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St. Louis County, Minnesota
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Saint Louis County, Minnesota | |
| Map | |
 Location in the state of Minnesota |
|
 Minnesota's location in the USA |
|
| Statistics | |
| Founded | February 20, 1855 [1] |
|---|---|
| Seat | Duluth |
| Largest City | Duluth |
| Area - Total - Land - Water |
6,860 sq mi (17,767 km²) 6,225 sq mi (16,123 km²) 635 sq mi (1,644 km²), 9.25% |
| Population - (2000) - Density |
200,528 32/sq mi (12/km²) |
| Time zone | Central: UTC-6/-5 |
| Website: www.co.st-louis.mn.us | |
| Named for: Saint Louis River | |
St. Louis County is a county located in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of 2000, the population was 200,528. Its county seat is Duluth. It is the largest county by area in Minnesota, and the largest in the United States east of the Mississippi River (if water area is excluded, it is second largest, behind Aroostook County, Maine). Major industries include pulpwood production and tourism. At one time, surface mining of low-grade iron-ore was a major part of the economy. Parts of the Bois Forte and Fond du Lac Indian reservations are in the county.
St. Louis County was founded on February 20, 1855 as Doty County and had its name changed to Newton County on March 3, 1855. On March 1, 1856, St. Louis County to the east became Lake County while Newton County was renamed St. Louis County. Originally Doty County and Newton County consisted of the area east and south of the St. Louis River. The area east of Vermilion River and north of St. Louis River was part of Superior County (which then became St. Louis County, and then Lake County). Upon establishment of this St. Louis County, these two areas were merged, then expanded westward by incorporating parts of Itasca County, which then also included most of Carlton County. On May 23, 1857 St. Louis County took its current shape when Carlton County was formed from parts of St. Louis and Pine Counties.
Contents |
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 17,767 km² (6,860 sq mi). 16,123 km² (6,225 sq mi) of it is land and 1,644 km² (635 sq mi) of it (9.25%) is water. By land area, it is the largest county in Minnesota.
- Rainy River District, Ontario (north)
- Lake County (east)
- Douglas County, Wisconsin (southeast)
- Carlton County (south)
- Aitkin County (southwest)
- Itasca County (west)
- Koochiching County (northwest)
As of the census² of 2000, there were 200,528 people, 82,619 households, and 51,389 families residing in the county. The population density was 12/km² (32/sq mi). There were 95,800 housing units at an average density of 6/km² (15/sq mi). The racial makeup of the county was 94.86% White, 0.85% Black or African American, 2.03% Native American, 0.66% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.22% from other races, and 1.35% from two or more races. 0.80% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 17.0% were of German, 13.7% Norwegian, 12.1% Finnish, 9.7% Swedish, 6.0% Irish and 5.3% Italian ancestry according to Census 2000.
There were 82,619 households out of which 27.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.30% were married couples living together, 9.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.80% were non-families. 31.20% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.32 and the average family size was 2.90.
In the county the population was spread out with 22.40% under the age of 18, 11.40% from 18 to 24, 25.90% from 25 to 44, 24.30% from 45 to 64, and 16.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 96.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.80 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $36,306, and the median income for a family was $47,134. Males had a median income of $37,934 versus $24,235 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,982. About 7.20% of families and 12.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.10% of those under age 18 and 8.90% of those age 65 or over.
Like all counties in Minnesota, Saint Louis is governed by an elected and nonpartisan board of commissioners. In Minnesota, county commissions usually have five members, but Saint Louis, Hennepin, and Ramsey counties have seven members. Each commissioner represents a district of equal population.
The county commission elects a chair who presides at meetings.
Commissioners as of August 2007:
| District | Commissioner | In office since | Current term expires |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Dennis Fink | 1997 | December 31, 2010 |
| 2nd | Steven O'Neil | 2005 | December 31, 2008 |
| 3rd | Bill Kron (chair) | 1977 | December 31, 2008 |
| 4th | Mike Forsman | 1995 | December 31, 2010 |
| 5th | Peg Sweeney | 1997 | December 31, 2008 |
| 6th | Keith Nelson | 2003 | December 31, 2010 |
| 7th | Steve Raukar | 1989 | December 31, 2010 |
The county board of commissioners presently is experiencing high levels of conflict. Disputes among commissioners have created a situation that makes it very difficult for them to accomplish their work in a responsible manner. Two commissioners have recently been charged with sexual harassment and another has articulated his willingness to support slavery if his constituents wanted it.[citation needed]
| Cities | Unincorporated communities | CDP | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
  |
|
|---|---|
| Core cities Duluth° (MN) · Superior° (WI) |
|
| Surrounding municipalities (over 10,000) |
|
| Cloquet° (MN) 11,463 | |
| (under 10,000) | |
| Carlton° (MN) · Hermantown° (MN) · Oliver‡ (WI) · Parkland* (WI) · Proctor° (MN) · Scanlon° (MN) · Superior‡ (WI) · Superior* (WI) | |
| Counties | |
| Carlton (MN) · Douglas (WI) · St. Louis (MN) | |
| *town ‡village °city §CDP |