Pope County is a county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 11,308. Its county seat 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
thumb|Soils of Pope County
thumb|Soils of Glacial Lakes State Park area
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. 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. 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
- 20px Minnesota State Highway 9
- 20px Minnesota State Highway 28
- 20px Minnesota State Highway 29
- 20px Minnesota State Highway 55
- 20px Minnesota State Highway 104
- 20px Minnesota State Highway 114
Airports
Source:
| 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)
|11,614
|10,694
|11,078
|10,720
|style='background: #ffffe6; |10,751
|99.63%
|99.53%
|98.59%
|97.50%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |95.07%
|-
|Black or African American alone (NH)
|1
|5
|23
|35
|style='background: #ffffe6; |34
|0.01%
|0.05%
|0.20%
|0.32%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.30%
|-
|Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)
|6
|23
|20
|22
|style='background: #ffffe6; |27
|0.05%
|0.21%
|0.18%
|0.20%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.24%
|-
|Asian alone (NH)
|17
|12
|9
|39
|style='background: #ffffe6; |50
|0.15%
|0.11%
|0.08%
|0.35%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.44%
|-
|Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)
|x
|x
|1
|2
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0
|x
|x
|0.01%
|0.02%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.00%
|-
|Other race alone (NH)
|3
|4
|3
|0
|style='background: #ffffe6; |20
|0.03%
|0.04%
|0.03%
|0.00%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.18%
|-
|Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)
|x
|x
|45
|82
|style='background: #ffffe6; |235
|x
|x
|0.40%
|0.75%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |2.08%
|-
|Hispanic or Latino (any race)
|16
|7
|57
|95
|style='background: #ffffe6; |191
|0.14%
|0.07%
|0.51%
|0.86%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |1.69%
|-
|Total
|11,657
|10,745
|11,236
|10,995
|style='background: #ffffe6; |11,308
|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 11,308. The median age was 45.5 years. 22.1% of residents were under the age of 18 and 24.5% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 104.1 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 100.9 males age 18 and over.
The racial makeup of the county was 95.5% White, 0.3% Black or African American, 0.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 0.6% from some other race, and 2.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 1.7% of the population.
There were 4,862 households in the county, of which 25.9% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 54.3% were married-couple households, 18.9% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 20.0% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 29.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
<!-- PresRow should be -->
{| class="wikitable"
|+County Board of Commissioners
|+County Board of Commissioners
! colspan="2" |Position
!Name
!District
|-
|
|Commissioner
|Paul Gremmels
|District 1
|-
|
|Commissioner
|Gordy Wagner
|District 2
|-
|
|Commissioner
|Paul Gerde
|District 3
|-
|
|Commissioner
|Larry Lindor
|District 4
|-
|
|Commissioner
|Paul Wildman
|District 5
|}
{| class="wikitable"
|+State Legislature (2018-2020)
! colspan="2" |Position
!Name
!Affiliation
!District
|-
| style="background-color:" |
|Senate
|Torrey Westrom
|Republican
|District 12
|-
| style="background-color:" |
|House of Representatives
|Jeff Backer
|Republican
|District 12A
|-
| style="background-color:" |
|House of Representatives
|Paul Anderson
|Republican
|District 12B
|}
{| class="wikitable"
|+U.S Congress (2018-2020)
! colspan="2" |Position
!Name
!Affiliation
!District
|-
| style="background-color:" |
|House of Representatives
|Collin Peterson
|Democrat
|7th
|-
| style="background-color:" |
|Senate
|Amy Klobuchar
|Democrat
|N/A
|-
| style="background-color:" |
|Senate
|Tina Smith
|Democrat
|N/A
|}
See also
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Pope County, Minnesota