Rice County is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

located in the south central portion 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 so ...

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 67,097. Its

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

is Faribault. Rice County comprises the ''Faribault- Northfield, MN Micropolitan Statistical Area'', which is included in the

Minneapolis Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...

- St. Paul, MN- WI Combined Statistical Area.

History

Rice County was founded on March 5, 1853. It was named for Henry Mower Rice, a fur trader who became instrumental in creation of the Minnesota Territory and its subsequent growth and development.

Geography

The Cannon River flows northeasterly through the center of the county, on its way to discharge into the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

at Red Wing. The Straight River flows northerly into the county from Steele County to its discharge point into the Cannon River at Faribault. The North Fork of the Zumbro River rises in south-central Rice County, and flows eastward into Goodhue County on its way to discharge into the Mississippi east of Kellogg. The county terrain consists of low, rolling hills, entirely devoted to agriculture, and dotted with lakes.''Rice County MN'' Google Maps (accessed April 3, 2019)
/ref> The county slopes to the east and north; its highest point is near its SE corner, at ASL. The county has an area of , of which is land and (3.9%) is water. The Cannon River flows northeastwardly through the county, collecting the Straight River in Faribault. The North Fork of the Zumbro River has its headwaters in the county's southeastern part. Rice is one of 17 Minnesota savanna counties with more savanna soils than either prairie or forest soils.

Major highways

Interstate 35 Interstate 35 (I-35) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates that end in a five, it is a major cross-country, north–south route. It stretches from Laredo, Texas, near the Mexican bo ...

* * Minnesota State Highway 3 * Minnesota State Highway 13 *

Minnesota State Highway 19 Minnesota State Highway 19 (MN 19) is a highway in southern Minnesota, which runs from South Dakota Highway 30 at the South Dakota state line near Ivanhoe, Minnesota, Ivanhoe and continues east to its eastern terminus at its Intersection (road) ...

* Minnesota State Highway 21 *

Minnesota State Highway 60 Trunk Highway 60 (MN 60) is a highway in southern Minnesota, which runs from Iowa Highway 60 at the Iowa state line (at Bigelow) and continues east-northeast to its eastern terminus at the Wisconsin state line (at Wabasha), where the ro ...

* Minnesota State Highway 99 * Minnesota State Highway 246 * Minnesota State Highway 298 * Minnesota State Highway 299

Adjacent counties

* Dakota County - northeast * Goodhue County - east * Dodge County - southeast * Steele County - south * Waseca County - southwest * Le Sueur County - west * Scott County - northwest

Protected areas

* Cannon Lake Wilderness Area * Cannon River Trout Lily Scientific and Natural Area * Faribault State Wildlife Management Area * Nerstrand Big Woods State Park * River Bend Nature Area * Sakatah Lake State Park (part) * Shager Park * Townsend Woods Scientific and Natural Area * Whitney Island Scientific and Natural Area

Lakes

* Cannon Lake * Caron Lake * Cedar Lake * Circle Lake * Crystal Lake * Duban Lake * Dudley Lake * Fox Lake * French Lake * Hatch Lake * Horseshoe Lake (part) * Hunt Lake * Kelly Lake * Mazaska Lake * Metogga Lake * Mud Lake * Phelps Lake * Rice Lake * Roberds Lake * Sakatah Lake (part) * Shields Lake * Sprague Lake * Union Lake * Weinberger Lake * Wells Lake * Willing Lake

Demographics

2020 Census

2000 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 56,665 people, 18,888 households, and 13,353 families in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), 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 geog ...

was . There were 20,061 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 93.59%

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

, 1.31%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.43% Native American, 1.46% Asian, 0.04%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 1.87% from other races, and 1.30% from two or more races. 5.50% of the population were

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race. 32.1% were of German, 14.7% Norwegian, 7.2% Irish and 5.3%

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus *Czech (surnam ...

ancestry. There were 18,888 households, out of which 36.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.10% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 8.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.30% were non-families. 23.90% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.65 and the average family size was 3.14. The county population contained 25.30% under the age of 18, 15.80% from 18 to 24, 27.40% from 25 to 44, 20.20% from 45 to 64, and 11.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 101.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.30 males. The median income for a household in the county was $48,651, and the median income for a family was $56,407. Males had a median income of $36,771 versus $26,151 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the county was $19,695. About 4.00% of families and 6.90% 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 5.70% of those under age 18 and 10.70% of those age 65 or over.

