection with State Highway 7 in ...

* Minnesota State Highway 284 * Carver County Road 10 * Carver County Road 11 * Carver County Road 33 * Other county roads Arboretum Neighborhood North Wiki Version

Arboretum Neighborhood North Wiki Version

Adjacent counties

* Wright County – north *

Hennepin County Hennepin County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. Its county seat is Minneapolis, the state's most populous city. The county is named in honor of the 17th-century explorer Father Louis Hennepin. The county extends from Minneapo ...

– northeast * Scott County – southeast * Sibley County – southwest * McLeod County – west

Protected areas

* Assumption State Wildlife Management Area * Carver Park Preserve * Gravel Pit State Wildlife Management Area * Lake Minnewashta Regional Park * Minnesota Landscape Arboretum *

Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge The Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge is a National Wildlife Refuge in eastern and central Minnesota. Located just south of the city of Minneapolis, it is one of fourteen Regional Priority Urban Wildlife Refuges in the nation. Many par ...

(part) * Minnesota Valley State Recreation Area (part) * Waconia State Wildlife Management Area

Climate and weather

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Chaska have ranged from a low of in January to a high of in July, although a record low of was recorded in January 1970 and a record high of was recorded in July 1988. Average monthly precipitation ranged from in February to in August.

Demographics

2020 census

''Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.''

2010

The ethnic makeup of the county, according to the 2010 census, was the following: * 93.7%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White ...

* 1.5%

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ha ...

* 0.3% American Indian * 2.9% Asian * 0.0%

Native Hawaiian Native Hawaiians (also known as Indigenous Hawaiians, Kānaka Maoli, Aboriginal Hawaiians, First Hawaiians, or simply Hawaiians) ( haw, kānaka, , , and ), are the indigenous ethnic group of Polynesian people of the Hawaiian Islands. Hawa ...

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/ racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...

* 1.6%

Two or more races 2 (two) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 1 and preceding 3. It is the smallest and only even prime number. Because it forms the basis of a duality, it has religious and spiritual significance in many cultur ...

* 0.3%

Other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

* 4.1% Hispanic or Latino (of any race) There were 33,486 households, out of which 42.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.9% were married couples living together, 7.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.9% were non-families. 21.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.74 and the average family size was 3.22. The median income for a household in the county was $83,773, and the median income for a family was $96,913. Males had a median income of $66,150 versus $46,696 for females. The per capita income for the county was $37,457. About 3.3% of families and 4.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.5% of those under age 18 and 7.8% of those age 65 or over.

2000

As of the

2000 United States Census The United States census of 2000, conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2 percent over the 248,709,873 people enumerated during the 1990 c ...

, there were 70,205 people, 24,356 households, and 18,778 families in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopu ...

was 198/sqmi (76.6/km²). There were 24,883 housing units at an average density of 70.3/sqmi (27.1/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 95.95%

, 0.59%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.18% Native American, 1.56% Asian, 0.01%

, 0.87% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 0.82% from two or more races. 2.55% of the population were

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties for ...

or Latino of any race. 44.3% 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 **Ge ...

, 12.1%

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...

, 7.1%

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

and 6.2%

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 24,356 households, out of which 45.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 66.40% 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 ...

living together, 7.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.90% were non-families. 18.10% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.84 and the average family size was 3.26. The county population contained 31.50% under the age of 18, 6.90% from 18 to 24, 34.70% from 25 to 44, 19.50% from 45 to 64, and 7.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 100.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.00 males. The median income for a household in the county was $65,540, and the median income for a family was $73,577 (these figures had risen to $78,035 and $89,100 respectively as of a 2007 estimate). Males had a median income of $47,271 versus $32,107 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the county was $28,486. About 2.30% of families and 3.50% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 3.60% of those under age 18 and 6.90% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

According to the county's

comprehensive annual financial report An Annual Comprehensive Financial Report, formerly called Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR)) is a set of U.S. government financial statements comprising the financial report of a state, municipal or other governmental entity that compl ...

s, the top employers by number of employees in the county are the following. ("NR" indicates the employer was not ranked among the top ten employers that year.)

Government and politics

Government

Like all counties in Minnesota, Carver is governed by an elected and nonpartisan board of commissioners. Each commissioner represents a district of approximately equal population.

County commissioners

The county commission elects a

chair A chair is a type of seat, typically designed for one person and consisting of one or more legs, a flat or slightly angled seat and a back-rest. They may be made of wood, metal, or synthetic materials, and may be padded or upholstered in vari ...

, who presides at meetings. Commissioners as of January 2020:

Politics

As Carver County becomes more suburban and less rural in character, with 90% of its residents now living in its cities, it is becoming more of a battleground territory, especially in the eastern half of the county and in its two largest cities, Chaska and Chanhassen. Traditionally, the county has tended to vote for Republicans. Since

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, the county has never voted for a Democratic candidate for president. The last time Carver County voted for a Democrat was in 1932, Franklin D. Roosevelt's landslide win against incumbent

Herbert Hoover Herbert Clark Hoover (August 10, 1874 – October 20, 1964) was an American politician who served as the 31st president of the United States from 1929 to 1933 and a member of the Republican Party, holding office during the onset of the Gre ...

