Polk County is a county in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Minnesota. The population was 31,192 at the 2020 census, and was estimated to be 30,413 in 2024.

Polk County is part of the Grand Forks, ND-MN metropolitan statistical area.

History

In one of its early acts as a state entity, the Minnesota Legislature created the county on July 20, 1858, but did not organize it at that time. The county was named for the 11th president of the United States, James Knox Polk, who signed the congressional act that organized the Minnesota Territory. The county was organized in 1872 and 1873, with the newly settled community of Crookston as the county seat.

Geography

Polk County lies on Minnesota's border with North Dakota (across the Red River). The Red Lake River flows west through the upper central part of the county, discharging into the Red at Grand Forks. The county terrain consists of low, rolling hills, devoted to agriculture. The county slopes to the west and north, with its highest point near its southeast corner, at above sea level.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.34%) is water. It is the 8th largest county in Minnesota by total area.

thumb|right|Soils of Polk County USGS surveys show the county's high point to be south of U.S. 2, about 2 km east of Spring Lake, at 47.5197°N, 95.5906°W.

Transit

  • Tri-Valley Opportunity Council (T.H.E. Bus)

Major highways

  • 20px U.S. Highway 2
  • 20px U.S. Highway 59
  • 20px U.S. Highway 75
  • 20px Minnesota State Highway 9
  • 20px Minnesota State Highway 32
  • 20px Minnesota State Highway 92
  • 20px Minnesota State Highway 102
  • 20px Minnesota State Highway 220
  • 20px Polk County State-Aid Highway 21: This is the major connector between Grand Forks and Pennington County, and connects with Pennington County State-Aid Highway 3.
  • 20px Polk County State-Aid Highway 9: A major connector between Crookston and the south end of Grand Forks, it connects with Grand Forks County Road 7, and functions as a southside connector between US 75 and US 2 in Crookston.
  • 20px 20px Polk County State-Aid Highways 11 & 46: US 2 Truck Bypass of Crookston
  • 20px Polk County State-Aid Highway 2: Designated and designed for heavy truck traffic connecting US 2 to Roseau County and Marshall County.

Adjacent counties

  • Marshall County (north)
  • Pennington County (northeast)
  • Red Lake County (northeast)
  • Clearwater County (east)
  • Mahnomen County (southeast)
  • Norman County (south)
  • Traill County, North Dakota (southwest)
  • Grand Forks County, North Dakota (west)

Protected areas

Source:

| align-fn = center

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

As of the 2023 American Community Survey, there are 12,448 estimated households in Polk County with an average of 2.38 persons per household. The county has a median household income of $69,136. Approximately 10.7% of the county's population lives at or below the poverty line. Polk County has an estimated 66.0% employment rate, with 28.1% of the population holding a bachelor's degree or higher and 93.2% holding a high school diploma.

The top five reported ancestries (people were allowed to report up to two ancestries, thus the figures will generally add to more than 100%) were English (93.7%), Spanish (2.6%), Indo-European (2.2%), Asian and Pacific Islander (0.2%), and Other (1.4%).

The median age in the county was 39.3 years.

Racial and ethnic composition

Polk County, Minnesota – racial and ethnic composition<br><small></small>

{| class="wikitable sortable collapsible" style="font-size: 95%;"

|-

! Race / ethnicity <small>(NH = non-Hispanic)</small>

! Pop. 1980 !! Pop. 1990 !! Pop. 2000 !! Pop. 2010 !!

|-

| White alone (NH)

| 33,869<br>(97.20%) || 30,824<br>(94.85%) || 28,994<br>(92.43%) || 28,497<br>(90.18%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |26,538<br>(85.08%)

|-

| Black or African American alone (NH)

| 64<br>(0.18%) || 53<br>(0.16%) || 86<br>(0.27%) || 248<br>(0.78%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |958<br>(3.07%)

|-

| Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)

| 268<br>(0.77%) || 376<br>(1.16%) || 381<br>(1.21%) || 413<br>(1.31%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |376<br>(1.21%)

|-

| Asian alone (NH)

| 83<br>(0.24%) || 89<br>(0.27%) || 91<br>(0.29%) || 210<br>(0.66%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |156<br>(0.50%)

|-

| Pacific Islander alone (NH)

| — || — || 2<br>(0.01%) || 2<br>(0.01%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |4<br>(0.01%)

