Finland is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

and

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counterparts of incorporated places, such ...

(CDP) in Crystal Bay and Beaver Bay townships, Lake County,

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 to ...

, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 195.

Geography

The community of Finland is located inland from

Lake Superior Lake Superior in central North America is the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface areaThe Caspian Sea is the largest lake, but is saline, not freshwater. and the third-largest by volume, holding 10% of the world's surface fresh wa ...

's North Shore and northeast of the city of Two Harbors. State Highway 1, County Road 6, and County Road 7 are three of the main routes in the community. State Highway 1 continues northwest from Finland to Ely. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the Finland CDP has a total area of , of which , or 0.41%, are water. The

Baptism River The Baptism River is an U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed May 7, 2012 river of the U.S. state of Minnesota. The river source is the confluence of the East Branch Baptism Ri ...

flows through the community.

George H. Crosby Manitou State Park George H. Crosby Manitou State Park is a state park of Minnesota, USA, located between Tettegouche State Park and Temperance River State Park on the North Shore (Lake Superior), North Shore of Lake Superior, near the communities of Little Marais, ...

is located northeast of Finland. The community is located within the

Finland State Forest The Finland State Forest is a state forest located near the unincorporated community of Finland in Lake and Cook counties, Minnesota. Of the over , the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources manages a third of the land. The federal United Sta ...

in Lake County.

Demographics

History

A post office called Finland has been in operation since 1915, and a cooperative general store was established in 1913, which is Minnesota's longest continuously operated store. A large share of the early settlers being

Finns Finns or Finnish people ( fi, suomalaiset, ) are a Baltic Finnic ethnic group native to Finland. Finns are traditionally divided into smaller regional groups that span several countries adjacent to Finland, both those who are native to these ...

, natives of

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

, caused the name to be selected. The visitor center is the former home of forest ranger and long time Finland resident O. M. Eckbeck, who built it in 1927. The

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...

church was struck by lightning on July 6, 2013, and burned down.

Recreation

Finland and the surrounding area host a wide array of outdoor activities. The Superior Hiking Trail (SHT), Wolf Ridge ELC, Sawmill Creek Dome, and Section 13 are located nearby. These destinations attract many hikers, rock climbers, and other outdoor enthusiasts. Information on rock climbing at Sawmill Creek Dome and Section 13 can be found in Minnesota climbing guidebooks.

References

{{authority control Census-designated places in Minnesota Finnish-American culture in Minnesota Census-designated places in Lake County, Minnesota