Yellow Medicine County is a county in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Minnesota. Its eastern border is formed by the Minnesota River. As of the 2020 census, the population was 9,528. Its county seat is Granite Falls.
The Upper Sioux Indian Reservation, related to the historical Yellow Medicine Agency that was here, is entirely within the county. It was established under the Treaty of Traverse des Sioux in 1851, by which the Dakota ceded much territory in the region to the United States.
History
alt=Looking down the river with natural embankments of trees and brush|left|thumb|220x220px|Yellow Medicine River
The county was established by the Minnesota legislature on March 6, 1871, with Granite Falls as the county seat. Its name comes from Yellow Medicine River, which runs through the eastern part of the county to the Minnesota. The river's name derives from the moonseed plant, Menispermum canadense, whose yellow root the native Dakota people used for medicinal purposes.
It was proposed in 1878 to create a new county, taken from the western portions of Yellow Medicine, Lincoln, and Lac qui Parle counties. The state legislature approved the petition (subject to local voter approval), and Governor Pillsbury signed the act on February 27, 1879, but the proposal failed to garner a combined majority of votes in the three counties, and the proposed Canby County did not come into being.
Geography
Yellow Medicine County lies on the west side of Minnesota. Its west border abuts the state of South Dakota. The Minnesota River flows east-southeast along the county's northeast side on its way to discharge into the Mississippi River. The Yellow Medicine River flows northeast through the eastern part of the county, discharging into the Minnesota near the midpoint of the county's eastern border. The Stony Run Creek flows east through the northeast part of the county; the Florida Creek flows northeast through the west end of the county, and the Lac qui Parle River also flows northeast through the west central part of the county. The county terrain consists of rolling hills, carved by drainages. The area is devoted to agriculture. The terrain slopes to the east and slightly to the north; its highest point is on the west border, near its SW corner, at ASL. The county has an area of , of which is land and (0.5%) is water.
Lakes
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)
|13,458
|11,465
|10,569
|9,581
|style='background: #ffffe6; |8,408
|98.57%
|98.13%
|95.39%
|91.79%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |88.25%
|-
|Black or African American alone (NH)
|0
|3
|9
|15
|style='background: #ffffe6; |48
|0.00%
|0.03%
|0.08%
|0.14%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.50%
|-
|Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)
|96
|114
|224
|301
|style='background: #ffffe6; |276
|0.70%
|0.98%
|2.02%
|2.88%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |2.90%
|-
|Asian alone (NH)
|30
|19
|18
|30
|style='background: #ffffe6; |28
|0.22%
|0.16%
|0.16%
|0.29%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.29%
|-
|Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)
|x
|x
|1
|2
|style='background: #ffffe6; |1
|x
|x
|0.01%
|0.02%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.01%
|-
|Other race alone (NH)
|5
|1
|2
|8
|style='background: #ffffe6; |4
|0.04%
|0.01%
|0.02%
|0.08%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.04%
|-
|Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)
|x
|x
|62
|104
|style='background: #ffffe6; |315
|x
|x
|0.56%
|1.00%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |3.31%
|-
|Hispanic or Latino (any race)
|64
|82
|195
|397
|style='background: #ffffe6; |448
|0.47%
|0.70%
|1.76%
|3.80%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |4.70%
|-
|Total
|13,653
|11,684
|11,080
|10,438
|style='background: #ffffe6; |9,528
|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 9,528. The median age was 42.9 years. 22.9% of residents were under the age of 18 and 21.3% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 101.1 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 101.5 males age 18 and over.
The racial makeup of the county was 89.5% White, 0.6% Black or African American, 3.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 2.1% from some other race, and 4.5% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 4.7% of the population.
There were 4,040 households in the county, of which 26.8% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 51.8% were married-couple households, 19.9% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 21.0% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 30.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.3% 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
|Greg Renneke
|District 1
|-
|
|Commissioner
|John Berends
|District 2
|-
|
|Commissioner
|Mitch Kling
|District 3
|-
|
|Commissioner
|Ron Antony
|District 4
|-
|
|Commissioner
|Glen Kack
|District 5
|}
{| class="wikitable"
|+State Legislature (2018-2020)
! colspan="2" |Position
!Name
!Affiliation
!District
|-
| style="background-color:" |
|Senate
|Gary Dahms
|Republican
|District 16
|-
| style="background-color:" |
|House of Representatives
|Chris Swedzinski
|Republican
|District 16A
|}
{| class="wikitable"
|+U.S Congress (2018-2020)
! colspan="2" |Position
!Name
!Affiliation
!District
|-
| style="background-color:" |
|House of Representatives
|Michelle Fischbach
|Republican
|7th
|-
| style="background-color:" |
|Senate
|Amy Klobuchar
|Democratic
|N/A
|-
| style="background-color:" |
|Senate
|Tina Smith
|Democratic
|N/A
|}
See also
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Yellow Medicine County, Minnesota
References
External links
- Yellow Medicine County
- Yellow Medicine County. RootsWeb.com