|-

| Other race alone (NH)

| 0<br>(0.00%) || 10<br>(0.03%) || 0<br>(0.00%) || 9<br>(0.03%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |71<br>(0.23%)

|-

| Mixed race or multiracial (NH)

| — || — || 313<br>(1.00%) || 501<br>(1.59%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |1,090<br>(3.49%)

|-

| Hispanic or Latino (any race)

| 560<br>(1.61%) || 1,146<br>(3.53%) || 1,502<br>(4.79%) || 1,720<br>(5.44%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |1,999<br>(6.41%)

|-

| Total

| 34,844<br>(100.00%) || 32,498<br>(100.00%) || 31,369<br>(100.00%) || 31,600<br>(100.00%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |31,192<br>(100.00%)

|}

2024 estimate

thumb|right|2022 US Census [[population pyramid for Polk County, from ACS 5-year estimates]]

As of the 2024 estimate, there were 30,413 people and 12,448 households residing in the county. There were 14,785 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 91.5% White (85.8% NH White), 2.8% African American, 2.1% Native American, 1.0% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, _% from some other races and 2.6% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 7.0% of the population.

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 31,192. The median age was 39.3 years. 24.6% of residents were under the age of 18 and 19.0% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 100.4 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 98.9 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 87.3% White, 3.1% Black or African American, 1.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 2.0% from some other race, and 5.6% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 6.4% of the population.

There were 12,534 households in the county, of which 28.5% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 48.8% were married-couple households, 20.7% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 23.7% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 31.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.9% 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

! Next Election

|-

|

| Commissioner

| Vacant

| District 1

| 2024

|-

|

| Commissioner and Chairperson

| Warren Strandell

| District 2

| 2026

|-

|

| Commissioner and Vice Chair

| Gary Willhite

| District 3

| 2024

|-

|

| Commissioner

| Joan Lee

| District 4

| 2026

|-

|

| Commissioner

| Mark Holy

| District 5

| 2024

|}

{| class="wikitable"

|+State Legislature (2023-2025)

! colspan="2" |Position

! Name

! Affiliation

! District

|-

| style="background-color:" |

| Senate

| Mark Johnson

| Republican

| District 1

|-

| style="background-color:" |

| House of Representatives

| Deb Kiel

| Republican

| District 1B

|}

{| class="wikitable"

|+U.S Congress (2023-2025)

! colspan="2" |Position

! Name

! Affiliation

! District

|-

| style="background-color:" |

| House of Representatives

| Michelle Fischbach

| Republican

| 7th

|-

| style="background-color:" |

| Senate

| Amy Klobuchar

| Democrat

| N/A

|-

| style="background-color:" |

| Senate

| Tina Smith

| Democrat

| N/A

|}

Education

School districts include:

  • Clearbrook-Gonvick School District ISD #2311
  • Climax-Shelly Public Schools ISD #592
  • Crookston School District 593 (Crookston High School)
  • East Grand Forks Public School District ISD #595 (East Grand Forks Senior High School)
  • Fertile-Beltrami School District ISD #599
  • Fisher Public School District ISD #600
  • Fosston Public School District ISD #601
  • Red Lake County Central Public Schools ISD #2906
  • Red Lake Falls Public School District ISD #630
  • Warren-Alvarado-Oslo School District ISD #2176
  • Win-E-Mac School District ISD #2609

See also

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

References

Further reading

  • R.I. Holcombe and William H Bingham, Compendium of History and Biography of Polk County, Minnesota. Minneapolis: W. H. Bingham & Co., 1916.
  • Huber D. McLellan, The History of the Early Settlement and Development of Polk County, Minnesota. PhD dissertation. Northwestern University, 1928.
  • Polk County Historical Society, Bicentennial History of Polk County, Minnesota: Pioneers of the Valley. n.c.: Polk County Historical Society, 1976.
  • Polk County Historical Society, The Polk County Historian. (journal)
  • Claude Eugene Wentsel, Polk County, Minnesota, in the World War. Ada, MN: C.E. Wentsel, 1922.
  • Winger Golden Jubilee Historical Committee, Golden Jubilee, Winger, Minnesota, 1904-1954. Winger, MN: Winger Enterprise, n.d. [1954].
  • Maxine Workman, Minnesota Cemeteries, Polk County. West Fargo, ND: Red River Genealogy Society, 1988.
  • Polk County – official website