Fort Snelling is an unorganized territory of

Hennepin County Hennepin County ( ) is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 1,281,565, and was estimated to be 1,273,334 in 2024, making it the List of counties in ...

in the U.S. state of

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 ...

. It is named after historic Fort Snelling, which is located within its boundaries. The district also includes Coldwater Spring park, Fort Snelling National Cemetery, Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport, parts of the Mississippi National River and Recreation Area, and several government facilities. As of the 2020 census the territory had a population of 322 people.

Geography

The unorganized territory of Fort Snelling is just east of the city of Richfield. Historic Fort Snelling is located at the eastern end of the territory, near the confluence of 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 ...

with 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 ...

. It also borders

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 ...

to the north and Bloomington to the southwest, while

Saint Paul Paul, also named Saul of Tarsus, commonly known as Paul the Apostle and Saint Paul, was a Christian apostle ( AD) who spread the teachings of Jesus in the first-century world. For his contributions towards the New Testament, he is generally ...

in Ramsey County (including Pike Island) is to the northeast, and across the Minnesota River are Mendota and

Mendota Heights Mendota Heights ( ) is a city in Dakota County, Minnesota, United States. It is a first-ring southern suburb of the Twin Cities. The population was 11,744 at the 2020 census. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has ...

in Dakota County. For postal purposes, addresses in the eastern portion of the unorganized territory (including Terminal 1 of the Minneapolis St. Paul International Airport and the Fort Snelling historic site) are in zip code 55111 with a

mailing address, while addresses in the western part of the territory (including the airport's Terminal 2 and the

Metropolitan Airports Commission The Minneapolis-Saint Paul Metropolitan Airports Commission (MAC) is a state-level airport authority that operates the Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport and six reliever airports in the Minneapolis-St. Paul, Twin Cities region, whic ...

offices) are in zip code 55450 and have a Minneapolis mailing address. 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 ...

, this unorganized territory has a total area of 17.2 km² (6.7 mi²). 16.5 km² (6.4 mi²) of it is land and 0.8 km² (0.3 mi²) of it is water. Fort Snelling's territory contains numerous military and other federal facilities. These facilities include the current

National Guard National guard is the name used by a wide variety of current and historical uniformed organizations in different countries. The original National Guard was formed during the French Revolution around a cadre of defectors from the French Guards. ...

base at Fort Snelling, Fort Snelling National Cemetery, and the Minneapolis

Veterans Health Administration The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is the component of the United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) led by the Under Secretary of Veterans Affairs for Health that implements the healthcare program of the VA through a Nationali ...

Medical Center. Several facilities belonging to Minnesota state government agencies such as the

Minnesota Department of Transportation The Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT, ) oversees Transportation in Minnesota, transportation by all modes including land, water, air, rail, walking and bicycling in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The Cabinet (government), cabinet-lev ...

are also located in the territory, as are the headquarters and portions of Fort Snelling State Park and the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge. Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport, however, includes most of the land area of the unorganized territory.

Delta Air Lines Delta Air Lines, Inc. is a Major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, operating nine hubs, with Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport being its ...

Building C is located on the airport property and in Fort Snelling,Fort Snelling UT, Hennepin county, Minnesota
.
Archive

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

. Retrieved on December 19, 2009. and is used by the airline for northern and regional operations.Niemela, Jennifer.
Delta reaches deal on Minnesota jobs
. '' Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal''. Tuesday December 16, 2008. Retrieved on January 19, 2012.

Demographics

Fort Snelling was listed as an incorporated village during the 1890 Census. In the era after World War II, residents of the unorganized territory were service members stationed at the barracks at Fort Snelling, and military families living on base housing in the Upper Post area. Over time, some parts of the fort were demolished to expand Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport, and the Upper Post was abandoned as housing in 1973 with ownership transferred to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. In the 2010s, private housing started to be developed in the Upper Post. This began with a newly built apartment complex that opened in 2015, followed by a redevelopment of all the remaining Upper Post buildings that was completed in 2022. All of this new housing is intended primarily for veterans and their families, with funding provided by federal, state, and local historical preservation and affordable housing funds. 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 2020, 322 people resided in 239 households in the unorganized territory. 83.5% of households spoke English at home and 14.6% spoke Spanish. The median household income was $18,594. 31.1% of the population was 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 ...

References

{{Mississippi National River and Recreation Area Mississippi National River and Recreation Area Unorganized territories in Minnesota Populated places in Hennepin County, Minnesota Minnesota populated places on the Mississippi River Former municipalities in Minnesota