Aitkin County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 15,697. Its county seat is Aitkin. Part of the Mille Lacs Indian Reservation is in the county. The county was created in 1857 and organized in 1871.

History

Aitkin County was established in 1857 as Aiken County. The current spelling was adopted in 1872. It was named for William Alexander Aitken, a fur trader for the American Fur Company, under John Jacob Astor. Formed from Ramsey and Pine counties, Aiken County originally consisted of the 17 townships closest to Mille Lacs Lake. It acquired outlands of Ramsey, Itasca and Pine Counties to its north and east. It was organized in 1871, taking up lands from Cass and Itasca Counties and losing a point in the southwestern corner to Crow Wing County to form its current boundaries.

In the 1970s and '80s, Aitkin County became home of three short-lived lesbian feminist farmsteads: Rising Moon Farm (1973 - 1980s), Mel’s Place (1974-5), and Del Lago Farm (1975-6), inspired by the commune, housing cooperative, and back-to-the-land movements. Rising Moon, built in 1972 by lesbian activists Jane Stedman, Linda Page, and Trudy Fulton Smith, operated a food co-op, and welcomed other lesbians included writers Dianna Hunter and Kathy McConnell. It operated off-the-grid, and lacked running water and electricity. In 1973, the farm burned down, and was quickly rebuilt by its owners, however some residents moved to Mel’s Place, and then to Del Lago Farm.

Geography

The Mississippi River flows southward through the west central part of the county. The county terrain consists of wooded rolling hills, dotted with lakes and ponds. The terrain slopes to the south; its highest point is Quadna Mountain, south-southeast of Hill City, at ASL. Otherwise the highest terrain is near its northwestern corner, at ASL. The county has a total area of , of which is land and (8.7%) is water. thumb|right|Soils of Aitkin County

Major highways

  • 20px U.S. Highway 2
  • 20px U.S. Highway 169
  • 20px Minnesota State Highway 18
  • 20px Minnesota State Highway 27
  • 20px Minnesota State Highway 47
  • 20px Minnesota State Highway 65
  • 20px Minnesota State Highway 200
  • 20px Minnesota State Highway 210

Adjacent counties

  • Itasca County - north
  • Saint Louis County - northeast
  • Carlton County - east
  • Pine County - southeast
  • Kanabec County - south
  • Mille Lacs County - southwest
  • Crow Wing County - west
  • Cass County - northwest

Protected areas

  • Grayling State Wildlife Management Area
  • Hill River State Forest
  • Kimberly State Wildlife Management Area
  • McGregor Marsh Scientific and Natural Area
  • Rice Lake National Wildlife Refuge
  • Ripple River State Wildlife Management Area
  • Salo Marsh State Wildlife Management Area
  • Savanna Portage State Park
  • Snake River County Park
  • Solana State Forest

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Aitkin have ranged from a low of in January to a high of in July, although a record low of was recorded in January 1972 and a record high of was recorded in August 1976. Although these records are the official records, temperatures above has been detected numerous times throughout Aitkin County and surrounding areas. Average monthly precipitation ranged from in February to in June.

| align-fn = center

| footnote = U.S. Decennial Census<br/>1790-1960 1900-1990<br/>1990-2000 2010-2020

!Pop 1990

!Pop 2000

!Pop 2010

!style="background-color: #ffffb3;" | Pop 2020

!% 1980

!% 1990

!% 2000

!% 2010

!style="background-color: #ffffb3;" |% 2020

|-

|White alone (NH)

|13,195

|12,176

|14,698

|15,398

|style='background: #ffffe6; |14,479

|98.44%

|98.00%

|96.06%

|95.04%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |92.24%

|-

|Black or African American alone (NH)

|12

|13

|31

|53

|style='background: #ffffe6; |58

|0.09%

|0.10%

|0.20%

|0.33%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.37%

|-

|Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)

|127

|169

|340

|376

|style='background: #ffffe6; |376

|0.95%

|1.36%

|2.22%

|2.32%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |2.40%

|-

|Asian alone (NH)

|20

|30

|27

|27

|style='background: #ffffe6; |38

|0.15%

|0.24%

|0.18%

|0.17%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.24%

|-

|Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)

|x

|x

|3

|4

|style='background: #ffffe6; |1

|x

|x

|0.02%

|0.02%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.01%

|-

|Other race alone (NH)

|4

|2

|7

|5

|style='background: #ffffe6; |25

|0.03%

|0.02%

|0.05%

|0.03%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.16%

|-

|Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)

|x

|x

|103

|188

|style='background: #ffffe6; |500

|x

|x

|0.67%

|1.16%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |3.19%

|-

|Hispanic or Latino (any race)

|46

|35

|92

|151

|style='background: #ffffe6; |220

|0.34%

|0.28%

|0.60%

|0.93%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |1.40%

|-

|Total

|13,404

|12,425

|15,301

|16,202

|style='background: #ffffe6; |15,697

|100.00%

|100.00%

|100.00%

|100.00%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |100.00%

|}

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 15,697. The median age was 56.2 years. 17.0% of residents were under the age of 18 and 32.9% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 102.6 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 101.8 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 92.6% White, 0.4% Black or African American, 2.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 0.4% from some other race, and 3.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 1.4% of the population.

There were 7,199 households in the county, of which 18.2% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 49.0% were married-couple households, 21.6% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 21.8% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 33.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

<!-- PresRow should be -->

{| class="wikitable"

|+

County Board of Commissioners

! colspan="2" |Position

!Name

!District

|-

|

|Commissioner and Chairperson

|J. Mark Wedel

|District 1

|-

|

|Commissioner

|Laurie Westerlund

|District 2

|-

|

|Commissioner and Vice Chair

|Travis Leiviska

|District 3

|-

|

|Commissioner

|Bret Sample

|District 4

|-

|

|Commissioner

|Michael Kearney

|District 5

|}

{| class="wikitable"

|+

State Legislature (2018–2020)

! colspan="2" |Position

!Name

!Affiliation

!District

|-

| style="background-color:" |&nbsp;

|Senate

|Carrie Ruud

|Republican

|District 10

|-

| style="background-color:" |&nbsp;

|House of Representatives

|Dale Lueck

|Republican

|District 10B

|}

{| class="wikitable"

|+

U.S. Congress (2018–2020)

! colspan="2" |Position

!Name

!Affiliation

!District

|-

| style="background-color:" |&nbsp;

|House of Representatives

|Pete Stauber

|Republican

|8th

|-

| style="background-color:" |&nbsp;

|Senate

|Amy Klobuchar

|Democrat

|N/A

|-

| style="background-color:" |&nbsp;

|Senate

|Tina Smith

|Democrat

|N/A

|}

See also

  • National Register of Historic Places listings in Aitkin County, Minnesota

References

  • Aitkin County government’s website
  • Minnesota Department of Transportation map of Aitkin County (southern portion, northern portion)
  • Records