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The Minnesota Portal

The Flag of Minnesota

Minnesota (/ˌmɪnəˈstə/ MIN-ə-SOH-tə) is a state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the south, and North Dakota and South Dakota to the west. It is the 12th-largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd-most populous, with about 5.7 million residents. Minnesota is known as the "Land of 10,000 Lakes" but actually has 14,380 bodies of fresh water covering at least ten acres each; roughly a third of the state is forested; much of the remainder is prairie and farmland. More than 60% of Minnesotans (about 3.7 million) live in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area, known as the "Twin Cities", the state's main political, economic, and cultural hub and the 16th-largest metropolitan area in the U.S. Other minor metropolitan and micropolitan statistical areas include Duluth, Mankato, Moorhead, Rochester, and St. Cloud.

Minnesota, which gets its name from the Dakota language, has been inhabited by various Indigenous peoples since the Woodland period of the 11th century BCE. Between roughly 200 and 500 CE, two areas of the indigenous Hopewell tradition emerged: the Laurel complex in the north, and Trempealeau Hopewell in the Mississippi River Valley in the south. The Upper Mississippian culture, consisting of the Oneota people and other Siouan speakers, emerged around 1000 CE and lasted through the arrival of Europeans in the 17th century. French explorers and missionaries were the earliest Europeans to enter the region, encountering the Dakota, Ojibwe, and various Anishinaabe tribes. Much of what is now Minnesota formed part of the vast French holding of Louisiana, which the United States purchased in 1803. After several territorial reorganizations, the Minnesota Territory was admitted to the Union as the 32nd state in 1858. Minnesota's official motto, L'Étoile du Nord ("The Star of the North") is the only state motto in French; this phrase was adopted shortly after statehood and reflects both the state's early French explorers and its position as the northernmost state in the contiguous U.S.

As part of the American frontier, Minnesota attracted settlers and homesteaders from across the country. Its growth was initially based on timber, agriculture, and railroad construction. Into the early 20th century, European immigrants arrived in significant numbers, particularly from Scandinavia, Germany, and Central Europe; many were linked to the failed revolutions of 1848, which partly influenced the state's development as a center of labor and social activism. Minnesota's rapid industrialization and urbanization precipitated major social, economic, and political changes in the late 19th and early 20th centuries; the state was at the forefront of labor rights, women's suffrage, and political reform. Consequently, Minnesota is unique among Midwestern states in being a relative stronghold of the Democratic Party, having voted for every Democratic presidential nominee since 1976, longer than any other U.S. state. (Full article...)

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Downtown Saint Paul with Harriet Island in the foreground

Saint Paul (often abbreviated St. Paul) is the capital of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County. Situated on high bluffs overlooking a bend in the Mississippi River, Saint Paul is a regional business hub and the center of Minnesota's government. The Minnesota State Capitol and the state government offices all sit on a hill close to the city's downtown district. One of the oldest cities in Minnesota, Saint Paul has several historic neighborhoods and landmarks, such as the Summit Avenue Neighborhood, the James J. Hill House, and the Cathedral of Saint Paul. Like the adjacent city of Minneapolis, Saint Paul is known for its cold, snowy winters and humid summers.

According to census estimates, in 2022 the city's population was 303,176, making it the 67th-most populous city in the United States, the 12th-most populous in the Midwest, and the second-most populous in Minnesota. Most of the city lies east of the Mississippi River near its confluence with the Minnesota River. Minneapolis is mostly across the Mississippi River to the west. Together, they are known as the "Twin Cities" and make up the core of the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area, the third most populous metropolitan area in the Midwest. (Full article...)
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Official portrait, 2013

Amy Jean Klobuchar (/ˈklbəʃɑːr/ KLOH-bə-shar; born May 25, 1960) is an American politician and lawyer serving as the senior United States senator from Minnesota, a seat she has held since 2007. A member of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL), Minnesota's affiliate of the Democratic Party, she previously served as the county attorney of Hennepin County, Minnesota.

Born in Plymouth, Minnesota, Klobuchar graduated from Yale University and the University of Chicago Law School. She was a partner at two Minneapolis law firms before being elected county attorney of Hennepin County in 1998, making her responsible for all criminal prosecution in Minnesota's most populous county. Klobuchar was first elected to the Senate in 2006, succeeding Mark Dayton to become Minnesota's first elected female United States senator. She was reelected by a landslide in 2012, winning 85 of the state's 87 counties. Klobuchar was reelected again in 2018. In 2009 and 2010, she was described as a "rising star" in the Democratic Party. (Full article...)
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Largest cities

2020 Rank City 2020 Census[1] 2010 Census[2] Change County
1 Minneapolis † 429,954 382,578 +12.38% Hennepin
2 Saint Paul †† 311,527 285,068 +9.28% Ramsey
3 Rochester † 121,395 106,769 +13.70% Olmsted
4 Bloomington 89,987 82,893 +8.56% Hennepin
5 Duluth † 86,697 86,265 +0.50% St. Louis
6 Brooklyn Park 86,478 75,781 +14.12% Hennepin
7 Plymouth 81,026 70,576 +14.81% Hennepin
8 Woodbury 75,102 61,961 +21.21% Washington
9 Maple Grove 70,253 61,567 +14.11% Hennepin
10 Blaine 70,222 57,186 +22.80% Anoka
Ramsey

 †  County seat
 ††  State capital and county seat

See List of cities in Minnesota for a full list.

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Sources

  1. ^ "United States Census Bureau". U.S. Census Bureau. August 12, 2021. Retrieved August 12, 2021.
  2. ^ "2010 Census Redistricting Data (Public Law 94-171) Summary File". American FactFinder2. U.S. Census Bureau, 2010 Census. Retrieved November 24, 2012.[dead link]
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