# Itasca County, Minnesota

Itasca County (/aɪˈtæskə/ eye-TASS-kə) is a county located in the Iron Range region of the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 45,014. Its county seat is Grand Rapids. The county is named after Lake Itasca, which is in turn a shortened version of the Latin words veritas caput, meaning 'truth' and 'head', a reference to the source of the Mississippi River. Portions of the Bois Forte and Leech Lake Indian reservations are in the county.

## History

The boundary of Itasca County was first formed in 1849, upon the creation of the Minnesota Territory. It was originally a much larger county, which covered many of today's northeastern Minnesota counties. The original Itasca County stretched over Cook, Lake, Saint Louis, Koochiching, eastern Lake of the Woods, eastern Beltrami, Itasca, northern Aitkin, and northern Carlton counties, today in Minnesota.
Itasca County was originally named for Lake Itasca (no longer in the county's present borders), which was determined to be the true source of the Mississippi River. After many disputes over finding the source of the Mississippi River, Henry Schoolcraft set out to find its true source in 1832. Once he came upon its true source, he decided to name this 'Lake Itasca.' The Mississippi River flows from its small beginnings at Lake Itasca, where it can be crossed on foot. It flows past Bemidji, through Itasca County, and continues to the Gulf of Mexico.

## Geography

The terrain of Itasca County is hilly, heavily wooded, and studded with lakes and ponds. It generally slopes to the east, with its highest areas on its upper west border, at 1,437 ft (438 m) ASL. The county has a total area of 2,928 square miles (7,580 km$^2$), of which 2,668 square miles (6,910 km$^2$) is land and 260 square miles (670 km$^2$) (8.9%) is water. It is the third-largest county in Minnesota by land area.
The landscape in Itasca County varies greatly. The low plains, rolling hills, and wetlands occur where there was glacial activity in the past. This area is known greatly for being forested, and has been for centuries. The different forests are made up of trees such as pines, spruces, hardwoods, cedar, and tamarack. The many large forests in the area make forestry and logging major sectors in the economy.
In Itasca County there are many different bodies of water from big lakes, to small creeks, to major rivers. Over 1400 lakes are located within the county. These bodies of water help support many different wildlife species such as different birds and small mammals. Major bodies of water in the county include Lake Winnibigoshish, Pokegama Lake, Deer Lake, the Mississippi River, Bowstring Lake, and the Blandin Paper Mill Reservoir.

### Major highways

* U.S. Highway 2
* U.S. Highway 71
* U.S. Highway 169
* Minnesota State Highway 1
* Minnesota State Highway 6
* Minnesota State Highway 38
* Minnesota State Highway 46
* Minnesota State Highway 65
* Minnesota State Highway 286

### Adjacent counties

* Koochiching County - north
* Saint Louis County - east
* Aitkin County - south
* Cass County - southwest
* Beltrami County - west

### Protected areas

Source:
* Big Fork State Forest
* Botany Bog Scientific and Natural Area
* Chippewa National Forest (part)
* George Washington State Forest (part)
* Golden Anniversary State Forest
* Marcell Experimental Forest
* Scenic State Park

## Demographics
### 2020 Census

Itasca County Racial Composition :
| Race | Num. | Perc. |
| White (NH) | 40,166 | 89.23% |
| Black or African American (NH) | 174 | 0.4% |
| Native American (NH) | 1,497 | 3.33% |
| Asian (NH) | 145 | 0.32% |
| Pacific Islander (NH) | 2 | 0.004% |
| Other/Mixed (NH) | 2,412 | 5.4% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 618 | 1.4% |

### 2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 43,992 people, 17,789 households, and 12,381 families in the county. The population density was 16.5 per square mile (6.4/km$^2$). There were 24,528 housing units at an average density of 9.19 per square mile (3.55/km$^2$). The racial makeup of the county was 94.64% White, 0.16% Black or African American, 3.40% Native American, 0.27% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.16% from other races, and 1.34% from two or more races. 0.60% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 25.6% were of German, 13.8% Norwegian, 7.7% Finnish, 7.2% Swedish, 6.2% Irish, 5.0% United States or American and 5.0% English ancestry.
There were 17,789 households, out of which 29.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.30% were married couples living together, 7.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.40% were non-families. 26.00% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 2.91.
The county population contained 24.40% under the age of 18, 7.60% from 18 to 24, 24.40% from 25 to 44, 26.70% from 45 to 64, and 16.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 99.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.20 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $36,234, and the median income for a family was $44,025. Males had a median income of $37,066 versus $22,327 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,717. About 7.70% of families and 10.60% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.60% of those under age 18 and 8.80% of those age 65 or over.

