Martin 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 ...

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, the population was 20,025. 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 ...

is Fairmont.

History

The county was created by the

Minnesota Territory The Territory of Minnesota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 3, 1849, until May 11, 1858, when the eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Minnesota and west ...

legislature on May 23, 1857, with Fair Mount (which was also platted in 1857) designated as county seat. The town's name was later shortened to Fairmont. Two explanations have been advanced for the county's name. A delegate to the US Congress from the

Wisconsin Territory The Territory of Wisconsin was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from July 3, 1836, until May 29, 1848, when an eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Wisconsin. Belmont was ...

, Morgan Lewis Martin, introduced the legislative act to organize the

. But in 1904 the county's oldest residents attested that the name referred to Henry Martin, an early settler from Connecticut who ran several businesses during the pre-territory era.

Geography

Martin County lies on Minnesota's border with

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

. The East Fork of the Des Moines River flows southeastward through the lower western part of the county. The county terrain consists of low rolling hills, dotted with lakes and ponds, completely devoted to agriculture where possible.Martin County MN Google Maps (accessed April 18, 2019)
/ref> The terrain slopes to the east and north, with its highest point near its southwest corner, at 1,407' (429m) ASL. The county has an area of , of which is land and (2.4%) is water.

Major highways

Interstate 90 Interstate 90 (I-90) is an east–west transcontinental freeway and the longest Interstate Highway in the United States at . It begins in Seattle, Washington, and travels through the Pacific Northwest, Mountain West, Great Plains, Midwest, and ...

Minnesota State Highway 4 Minnesota State Highway 4 (MN 4) is a highway in southwest and west-central Minnesota, which runs from Iowa Highway 4 at the Iowa state line (near Dunnell, MN and Estherville, IA), and continues north to its northern terminus at its interchange ...

Minnesota State Highway 15 Minnesota State Highway 15 (MN 15) is a highway in south-central and central Minnesota, which runs from Iowa Highway 15 at the Iowa state line and continues north to its northern terminus at its interchange with U.S. Highway 10 outside of Sarte ...

Minnesota State Highway 263 Minnesota State Highway 263 (MN 263) is a highway in southwest Minnesota, which runs from its intersection with Martin County State-Aid Highway 8 in Ceylon and continues north to its northern terminus at its interchange with Interstate 90 near ...

Airports

* Fairmont Municipal Airport (FRM)

Adjacent counties

* Watonwan County - north *

Blue Earth County Blue Earth County is a county in the State of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 69,112. Its county seat is Mankato. The county is named for the Blue Earth River and for the deposits of blue-green clay once evident along the ...

- northeast * Faribault County - east *

Kossuth County, Iowa Kossuth County () is a county in the U.S. state of Iowa. As of the 2020 census, the population was 14,828. The county seat is Algona. History Kossuth County was founded on January 15, 1851. It was named after Lajos Kossuth, Regent-President ...

- southeast *

Emmet County, Iowa Emmet County is a county located in the U.S. state of Iowa. As of the 2020 census, the population was 9,388. The county seat is Estherville. History Emmet County was created by authority of the Iowa Legislature in 1851. There were finally eno ...

- southwest * Jackson County - west

Protected areas

* Ceylon State Wildlife Management Area * Fox Lake Refuge * Luedtke State Wildlife Management Area * Perch Creek State Wildlife Management Area * State Wildlife Management Area * Truman Wildlife Area

Lakes

* Amber Lake * Big Twin Lake * Bright Lake * Budd Lake * Buffalo Lake ( Cedar Township) * Buffalo Lake ( Rutland Township) * Canright Lake * Cedar Lake * Clam Lake * Clayton Lake * Clear Lake * Creek Lake * Eagle Lake * East Chain Lake * Fish Lake (Cedar Township) * Fish Lake ( Lake Belt Township) * Fox Lake * Hall Lake * High Lake * Iowa Lake (part) * Kiester Lake * Lake Charlotte * Lake George * Lake Imogene * Lake Seymour * Little Hat Lake * Little Twin Lake * Martin Lake * Mud Lake * Murphy Lake * North Lake * North Silver Lake *

Okamanpeedan Lake Okamanpeedan (or Okamanpadu) Lake, partially located in Martin County, Minnesota, and Emmet County, Iowa, is also known as Tuttle Lake. Okamanpeedan Lake is a roughly 2,300-acre (9.3 km²) riverine lake located on the East Fork of the Des M ...

(part) * Perch Lake * Pierce Lake * Rose Lake * Round Lake ( Fox Lake Township) * Round Lake ( Waverly Township) * Sager Lakes * Sisseton Lake * South Silver Lake * Susan Lake * Temperance Lake * Tuttle Lake * Watkins Lake * Wilmert Lake

Demographics

2000 census

As of the 2000 census, there were 21,802 people, 9,067 households, and 6,047 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 30.6/sqmi (11.8/km²). There were 9,800 housing units at an average density of 13.8/sqmi (5.31/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 o ...

, 0.25%

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 ...

, 0.10% Native American, 0.42%

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 ...

, 0.02%

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 ...

, 1.26% 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 0.73% from two or more races. 1.93% 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. 51.6% 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 ...

, 11.9%

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 ...

, 5.9%

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 ...

and 5.0%

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

ancestry. There were 9,067 households, out of which 29.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.60% were married couples living together, 7.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.30% were non-families. 30.00% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.92. The county population contained 24.80% under the age of 18, 6.40% from 18 to 24, 24.90% from 25 to 44, 24.00% from 45 to 64, and 19.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 95.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.50 males. The median income for a household in the county was $34,810, and the median income for a family was $44,541. Males had a median income of $30,467 versus $21,780 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 $18,529. About 7.10% of families and 10.50% 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 t ...

, including 15.10% of those under age 18 and 9.00% of those age 65 or over.

2020 Census

Communities

Cities

Ceylon Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

* Dunnell * Fairmont (county seat) *

Granada Granada (,, DIN 31635, DIN: ; grc, Ἐλιβύργη, Elibýrgē; la, Illiberis or . ) is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the fo ...

* Northrop * Ormsby (part) * Sherburn * Trimont * Truman *

Welcome A welcome is a kind of greeting designed to introduce a person to a new place or situation, and to make them feel at ease. The term can similarly be used to describe the feeling of being accepted on the part of the new person. In some context ...

Unincorporated communities

* East Chain * Fox Lake *

Imogene Imogen or Imogene may refer to: __NOTOC__ Places * Imogene, Iowa, a city * Imogene, Minnesota, a populated place * Imogene, South Dakota, an unincorporated community * Imogene Pass, a mountain pass in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado * Imogene La ...

* Nashville Center * Wilbert

Townships

* Cedar Township * Center Creek Township * East Chain Township * Elm Creek Township * Fairmont Township * Fox Lake Township * Fraser Township * Galena Township * Jay Township * Lake Belt Township * Lake Fremont Township * Manyaska Township * Nashville Township * Pleasant Prairie Township * Rolling Green Township * Rutland Township * Silver Lake Township * Tenhassen Township * Waverly Township * Westford Township

Government and politics

Martin County voters have been reliably Republican for decades. As of 2020, the county has selected the Democratic presidential nominee in only one election since 1952.

References

External links

Martin County government’s website
{{authority control Minnesota counties 1857 establishments in Minnesota Territory Populated places established in 1857