Goodhue 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 47,582. 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 Red Wing. Nearly all of Prairie Island Indian Community is within the county. Goodhue County comprises the Red Wing, MN Micropolitan Statistical Area and 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

The county was created on March 5, 1853, with territory partitioned from Wabasha County. It was named for James Madison Goodhue (1810–1852), who published the first newspaper in the territory, ''The Minnesota Pioneer''. The county was originally settled exclusively by "Yankee" settlers, meaning that they both came to Goodhue County either directly from the six New England states or from upstate New York, where they were born to parents who had moved to that region from the six New England states in the immediate aftermath of the American Revolution, and that they were descended from the English Puritans who emigrated to North America during the early 1600s. Because of the prevalence of New Englanders and New England transplants from upstate New York the county was said to have a "distinctly New England character". While this was true of many neighboring counties it was considered exceptionally true of Goodhue County. The New Englanders brought with them many of their New England values, including a love of education and fervent support of the abolitionist movement. When the New Englanders arrived, they laid out farms, established post routes, and built schools and government buildings out of locally available materials. The New Englanders and their descendants made up the great majority of Goodhue County's inhabitants until the late 19th and early 20th century, when immigrants from Germany and Norway began arriving in the Minnesota-Wisconsin border region in large numbers. There were small numbers of immigrants from Germany, Norway and Sweden during the first several decades of Goodhue County's history as well.

Hamline University Hamline University ( ) is a private university in Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. Founded in 1854, Hamline is the oldest university in Minnesota, the first coeducational university in the state, and is one of five Associated Colleges of th ...

, Minnesota's first college of higher learning, was started in Red Wing in 1854. It closed during the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

, and reopened in 1869 in Saint Paul. The county was a leading producer of wheat during the mid-19th century, and for several years the county boasted the highest wheat production in the country. Fires at two of Red Wing's mills in the 1880s and developing railroad routes across Minnesota encouraged farmers from neighboring counties to begin sending their wheat to

mills, reducing the county's importance in the wheat trade around the start of the 20th century. The first municipal swimming pool in the state was built in Goodhue County. In October 1960, President

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...

visited the county for a bridge dedication ceremony. The Hiawatha Bridge had been built to replace the Old High Bridge that spanned the Mississippi River since 1895. This visit drew 20,000 people. Eisenhower hoped his visit would help in the elections, swaying Minnesota voters to vote for

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 ...

in the 1960 presidential election in the coming month. But John F. Kennedy carried the state on his way to being elected the next president.

Geography

Goodhue County lies on Minnesota's border with

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

(across Lake Pepin). The Cannon River flows eastward through the northern part of the county on its way to discharge into Lake Pepin. The Little Cannon River flows northward through the west-central part of the county, discharging into the Cannon River at Cannon Falls. The North Fork of the Zumbro River flows eastward through the lower part of the county. The county terrain consists of rolling hills, etched with drainages and gullies, and with high bluffs against the river valleys.''Goodhue County MN'' Google Maps (accessed March 9, 2019)
/ref> The terrain slopes to the east and north; its highest point is near its southwest corner at ASL. The county has an area of , of which is land and (3.0%) is water. Goodhue is one of 17 Minnesota counties with more savanna soils than either prairie or forest soils.

Lakes

Source: * Birch Lake * Brewer Lake * Cannon Lake * Clear Lake * Devils Lake * Espen Lakes * Goose Lake * Lake Byllesby * Larson Lake * Nelson Lake * North Lake * Rattling Springs Lake * Spring Banks Lake * Spring Creek Lake * Sturgeon Lake * Twin Lakes

Major highways

* U.S. Highway 52 * U.S. Highway 61 * U.S. Highway 63 *

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 20 Minnesota State Highway 20 (MN 20) is a short highway in southeast Minnesota, which runs from its Intersection (road), intersection with Minnesota State Highway 19, State Highway 19 in Cannon Falls, Minnesota, Cannon Falls (near U.S. Route 52 i ...

* Minnesota State Highway 56 * Minnesota State Highway 57 * Minnesota State Highway 58 *

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 246 * Minnesota State Highway 292 * Minnesota State Highway 316 * '' List of county roads''

Adjacent counties

* Pierce County, Wisconsin - north * Pepin County, Wisconsin - northeast * Wabasha County - east * Olmsted County - southeast * Dodge County - south * Rice County - west * Dakota County - northwest

Protected areas

Source: * Cannon River Turtle Preserve Scientific and Natural Area * Frontenac State Park * Miesville Ravine Park Reserve (part) * North Fork Zumbro Woods Scientific and Natural Area * Spring Creek Prairie Scientific and Natural Area * Woodbury State Wildlife Management Area

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 44,127 people, 16,983 households, and 11,905 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 17,879 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 96.57%

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 ...

, 0.63%

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 ...

, 0.98% Native American, 0.57% Asian, 0.03%

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 ...

, 0.53% from other races, and 0.69% from two or more races. 1.07% 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. There were 16,983 households, out of which 33.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.20% 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, 7.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.90% were non-families. 25.20% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.50% 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 3.04. The county population contained 26.50% under the age of 18, 7.40% from 18 to 24, 27.90% from 25 to 44, 23.20% from 45 to 64, and 15.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 98.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.40 males. The median income for a household in the county was $46,972, and the median income for a family was $55,689. Males had a median income of $36,282 versus $25,442 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 $21,934. About 3.70% of families and 5.70% 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 6.20% of those under age 18 and 8.60% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

* Bellechester (part) * Cannon Falls * Dennison (part) * Goodhue * Kenyon * Lake City (part) * Pine Island (part) * Red Wing (county seat) * Wanamingo * Zumbrota

Census-designated place

* Frontenac

Unincorporated communities

* Belle Creek * Belvidere Mills *

Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...

* Claybank * Forest Mills * Hader * Hay Creek * Roscoe * Ryan * Skyberg * Sogn * Stanton * Vasa * Wacouta * Wangs * Wastedo * Welch * White Rock

Ghost towns

* Central Point Township * Fairpoint *

Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...

* Thoten/Belvidere

Townships

* Belle Creek Township * Belvidere Township * Cannon Falls Township * Cherry Grove Township * Featherstone Township * Florence Township * Goodhue Township * Hay Creek Township * Holden Township * Kenyon Township * Leon Township * Minneola Township * Pine Island Township * Roscoe Township * Stanton Township * Vasa Township * Wacouta Township * Wanamingo Township * Warsaw Township * Welch Township * Zumbrota Township

Government and politics

Goodhue County usually leans Republican. It has selected the Republican nominee in all but two presidential elections since 1964, during both of Bill Clinton's successful runs in 1992 and 1996.

Education

School districts include:
Text list
/ref> * Cannon Falls Public School District * Faribault Public School District * Goodhue Public School District * Hastings Public School District * Kenyon-Wanamingo School District * Lake City Public School District * Northfield Public School District * Pine Island Public School District * Randolph Public School District * Red Wing Public School District * Triton School District * Zumbrota-Mazeppa School District

References

External links

Goodhue County Government's website
{{Coord, 44.41, -92.72, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-MN_source:UScensus1990 Minnesota counties Minnesota counties on the Mississippi River 1853 establishments in Minnesota Territory Populated places established in 1853