Kanabec County ( ) is a

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

in the East Central part of

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 sover ...

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 ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 16,032. 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 st ...

Mora Mora may refer to: People * Mora (surname) Places Sweden * Mora, Säter, Sweden * Mora, Sweden, the seat of Mora Municipality * Mora Municipality, Sweden United States * Mora, Louisiana, an unincorporated community * Mora, Minnesota, a city * M ...

History

The Minnesota legislature authorized creation of Kanabec County on March 13, 1858, with territory partitioned from Pine County. No county seat was designated at that time, and the county organization was not effected at that time. The county name came from the Ojibwe term ''ginebig'', meaning "snake," after the

Snake River The Snake River is a major river of the greater Pacific Northwest region in the United States. At long, it is the largest tributary of the Columbia River, in turn, the largest North American river that empties into the Pacific Ocean. The Snake ...

— ''Kanabecosippi'' (''Ginebigo-ziibi'' in the modern spelling) — which flows through the county. The area of Kanabec County was attached to

Chisago County Chisago County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 56,621. Its county seat is Center City. Chisago County is part of the Minneapolis-St. Paul- Bloomington, MN- WI Metropolitan Statistical ...

for administrative and judicial purposes. What county business was handled locally was performed by part-time County Auditor and County Treasurer, in a single room in a stopping place operated by lumber-trader George Staples at Millet Rapids. In 1871 the county was detached from Chisago, and assigned to Pine County. This assignment lasted through 1881. The 1870 United States census listed 53 occupants of the Kanabec County area. However, an influx of settlers into its southern areas occurred in the early 1870s, and by 1876 an official county building was needed. A one-room wood building was erected at Millet Rapids, put into use in 1876. In 1881 the county was detached from Pine, and the government structure was finalized, with the county seat being designated at Brunswick. Only one court term was held at Brunswick; in the 1882 general election, a nearly-unanimous vote designated Mora as the county seat. The old courthouse building was sold to a local farmer, who moved it to his property to use as a home. The wood courthouse erected at Mora was used until 1894, when it burned and was replaced by a more fireproof building.

Geography

The

flows south-southeasterly through the central part of the county, fed by Groundhouse River (flowing northeasterly from the county's SW corner) and Red Creek and Mud Creek. The Snake continues easterly into Pine County. The county terrain consists of partly-wooded rolling hills, etched by drainages. It is largely devoted to agriculture.https://www.google.com/maps/place/Kanabec+County,+MN/@45.745944,-93.5605564,11.75z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x52b3cdf8a56ed3e3:0x10d2ebe8b70f25a0!8m2!3d45.9329034!4d-93.2883531 ''Kanabec County MN'' Google Maps (accessed March 13, 2019)] The terrain slopes to the south and east, with its highest point near the NW corner, at 1,309' (399m) ASL. The county has a total area of , of which is land and (2.3%) is water.

Lakes

* Ann Lake * Bachman Dam * Bass Lake (part) * Beauty Lake * Featherbed Lake * Fish Lake * Knife Lake * Lake Eleven * Lake Five * Lake Full of Fish * Lewis Lake * Long Lake * Pennington Lake * Pomroy Lake * Rice Lake * Thirteen Lake * White Lily Lake

Major highways

Minnesota State Highway 23 Minnesota State Highway 23 (MN 23) is a state highway that stretches from southwestern to northeastern Minnesota. At in length, it is the second longest state route in Minnesota, after MN 1. This route, signed east–west, runs roughl ...

Minnesota State Highway 27 Minnesota State Highway 27 (MN 27) is a state highway in west-central and east-central Minnesota, which runs from its intersection with MN 28 in Browns Valley and continues east to its interchange with Interstate 35 (I-35) in M ...

Minnesota State Highway 47 Minnesota State Highway 47 (MN 47) is a highway in east–central Minnesota, which runs from its intersection with ''Central Avenue'' ( State Highway 65) in Minneapolis and continues north to its northern terminus at its intersection with U.S. ...

