# Faribault County, Minnesota

Faribault County (/ˈfɛərboʊ/ FAIR-boh) is a county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 13,921. Its county seat is Blue Earth.

## History

The county was founded in 1855. It was named for Jean-Baptiste Faribault, a settler and French fur trader among the Sioux Indians.

## Geography

Faribault County lies on the south side of Minnesota. Its southern border abuts the north border of the state of Iowa. The Blue Earth River flows northerly through the west-central part of the county; it enters from Iowa as two branches, West Branch and Middle Branch, merging at 5 miles (8.0 km) into the county. It is joined by East Branch near the city of Blue Earth, thence flows northward into Blue Earth County. The Maple River flows west-northwestward through the upper central part of the county, entering from Freeborn County and exiting to Blue Earth County. The Cobb River also flows through the NE part of the county, from Freeborn to Blue Earth county.
The county terrain consists of semi-arid rolling hills, devoted to agriculture. The SE portion is a glacial moraine near Kiester, and is known as the Kiester Moraine. The county has an area of 722 square miles (1,870 km$^2$), of which 712 square miles (1,840 km$^2$) is land and 9.4 square miles (24 km$^2$) (1.3%) is water.

### Lakes

Source:
* Bass Lake (Delavan Twp)
* Hart Lake
* Minnesota Lake
* Rice Lake (Delavan Twp)
* Rice Lake (Foster Twp)
* South Walnut Lake
* Walnut Lake

### Airports

Source:
* Blue Earth Municipal Airport
* Wells Municipal Airport

### Major highways

* Interstate 90
* U.S. Highway 169
* Minnesota State Highway 22
* Minnesota State Highway 109

### Adjacent counties

* Blue Earth County - north
* Waseca County - northeast
* Freeborn County - east
* Winnebago County, Iowa - southeast
* Kossuth County, Iowa - southwest
* Martin County - west

### Protected areas

Source:
* Walnut Lake State Wildlife Management Area

## Demographics
### 2020 Census

Faribault County Racial Composition :
| Race | Num. | Perc. |
| White (NH) | 12,402 | 89.1% |
| Black or African American (NH) | 55 | 0.4% |
| Native American (NH) | 58 | 0.4% |
| Asian (NH) | 45 | 0.3% |
| Pacific Islander (NH) | 0 | 0% |
| Other/Mixed (NH) | 348 | 2.5% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 1,013 | 7.3% |

### 2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 16,181 people, 6,652 households, and 4,476 families in the county. The population density was 22.7 per square mile (8.8/km$^2$). There were 7,247 housing units at an average density of 10.2 per square mile (3.9/km$^2$). The racial makeup of the county was 97.11% White, 0.24% Black or African American, 0.19% Native American, 0.36% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 1.36% from other races, and 0.69% from two or more races. 3.50% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 45.5% were of German, 21.2% Norwegian and 5.1% Irish ancestry.
There were 6,652 households, out of which 28.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.80% were married couples living together, 6.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.70% were non-families. 29.70% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.93.
The county population contained 24.40% under the age of 18, 6.70% from 18 to 24, 23.20% from 25 to 44, 23.50% from 45 to 64, and 22.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 97.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.50 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $34,440, and the median income for a family was $41,793. Males had a median income of $28,990 versus $20,224 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,193. About 5.50% of families and 8.60% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.40% of those under age 18 and 10.20% of those age 65 or over.

## Communities
### Cities

* Blue Earth (county seat)
* Bricelyn
* Delavan
* Easton
* Elmore
* Frost
* Kiester
* Minnesota Lake (Partly in Blue Earth County)
* Walters
* Wells
* Winnebago

### Unincorporated communities

* Baroda
* Brush Creek
* Clayton (Ghost Town)
* Dell
* Guckeen
* Homedahl (Ghost Town)
* Huntley
* Marna
* Pilot Grove

### Townships

* Barber Township
* Blue Earth City Township
* Brush Creek Township
* Clark Township
* Delavan Township
* Dunbar Township
* Elmore Township
* Emerald Township
* Foster Township
* Jo Daviess Township
* Kiester Township
* Lura Township
* Minnesota Lake Township
* Pilot Grove Township
* Prescott Township
* Rome Township
* Seely Township
* Verona Township
* Walnut Lake Township
* Winnebago City Township