## Communities
### Cities

* Bigfork
* Bovey
* Calumet
* Cohasset
* Coleraine
* Deer River
* Effie
* Grand Rapids (county seat)
* Keewatin
* La Prairie
* Marble
* Nashwauk
* Squaw Lake
* Taconite
* Warba
* Zemple

### Census-designated places

* Ball Club
* Inger

### Unincorporated communities

* Alvwood
* Bass Lake
* Bear River
* Bergville
* Blackberry
* Bowstring
* Dora Lake
* Dunbar
* Goodland
* Grattan
* Gunn
* Houpt
* Jessie Lake
* Mack
* Marcell
* Martin
* Max
* Orth
* Pengilly
* Pomroy
* Rosy
* Spring Lake
* Suomi
* Swan River
* Talmoon
* Togo
* Wawina
* Wirt

### Townships

* Alvwood Township
* Arbo Township
* Ardenhurst Township
* Balsam Township
* Bearville Township
* Bigfork Township
* Blackberry Township
* Bowstring Township
* Carpenter Township
* Deer River Township
* Feeley Township
* Good Hope Township
* Goodland Township
* Grand Rapids Township
* Grattan Township
* Greenway Township
* Harris Township
* Iron Range Township
* Kinghurst Township
* Lake Jessie Township
* Lawrence Township
* Lone Pine Township
* Marcell Township
* Max Township
* Moose Park Township
* Morse Township
* Nashwauk Township
* Nore Township
* Oteneagen Township
* Pomroy Township
* Sago Township
* Sand Lake Township
* Spang Township
* Splithand Township
* Stokes Township
* Third River Township
* Trout Lake Township
* Wabana Township
* Wawina Township
* Wildwood Township
* Wirt Township

### Unorganized territories

* Bowstring Lake
* Deer Lake
* Effie
* Liberty
* Little Sand Lake
* Northeast Itasca

## Politics

Itasca County voters tended to vote strongly Democratic for about 80 years following the Great Depression, selecting the Democratic nominee in every election from 1932 through 2012, along with fellow Iron Range counties St. Louis County, Carlton County, and Lake County. However, in 2016, the county swung hard towards Donald Trump, voting Republican for the first time since 1928 and doing so by giving him a healthy majority of 54.1%. In 2020, it voted for Trump once again, giving him an increased vote share of 57.4%, making it the first time the county had voted Republican two elections in a row since 1924 and 1928.
United States presidential election results for Itasca County, Minnesota :
| Year | Republican | Republican | Democratic | Democratic | Third party(ies) | Third party(ies) |
| Year | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % |
| 2024 | 15,863 | 59.10% | 10,467 | 39.00% | 510 | 1.90% |
| 2020 | 15,239 | 57.37% | 10,786 | 40.61% | 536 | 2.02% |
| 2016 | 12,920 | 54.10% | 9,015 | 37.75% | 1,945 | 8.14% |
| 2012 | 10,501 | 43.90% | 12,852 | 53.73% | 566 | 2.37% |
| 2008 | 10,309 | 42.26% | 13,460 | 55.18% | 626 | 2.57% |
| 2004 | 10,705 | 43.93% | 13,290 | 54.54% | 372 | 1.53% |
| 2000 | 9,545 | 43.96% | 10,583 | 48.74% | 1,586 | 7.30% |
| 1996 | 6,506 | 31.78% | 10,706 | 52.29% | 3,261 | 15.93% |
| 1992 | 5,952 | 28.56% | 9,621 | 46.17% | 5,265 | 25.27% |
| 1988 | 8,358 | 43.87% | 10,517 | 55.20% | 178 | 0.93% |
| 1984 | 9,306 | 44.42% | 11,455 | 54.68% | 187 | 0.89% |
| 1980 | 8,368 | 37.65% | 12,134 | 54.59% | 1,726 | 7.76% |
| 1976 | 6,646 | 32.77% | 12,979 | 64.00% | 656 | 3.23% |
| 1972 | 7,558 | 45.58% | 8,683 | 52.36% | 342 | 2.06% |
| 1968 | 4,898 | 30.22% | 10,512 | 64.86% | 796 | 4.91% |
| 1964 | 4,137 | 25.49% | 12,054 | 74.27% | 40 | 0.25% |
| 1960 | 6,615 | 38.00% | 10,761 | 61.82% | 32 | 0.18% |
| 1956 | 6,408 | 42.22% | 8,737 | 57.56% | 33 | 0.22% |
| 1952 | 6,573 | 41.65% | 9,128 | 57.84% | 81 | 0.51% |
| 1948 | 4,334 | 29.45% | 9,653 | 65.60% | 729 | 4.95% |
| 1944 | 4,227 | 32.28% | 8,787 | 67.10% | 81 | 0.62% |
| 1940 | 5,196 | 34.06% | 9,899 | 64.89% | 159 | 1.04% |
| 1936 | 3,594 | 28.04% | 8,896 | 69.40% | 329 | 2.57% |
| 1932 | 3,782 | 36.94% | 5,616 | 54.86% | 839 | 8.20% |
| 1928 | 5,103 | 58.95% | 3,122 | 36.07% | 431 | 4.98% |
| 1924 | 4,961 | 60.10% | 496 | 6.01% | 2,798 | 33.89% |
| 1920 | 3,973 | 58.31% | 1,930 | 28.33% | 910 | 13.36% |
| 1916 | 1,163 | 36.89% | 1,504 | 47.70% | 486 | 15.41% |
| 1912 | 446 | 16.59% | 699 | 25.99% | 1,544 | 57.42% |
| 1908 | 1,883 | 63.15% | 684 | 22.94% | 415 | 13.92% |
| 1904 | 1,796 | 77.02% | 293 | 12.56% | 243 | 10.42% |
| 1900 | 770 | 63.32% | 413 | 33.96% | 33 | 2.71% |
| 1896 | 826 | 52.91% | 724 | 46.38% | 11 | 0.70% |
| 1892 | 520 | 40.66% | 686 | 53.64% | 73 | 5.71% |