Minnesota State Highway 65 Minnesota State Highway 65 (MN 65) is a highway in the east–central and northeast parts of the U.S. state of Minnesota, which starts at its split from I-35W, skipping past the downtown Minneapolis core, only to resume at the intersection with ' ...

* Minnesota State Highway 70 *

Minnesota State Highway 107 Minnesota State Highway 107 (MN 107) is a highway in east-central Minnesota, which runs from its intersection with State Highway 65 in Stanchfield Township near Braham and continues north to its northern terminus at its intersection with State H ...

* '' List of county roads''

Adjacent counties

Aitkin County Aitkin County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 15,697. Its county seat is Aitkin. Part of the Mille Lacs Indian Reservation is in the county. The county was created in 1857 and organized ...

- north * Pine County - east *

- southeast *

Isanti County Isanti County ( ) is a county in the east-central part of the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 41,135. Its county seat is Cambridge. History The county was formed on February 13, 1857. Its name came from the I ...

- south * Mille Lacs County - west

Protected areas

* Ann Lake State Wildlife Management Area * Bean Dam State Wildlife Management Area * Hay-Snake State Wildlife Management Area * Rice Creek State Wildlife Management Area * Rum River State Forest (part) * Tosher Creek State Wildlife Management Area * Whited State Wildlife Management Area

Demographics

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 16,239 people and 6,277 households 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 RosenberPopul ...

was 31.1/sqmi (12.0/km²). There were 7,808 housing units (2014 estimate). The racial makeup of the county was 96.6%

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 on ...

, 0.6%

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 have o ...

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 ...

, 0.8% Native American or Alaska Native, 0.4%

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 ...

, <0.1% Pacific Islander or Native Hawaiian, and 1.6% from other races or two or more races. 1.7% of the population were

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, 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 Vic ...

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. As of the 2000 census, 30.2% 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 ...

, 18.1%

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 ...

, 13.1%

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 ...

, 5.5%

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

and 5.4%

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 ...

ancestry. In the census of 2000, there were 5,759 households, out of which 34.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.80% 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, 8.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.00% were non-families. 23.80% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 3.03. The county population contained 24.0% under the age of 18 and 16.4% who were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 101.2 males. The median income for a household in the county was $47,068. 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 $22,291. About 14.2% 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 t ...

2020 Census

Communities

Cities

Braham Braham may refer to: * Braham (surname) * Braham, Minnesota, a city in the United States *Braham Murray Braham Sydney Murray, OBE (12 February 1943 – 25 July 2018) was an English theatre director. In 1976, he was one of five founding Artistic ...

(mostly in

) * Grasston *

(county seat) *

Ogilvie Ogilvie is a surname of Scottish origin. It may also refer to: People *Ogilvie (name) Places Australia *Ogilvie, Western Australia Canada *Ogilvie, Nova Scotia *Ogilvie Aerodrome, Yukon *Ogilvie Mountains, a mountain range in Yukon Scotland * ...

* Quamba

Unincorporated communities

* Brunswick *

Coin A coin is a small, flat (usually depending on the country or value), round piece of metal or plastic used primarily as a medium of exchange or legal tender. They are standardized in weight, and produced in large quantities at a mint in order t ...

* Grass Lake * Kroschel * Lewis Lake * Warman *

Woodland A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with trees, or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the ''plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade (see ...

Townships

* Ann Lake Township * Arthur Township * Brunswick Township * Comfort Township * Ford Township * Grass Lake Township * Hay Brook Township * Hillman Township * Kanabec Township * Knife Lake Township * Kroschel Township * Peace Township * Pomroy Township * South Fork Township * Whited Township

Politics

Kanabec County voters have moved toward the Republican Party in the past few decades; since 1980 the county has selected the Republican Party candidate in 67% of national elections (as of 2020).

References

External links

Mn/DOT map of Kanabec County
{{Coord, 45.95, -93.30, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-MN_source:UScensus1990 Minnesota counties Minnesota placenames of Native American origin 1882 establishments in Minnesota Populated places established in 1882 Minnesota