Parks and recreation

* Ackman Park west of Faribault * Albers Park in Webster * Cannon River Wilderness Area Park between Faribault and Cannon City * Caron Park in Cannon City * Circle Lake Park near near Millersburg * Falls Creek Park east of Faribault * Heron Island in Shieldsville * Hirdler Park west of Faribault * Kalina Park in Wheatland * King Mill Park in Faribault * MccCullough Park and Campground Shields Lake

Communities

Cities

* Dennison (partly in Goodhue County) * Dundas * Faribault (county seat) * Lonsdale * Morristown * Nerstrand * Northfield (partly in Dakota County)

Census-designated place

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

Unincorporated communities

* Cannon City *

Epsom Epsom is a town in the borough of Epsom and Ewell in Surrey, England, about south of central London. The town is first recorded as ''Ebesham'' in the 10th century and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain ...

* Hazelwood * Little Chicago * Millersburg * Moland (partly in Steele County) * Prairieville * Ruskin * Shieldsville * Veseli * Webster * Wheatland

Townships

* Bridgewater Township * Cannon City Township * Erin Township * Forest Township * Morristown Township * Northfield Township * Richland Township * Shieldsville Township * Walcott Township * Warsaw Township * Webster Township * Wells Township * Wheatland Township * Wheeling Township

Politics

From its first participating election in

1860 Events January * January 2 – The astronomer Urbain Le Verrier announces the discovery of a hypothetical planet Vulcan (hypothetical planet), Vulcan at a meeting of the French Academy of Sciences in Paris, France. * January 10 &ndas ...

through 1960, Rice County was traditionally Republican, voting for the Republican nominee in every election save

1912 This year is notable for Sinking of the Titanic, the sinking of the ''Titanic'', which occurred on April 15. In Albania, this leap year runs with only 353 days as the country achieved switching from the Julian to Gregorian Calendar by skippin ...

(when it voted for Bull Moose nominee and former Republican president

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York (state), New York politics, incl ...

) and

Franklin Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...

1932 Events January * January 4 – The British authorities in India arrest and intern Mahatma Gandhi and Vallabhbhai Patel. * January 9 – Sakuradamon Incident (1932), Sakuradamon Incident: Korean nationalist Lee Bong-chang fails in his effort ...

and

1936 Events January–February * January 20 – The Prince of Wales succeeds to the throne of the United Kingdom as King Edward VIII, following the death of his father, George V, at Sandringham House. * January 28 – Death and state funer ...

landslides. From

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 – In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patria ...

through

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

, it became a Democratic stronghold, voting for the Democratic nominee in every election save

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, ...

landslide. In

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

, it voted for a Republican for the first time since 1972 (and for a Republican who was not winning a majority of the national popular vote for the first time since 1960), although it gave him only a plurality, with 7.9% voting third party. However, in

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

, with the third party vote sinking to 2.3%, it voted Republican again, making it the first time since 1956 and 1960 that the county has voted Republican two elections in a row (although the Republican margin was only 62 votes out of over 35,000 cast). In 2024, the county voted Republican for a third time, giving

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

his first absolute majority of over 50% in the county out of all three elections he ran in.

Education

School districts include:
Text list
/ref> * Faribault Public School District * Kenyon-Wanamingo School District * Medford Public School District * New Prague Area Schools * Northfield Public School District * Tri-City United School District * Waseca Public School District * Waterville-Elysian-Morristown Public School District State-operated schools include: * Minnesota State Academy for the Blind * Minnesota State Academy for the Deaf Private schools: *

Shattuck-Saint Mary's Shattuck-St. Mary's (also known as Shattuck-St. Mary's School, Shattuck, or simply SSM) is a coeducational Episcopal-affiliated boarding school in the city of Faribault, Minnesota. History Established in 1858 as an Episcopal mission scho ...

Tertiary: * South Central Community College Library: * Thomas Scott Buckham Memorial Library

References

External links

Rice County government’s website
{{Coord, 44.36, -93.30, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-MN_source:UScensus1990 Minnesota counties 1853 establishments in Minnesota Territory Populated places established in 1853