Watonwan 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 ...

in 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 11,253. 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 St. James.

History

In 1849, the new territorial legislature of the recently organized

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 the w ...

authorized the creation of nine large counties across the Territory. Four years later, in 1853, one of those original counties of Dakota, had a large area separated and partitioned off to create Blue Earth County. Only two years later, by 1855, the western part of Blue Earth was then partitioned to create Brown County. Five years later, on February 25, 1860, the southern part of Brown was partitioned to create the county of Watanwan, with the town of Madelia as the original designated county seat. The county was named for its eponymous river ( Watonwan River, which flows into the

Blue Earth River The Blue Earth River () is a tributary of the Minnesota River, long, in southern Minnesota in the United States. Two of its headwaters tributaries, the Middle Branch Blue Earth River and the West Branch Blue Earth River, also flow for short di ...

, then the

Minnesota River The Minnesota River () is a tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately 332 miles (534 km) long, in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It drains a watershed of in Minnesota and about in South Dakota and Iowa. It rises in southwestern ...

, then eventually into the "Father of Waters" - 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 ...

, which drains the entire middle of the

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

n continent), whose name reflects the Dakota native word "watanwan," meaning "fish bait" or "plenty of fish." The word first appears in the modern written record on an 1843 map of the area so naming the river. In 1869, the first European white settlers arrived in the area of the future town of Saint James, and the area began growing. In 1870, an extension of the St. Paul and Sioux City Railway was terminated at the village, and railway officials decided to name the terminus Saint James. By 1878, that town had grown to the extent that a vote was taken in the county to move the county seat and courthouse there from Madelia.

Geography

The terrain of Watonwan County consists of low, rolling hills carved by drainages and dotted with lakes and ponds. The area is completely devoted to agriculture where possible.Watonwan County MN Google Maps (accessed April 22, 2019)
/ref> The terrain slopes to the north and east, with its highest point near its southwest corner, at . According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the county has a total area of , of which is land and , or 1.1%, is water. The county is drained by the Watonwan River and its tributaries; the river flows eastward through the northern part of the county.

Major highways

Minnesota State Highway 4 Minnesota State Highway 4 (MN 4) is a highway in southwest and west-central 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 O ...

* Minnesota State Highway 15 *

Minnesota State Highway 30 Minnesota State Highway 30 (MN 30) is a highway in southwest and southeast Minnesota, which runs from South Dakota Highway 34 at the South Dakota state line near Airlie, west of Pipestone, and continues to its eastern terminus at its in ...

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 ...

Airports

* St. James Municipal Airport (JYG, LID) - east of St. James

Adjacent counties

* Brown County - north * Blue Earth County - east * Martin County - south * Jackson County - southwest * Cottonwood County - west

Protected areas

* Bergdahl State Wildlife Management Area * Lewisville State Wildlife Management Area * Turtle Marsh State Wildlife Management Area * Wilson State Wildlife Management Area * Woodlake State Wildlife Management Area

Lakes

* Bergdahl Lake * Bullhead Lake * Butterfield Lake * Case Lake * Cottonwood Lake * Ewy Lake * Fedji Lake * Irish Lake * Long Lake * Mary Lake * Mud Lake * Kansas Lake * Saint James Lake * School Lake * Sulem Lake * Wilson Lake ("School Lake" in some records) * Wood Lake (part)

Demographics

As of the third quarter of 2024, the median home value in Watonwan County was $162,740. As of the 2023

American Community Survey The American Community Survey (ACS) is an annual demographics survey program conducted by the United States Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the United States census, decennial census ...

, there are 4,314 estimated households in Watonwan County with an average of 2.55 persons per household. The county has a median household income of $70,593. Approximately 10.0% of the county's population lives at or 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 ...

. Watonwan County has an estimated 65.4% employment rate, with 18.2% of the population holding a bachelor's degree or higher and 88.4% holding a high school diploma. The top five reported ancestries (people were allowed to report up to two ancestries, thus the figures will generally add to more than 100%) were English (76.6%), Spanish (22.8%), Indo-European (0.3%), Asian and Pacific Islander (0.3%), and Other (0.0%). The median age in the county was 40.6 years. Watonwan County, Minnesota – racial and ethnic composition

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 11,256 people, 4,476 households, and 2,962 families residing 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 4,874 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 72.93%

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 ...

, 0.43%

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 ...

, 0.84% Native American, 0.85% Asian, 0.00%

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 ...

, 15.54% from some other races and 9.38% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 28.67% of the population. 26.5% of residents were under the age of 18, 7.9% were under 5 years of age, and 21.2% were 65 and older. The gender makeup of the county was 49.9% male and 50.1% female.

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 11,211 people, 4,520 households, and _ families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 5,047 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 86.88%

, 0.73%

, 0.43% Native American, 0.79% Asian, 0.02%

, 9.97% from some other races and 1.18% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 20.85% of the population.

2000 census

As of the 2000 census, there were 11,876 people, 4,627 households, and 3,141 families in the county. The

was . There were 5,036 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 88.54%

, 0.37%

, 0.21% Native American, 0.87% Asian, 0.02%

, 8.78% from some other races and 1.21% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 15.19% of the population. 40.9% were of

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

, 17.3% Norwegian and 5.8% Swedish ancestry. There were 4,627 households, out of which 32.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.60% 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, 7.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.10% were non-families. 28.70% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.10. The county population contained 27.60% under the age of 18, 7.80% from 18 to 24, 24.30% from 25 to 44, 21.70% from 45 to 64, and 18.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 95.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.50 males. The median income for a household in the county was $35,441, and the median income for a family was $42,321. Males had a median income of $29,242 versus $19,788 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 $16,413. About 7.80% of families and 9.80% of the population were below the

, including 13.50% of those under age 18 and 8.80% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

* Butterfield *

Darfur Darfur ( ; ) is a region of western Sudan. ''Dār'' is an Arabic word meaning "home f – the region was named Dardaju () while ruled by the Daju, who migrated from Meroë , and it was renamed Dartunjur () when the Tunjur ruled the area. ...

* La Salle * Lewisville * Madelia *

Odin Odin (; from ) is a widely revered god in Norse mythology and Germanic paganism. Most surviving information on Odin comes from Norse mythology, but he figures prominently in the recorded history of Northern Europe. This includes the Roman Em ...

* Ormsby (partly in Martin County) * St. James (county seat)

Unincorporated communities

* Echols * Godahl (partial) * Grogan * South Branch * Sveadahl * Tenmile Corner

Townships

* Adrian Township * Antrim Township * Butterfield Township * Fieldon Township * Long Lake Township * Madelia Township * Nelson Township * Odin Township * Riverdale Township * Rosendale Township * St. James Township * South Branch Township

Government and politics

Watonwan County has had its

and site of the Watonwan County Courthouse in the town of St. James since 1878, when it was moved from nearby Madelia where it had been located since the partition of the county from Brown County. Watowan's public citizenry of voters have tended to vote for the Republican Party; in two-thirds of the past 11 presidential elections years since

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...

, the majority of county voters had selected the Republican Party's presidential and vice presidential nominees (as of 2020). But there are active party organizations and groups for both Republican, Democratic-Farmer-Labor and independent unaffiliated voting citizens of both conservative and liberal / progressive views.