## Government and politics

Faribault County has primarily supported Republican Party candidates in presidential elections throughout its history. Only six times since 1892 has a Republican candidate failed to win the county in a presidential election, most recently Bob Dole in 1996.
United States presidential election results for Faribault County, Minnesota :
| Year | Republican | Republican | Democratic | Democratic | Third party(ies) | Third party(ies) |
| Year | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % |
| 2024 | 5,247 | 67.61% | 2,352 | 30.31% | 162 | 2.09% |
| 2020 | 5,191 | 65.59% | 2,531 | 31.98% | 192 | 2.43% |
| 2016 | 4,659 | 62.86% | 2,153 | 29.05% | 600 | 8.09% |
| 2012 | 4,104 | 53.21% | 3,407 | 44.17% | 202 | 2.62% |
| 2008 | 4,196 | 51.47% | 3,736 | 45.83% | 220 | 2.70% |
| 2004 | 4,794 | 55.22% | 3,767 | 43.39% | 120 | 1.38% |
| 2000 | 4,336 | 51.47% | 3,624 | 43.02% | 464 | 5.51% |
| 1996 | 3,272 | 39.60% | 3,817 | 46.20% | 1,173 | 14.20% |
| 1992 | 3,439 | 37.60% | 3,339 | 36.51% | 2,368 | 25.89% |
| 1988 | 4,846 | 55.07% | 3,879 | 44.08% | 75 | 0.85% |
| 1984 | 5,690 | 58.44% | 3,993 | 41.01% | 53 | 0.54% |
| 1980 | 6,206 | 59.21% | 3,620 | 34.54% | 655 | 6.25% |
| 1976 | 5,577 | 51.48% | 5,049 | 46.61% | 207 | 1.91% |
| 1972 | 6,503 | 64.05% | 3,519 | 34.66% | 131 | 1.29% |
| 1968 | 5,662 | 54.53% | 4,335 | 41.75% | 387 | 3.73% |
| 1964 | 4,817 | 44.71% | 5,946 | 55.18% | 12 | 0.11% |
| 1960 | 6,975 | 61.80% | 4,301 | 38.11% | 11 | 0.10% |
| 1956 | 6,886 | 65.80% | 3,554 | 33.96% | 25 | 0.24% |
| 1952 | 7,763 | 71.02% | 3,120 | 28.55% | 47 | 0.43% |
| 1948 | 4,619 | 46.13% | 5,261 | 52.54% | 134 | 1.34% |
| 1944 | 5,822 | 61.37% | 3,640 | 38.37% | 25 | 0.26% |
| 1940 | 6,816 | 62.13% | 4,099 | 37.36% | 56 | 0.51% |
| 1936 | 3,773 | 38.32% | 5,603 | 56.90% | 471 | 4.78% |
| 1932 | 4,148 | 46.65% | 4,590 | 51.62% | 154 | 1.73% |
| 1928 | 5,885 | 69.19% | 2,545 | 29.92% | 76 | 0.89% |
| 1924 | 4,682 | 58.11% | 578 | 7.17% | 2,797 | 34.72% |
| 1920 | 6,687 | 86.01% | 869 | 11.18% | 219 | 2.82% |
| 1916 | 2,184 | 61.71% | 1,123 | 31.73% | 232 | 6.56% |
| 1912 | 393 | 11.71% | 919 | 27.38% | 2,045 | 60.92% |
| 1908 | 2,305 | 61.81% | 1,039 | 27.86% | 385 | 10.32% |
| 1904 | 2,792 | 77.69% | 611 | 17.00% | 191 | 5.31% |
| 1900 | 2,910 | 70.61% | 936 | 22.71% | 275 | 6.67% |
| 1896 | 3,116 | 71.37% | 1,107 | 25.36% | 143 | 3.28% |
| 1892 | 1,992 | 58.01% | 1,070 | 31.16% | 372 | 10.83% |
County Board of Commissioners :
| Position | Name | District | Next Election |
| Commissioner | John Roper | District 1 | 2024 |
| Commissioner | Greg Young | District 2 | 2026 |
| Commissioner and Vice Chair | Bill Groskreutz | District 3 | 2024 |
| Commissioner | Tom Loveall | District 4 | 2023 |
| Commissioner and Chairperson | Bruce Anderson | District 5 | 2024 |
State Legislature (2021-2023) :
| Position | Name | Affiliation | District |
| Senate | Julie Rosen | Republican | District 23 |
| Senate | Gene Dornink | Republican | District 27 |
| House of Representatives | Bjorn Olson | Republican | District 23A |
| House of Representatives | Peggy Bennett | Republican | District 27A |
U.S Congress (2021-2023) :
| Position | Name | Affiliation | District |
| House of Representatives | Brad Finstad | Republican | 1st |
| Senate | Amy Klobuchar | Democrat | N/A |
| Senate | Tina Smith | Democrat | N/A |

## Education

School districts include:
* Alden-Conger Public School District
* Blue Earth Area Public Schools
* Granada-Huntley-East Chain School District
* Janesville-Waldorf-Pemberton School District
* Maple River School District
* United South Central School District
It also has the following state-operated schools:
* Minnesota State Academy for the Blind
* Minnesota State Academy for the Deaf