, and the only other occurrence since 1896 was

Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...

in 1912, when the Republicans were bitterly divided. As a measure of how Republican the county has been over the years, it was one of only four counties in the entire state to support

Barry Goldwater Barry Morris Goldwater (January 2, 1909 – May 29, 1998) was an American politician and United States Air Force officer who was a five-term U.S. Senator from Arizona (1953–1965, 1969–1987) and the Republican Party nominee for president ...

in 1964 over

Lyndon Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He had previously served as the 37th vice ...

. This is one of only five times since 1932 that a Democrat has managed 40 percent of the county's vote. Carver's Republican bent is not limited to presidential elections. The county regularly rejects Democrats in gubernatorial races as well. Since 1944, the only time Carver County voted for a non-Republican candidate in a gubernatorial race was in

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently s ...

Jesse Ventura Jesse Ventura (born James George Janos; July 15, 1951) is an American politician, actor, and retired professional wrestler. After achieving fame in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), he served as the 38th governor of Minnesota from 1999 to 2 ...

’s third-party upset. Carver County is split between two congressional districts. The eastern area, adjacent to

and Scott County and including Chaska and Chanhassen, is in

Minnesota's 3rd congressional district Minnesota's 3rd congressional district encompasses the suburbs of Hennepin, Carver, and Anoka counties to the west, south, and north of Minneapolis. The district, which is mostly suburban in character, includes a few farming communities on ...

(CPVI D+6); the remainder of the county is in

Minnesota's 6th congressional district Minnesota's 6th congressional district includes most or all of Benton, Carver, Sherburne, Stearns, Wright, Anoka, and Washington counties. Many of the Twin Cities' northern and northwestern suburbs are included within the boundaries of ...

(CPVI R+12).

Communities

Cities

* Carver *

Chanhassen Chanhassen is a city about southwest of Minneapolis in Carver County and partially in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States. The southwest edge of the Minneapolis–Saint Paul suburbs, there is a mix of residential neighborhoods and rural ...

(Partly in

) * Chaska *

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; nds, label=Hamburg German, Low Saxon, Hamborg ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg (german: Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg; nds, label=Low Saxon, Friee un Hansestadt Hamborg),. is the List of cities in Germany by popul ...

* Mayer * New Germany * Norwood Young America *

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

* Waconia * Watertown

Unincorporated communities

Assumption Assumption, in Christianity, refers to the Assumption of Mary, a belief in the taking up of the Virgin Mary into heaven. Assumption may also refer to: Places * Assumption, Alberta, Canada * Assumption, Illinois, United States ** Assumption Town ...

* Augusta * Bongards *

Coney Island Coney Island is a peninsular neighborhood and entertainment area in the southwestern section of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood is bounded by Brighton Beach and Manhattan Beach, Brooklyn, Manhattan Beach to its east, L ...

* Crown College * Dahlgren * East Union *

Gotha Gotha () is the fifth-largest city in Thuringia, Germany, west of Erfurt and east of Eisenach with a population of 44,000. The city is the capital of the Gotha (district), district of Gotha and was also a residence of the Ernestine House of Wet ...

* Hazelton * Hollywood *

Maple ''Acer'' () is a genus of trees and shrubs commonly known as maples. The genus is placed in the family Sapindaceae.Stevens, P. F. (2001 onwards). Angiosperm Phylogeny Website. Version 9, June 2008 nd more or less continuously updated since h ...

Oster Oster ( uk, Осте́р ; russian: Остёр, Ostyor) is a city located where the Oster River flows into the Desna, in Chernihiv Raion, Chernihiv Oblast of Ukraine. Oster hosts the administration of Oster urban hromada, one of the hromadas ...

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17t ...

(ghost town)

Townships

* Benton Township * Camden Township * Dahlgren Township * Hancock Township * Hollywood Township * Laketown Township * San Francisco Township * Waconia Township * Watertown Township * Young America Township

Notable residents

* Abigail and Brittany Hensel *

Prince (musician) Prince Rogers Nelson (June 7, 1958April 21, 2016), more commonly known mononymously as Prince, was an American singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. The recipient of numerous awards and nominations, he is widely regarded as one ...

Wendelin Grimm Wendelin Grimm (October 18, 1818 – December 8, 1890) was an American farmer. Grimm is best known for his innovative, seed saving techniques that resulted in North America's first winter-hardy alfalfa. Biography Personal life Grimm was born ...

* Steve Strachan (sheriff) * Arc Carnes (artist) -

References

External links

Carver County government’s website

Macaroni Kid Carver – family friendly events newsletter
{{Coord, 44.82, -93.80, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-MN_source:UScensus1990 Minnesota counties Minneapolis–Saint Paul 1855 establishments in Minnesota Territory