Marshall 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 northwestern part of 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 to ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 9,040. 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 ...

Warren A warren is a network of wild rodent or lagomorph, typically rabbit burrows. Domestic warrens are artificial, enclosed establishment of animal husbandry dedicated to the raising of rabbits for meat and fur. The term evolved from the medieval A ...

. Marshall County was the location of a claimed

UFO An unidentified flying object (UFO), more recently renamed by US officials as a UAP (unidentified aerial phenomenon), is any perceived aerial phenomenon that cannot be immediately identified or explained. On investigation, most UFOs are id ...

incident in 1979, the Val Johnson incident.

History

The Minnesota legislature created the county on February 25, 1879, with territory partitioned from the southern half of Kittson County, with

(which was first platted that same year) as the county seat. It was named for

William Rainey Marshall Willian Rainey Marshall (October 17, 1825January 8, 1896) was an American politician. He was the fifth Governor of Minnesota from January 8, 1866 to January 9, 1870 and was a member of the Republican party. He served as an officer in the 7th M ...

, who served as Minnesota governor from 1866 to 1870.

Geography

Marshall County lies on Minnesota's border with

North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the Native Americans in the United States, indigenous Dakota people, Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north a ...

(across the Red River, which flows north along the county's western border). 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 ...

rises in

Polk County Polk County is the name of twelve counties in the United States, all except two named after president of the United States James Knox Polk: * Polk County, Arkansas * Polk County, Florida * Polk County, Georgia * Polk County, Iowa * Polk Count ...

and flows north through the western part of the county to its confluence with the Red. The Tamarac River rises in Marshall County and flows west through the county's northern area to its confluence with the Red. The Middle River also rises in Marshall County and flows west through the southern part of the county, discharging into the Snake just upstream of the Snake/Red confluence. The county terrain consists of low rolling hills, carved with drainages, completely devoted to agriculture where possible.Marshall County MN Google Maps (accessed April 18, 2019)
/ref> The terrain slopes to the west and north, with its highest point near the midpoint of its eastern border, at 1,194' (364m) ASL. The county has an area of , of which is land and (2.1%) is water. Marshall is one of 17 Minnesota savanna region counties where savanna soils predominate. The true highpoint is in the northeast of the county and caltopo displays 1237 ft at 48.5339°N, -96.0167°W

Major highways

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 ...

U.S. Highway 75 U.S. Route 75 is a major north–south U.S. Highway that extends in the central United States. The highway's northern terminus is in Noyes, Minnesota, at the Canadian border, where it once continued as Manitoba Highway 75 on the other sid ...

Minnesota State Highway 1 Minnesota State Highway 1 (MN 1) is a state highway across northern Minnesota, United States, which runs from North Dakota Highway 54 (ND 54) at the North Dakota state line (at the Red River in Oslo) and continues east to its eastern termi ...

Minnesota State Highway 32 Minnesota State Highway 32 (MN 32) is a highway in west-central and northwest Minnesota, which runs from its intersection with State Highway 34 in Tansem Township near Barnesville and continues north to its intersection with State High ...

Minnesota State Highway 89 Minnesota State Highway 89 (MN 89) is a highway in northwest Minnesota, which runs from its intersection with U.S. Highway 2 at Eckles Township, just north of Wilton (near Bemidji) and continues north to its northern terminus at the Canadia ...

Minnesota State Highway 219 * MN-220

Minnesota State Highway 220 Minnesota State Highway 220 (MN 220) is a regional trunk highway in northwest Minnesota, which runs from its intersection with U.S. Highway 75 in Climax and continues north to its northern terminus at its intersection with MN 11 near Drayton, No ...

Minnesota State Highway 317

Airports

* Stephen Municipal Airport (D41) - northeast of

Stephen Stephen or Steven is a common English first name. It is particularly significant to Christians, as it belonged to Saint Stephen ( grc-gre, Στέφανος ), an early disciple and deacon who, according to the Book of Acts, was stoned to death; ...

Adjacent counties

* Kittson County - north *

Roseau County Roseau County () (pronounced row - so) is a county in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Minnesota, along the Canada–US border. As of the 2020 census, the population was 15,331. Its county seat is Roseau. Roseau County borders the C ...

- northeast *

Beltrami County Beltrami County ( ) is a county in the northern part of the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 46,228. Its county seat is Bemidji. The county's name comes from Italian adventurer Giacomo Beltrami from Bergamo, ...

- east * Pennington County - southeast *

- south *

Grand Forks County, North Dakota Grand Forks County is a county in the U.S. state of North Dakota. As of the 2020 census, its population was 73,170, making it the third-most populous county in North Dakota. Its county seat and largest community is Grand Forks. History Using t ...

