Pope 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 11,308. 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 Glenwood. The county was formed in 1862 and organized in 1866.

History

Pope County was identified by the state legislature in 1862 and named for John Pope, a Union Army general who had worked as a surveyor in the area. Its organization was effected in 1866. Pope County was the location of several protests against the CU Powerline in the 1970s.

Geography

The Chippewa River flows south through the county's western part. The Little Chippewa River flows south-southwest through its central part, discharging into the Chippewa southeast of

Cyrus Cyrus () is a Persian-language masculine given name. It is historically best known as the name of several List of monarchs of Iran, Persian kings, most notably including Cyrus the Great, who founded the Achaemenid Empire in 550 BC. It remains wid ...

. The East Branch Chippewa River flows south-southwest through the eastern part of the county toward its union with the Chippewa in neighboring Swift County. The county terrain consists of low rolling hills, carved with drainages and dotted with lakes and ponds. The area is devoted to agriculture.Pope County MN Google Maps (accessed April 17, 2019)
/ref> The terrain slopes to the south and west, with its highest point near the northeast corner at ASL. The county has an area of , of which is land and (6.6%) is water.

Major highways

Minnesota State Highway 9 State Highway 9 or Trunk Highway 9 (MN 9, TH 9) is a state highway in west-central and northwest Minnesota, which runs from its intersection with Minnesota State Highway 23, MN 23 in New London, Minnesota, New London a ...

* Minnesota State Highway 28 * Minnesota State Highway 29 *

Minnesota State Highway 55 Minnesota State Highway 55 (MN 55) is a state highway that runs across the central part of state taking a diagonal route from its western most at the North Dakota state line near Tenney to its easternmost point at the intersection with U.S. H ...

* Minnesota State Highway 104 * Minnesota State Highway 114

Airports

Source: * Glenwood Municipal Airport (D32) * Starbuck Municipal Airport (GHW)

Adjacent counties

* Douglas County - north * Stearns County - east * Kandiyohi County - southeast * Swift County - south * Stevens County - west *

Grant County Grant County may refer to: Places ;Australia * County of Grant, Victoria ;United States * Grant County, Arkansas * Grant County, Indiana * Grant County, Kansas *Grant County, Kentucky Grant County is a county located in the northern pa ...

- northwest

Protected areas

Source: * Bruce Hitman Heron Rookery Scientific and Natural Area * Farwell State Wildlife Management Area * Glacial Lakes State Park * Langhei Scientific and Natural Area * Little Jo State Wildlife Management Area * Lowry State Wildlife Management Area * New Prairie State Wildlife Management Area * Noordmans State Wildlife Management Area * Skarpness State Wildlife Management Area * Van Luik State Wildlife Management Area * Wade State Wildlife Management Area

Major lakes

Source: * Amelia Lake * Goose Lake * Lake Emily * Lake Johanna * Lake Minnewaska * Lake Reno (part) * Lake Simon * Pelican Lake * Pike Lake * Scandinavian 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 11,236 people, 4,513 households, and 3,064 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 5,827 housing units at an average density of /km²). The racial makeup of the county was 98.85%

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 ...

, 0.20%

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 ...

, 0.18% Native American, 0.08% Asian, 0.01%

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 ...

, 0.18% from other races, and 0.50% from two or more races. 0.51% 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. 38.8% were of Norwegian and 31.6% German ancestry. There were 4,513 households, out of which 29.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.00% 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, 5.90% 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 16.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.99. The county population contained 24.80% under the age of 18, 6.70% from 18 to 24, 23.10% from 25 to 44, 23.80% from 45 to 64, and 21.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 96.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.90 males. The median income for a household in the county was $35,633, and the median income for a family was $42,818. Males had a median income of $30,452 versus $20,511 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 $19,032. About 5.80% of families and 8.80% 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 9.40% of those under age 18 and 12.10% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

* Brooten (part) *

* Farwell * Glenwood (county seat) *

Long Beach Long Beach is a coastal city in southeastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is the list of United States cities by population, 44th-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 451,307 as of 2022. A charter ci ...

* Lowry * Sedan * Starbuck * Villard * Westport

Unincorporated communities

* Grove Lake *

Terrace Terrace may refer to: Landforms and construction * Fluvial terrace, a natural, flat surface that borders and lies above the floodplain of a stream or river * Terrace, a street suffix * Terrace, the portion of a lot between the public sidewalk a ...

Ghost town

* New Prairie

Townships

* Bangor Township * Barsness Township * Ben Wade Township * Blue Mounds Township * Chippewa Falls Township * Gilchrist Township * Glenwood Township * Grove Lake Township * Hoff Township * Lake Johanna Township * Langhei Township * Leven Township * Minnewaska Township * New Prairie Township * Nora Township * Reno Township * Rolling Forks Township * Walden Township * Westport Township * White Bear Lake Township

Government and politics

Pope County has been a swing district in the past. In the 21st Century, the county has voted Republican in every election except for 2008. However, the margins were especially close in 2000, when Republican candidate

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

won the county by 37 votes, and in 2004, when he won it by only 2 votes. Since 2016 the county has voted Republican by stronger margins, each of which were the best Republican performance since 1928.

References

External links

Pope County government’s website

Pope County Historical Society

Pope County GenWeb Project
Helping people find their roots in Pope County. Part of the MNGenWeb and USGenWeb Projects. {{authority control Minnesota counties 1866 establishments in Minnesota Populated places established in 1866