- southwest *

Walsh County, North Dakota Walsh County is a county in the U.S. state of North Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 10,563. Its county seat is Grafton. History The Dakota Territory legislature created the county on May 2, 1881, with areas partitioned from ...

- west *

Pembina County, North Dakota Pembina County is a county in the U.S. state of North Dakota. At the 2020 census its population was 6,844. The county seat is Cavalier. History For thousands of years, various indigenous peoples inhabited the area along the Pembina and Red ...

- northwest

Protected areas

* Agassiz National Wildlife Refuge **

Agassiz Wilderness Agassiz Wilderness was designated in 1976 by the United States Congress and has a total of 4,000 acres (16 km2). It is located in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The wilderness is in Agassiz National Wildlife Refuge and is managed by the ...

* Florian Park * Florian State Wildlife Management Area * Old Mill State Park

Lakes

* Thief Lake * Webster Creek Pool

Demographics

2000 census

As of the 2000 census, there were 10,155 people, 4,101 households and 2,837 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 RosenberPopul ...

was 5.72/sqmi (2.21/km²). There were 4,791 housing units at an average density of 2.70/sqmi (1.04/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 97.22%

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 ...

, 0.10%

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 ...

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 ...

, 0.29% Native American, 0.17%

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 ...

, 1.62% 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 0.60% from two or more races. 2.93% 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. 43.2% were of

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 ...

, 12.1%

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...

, 11.7%

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 ...

and 9.6%

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 4,101 households, of which 30.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.20% were married couples living together, 5.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.80% were non-families. 28.70% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 3.01. The county population contained 25.40% under the age of 18, 6.70% from 18 to 24, 24.70% from 25 to 44, 24.70% from 45 to 64, and 18.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 103.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.10 males. The median household income was $34,804, and the median family income was $41,908. Males had a median income of $30,051 versus $20,600 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 $16,317. About 6.90% of families and 9.80% 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 ...

, including 11.30% of those under age 18 and 12.80% of those age 65 or over.

2020 Census

Communities

Cities

* Alvarado * Argyle * Grygla * Holt * Middle River * Newfolden *

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

* Strandquist *

Viking Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...

(county seat)

Unincorporated communities

Big Woods Big Woods refers to a type of temperate hardwood forest ecoregion found in western Wisconsin and south-central Minnesota. "Big Woods" is a direct translation of the name given to the region by French explorers: . Trees and native vegetation ...

* Englund * Espelie * Florian * Gatzke *

Luna Luna commonly refers to: * Earth's Moon, named "Luna" in Latin * Luna (goddess), the ancient Roman personification of the Moon Luna may also refer to: Places Philippines * Luna, Apayao * Luna, Isabela * Luna, La Union * Luna, San Jose Roma ...

March March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. It is the second of seven months to have a length of 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of Marc ...

Radium Radium is a chemical element with the symbol Ra and atomic number 88. It is the sixth element in group 2 of the periodic table, also known as the alkaline earth metals. Pure radium is silvery-white, but it readily reacts with nitrogen (rathe ...

Rosewood Rosewood refers to any of a number of richly hued timbers, often brownish with darker veining, but found in many different hues. True rosewoods All genuine rosewoods belong to the genus ''Dalbergia''. The pre-eminent rosewood appreciated ...

Townships

* Agder Township * Alma Township * Augsburg Township * Big Woods Township * Bloomer Township * Boxville Township * Cedar Township * Como Township * Comstock Township * Donnelly Township * Eagle Point Township * East Park Township * East Valley Township * Eckvoll Township * Espelie Township * Excel Township * Foldahl Township * Fork Township * Grand Plain Township * Holt Township * Huntly Township * Lincoln Township * Linsell Township * Marsh Grove Township * McCrea Township * Middle River Township * Moose River Township * Moylan Township * Nelson Park Township * New Folden Township * New Maine Township * New Solum Township * Oak Park Township * Parker Township * Rollis Township * Sinnott Township * Spruce Valley Township * Tamarac Township * Thief Lake Township * Valley Township * Vega Township * Veldt Township * Viking Township * Wanger Township * Warrenton Township * West Valley Township * Whiteford Township * Wright Township

Unorganized territory

* Mud Lake

Government and politics

Marshall County has voted Republican in presidential elections since 2000, except in 2008, when

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...

won the county by less than one percentage point.

References

{{authority control Minnesota counties 1879 establishments in Minnesota Populated places established in 1879