Nicollet County, Minnesota

Nicollet County is a county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 34,454. Its county seat is St. Peter.

Nicollet County is part of the Mankato – North Mankato Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History
In 1849 the Minnesota Territory legislature defined the boundaries of nine future counties. One of those, Dakota, contained the area north of the Minnesota River where it altered its flow from southeast to northeast. In 1853 the first settler had homesteaded an area on the northeast run of the river, and the following year the settlement of Saint Peter was platted there. Seeing the inflow of settlers into the areas adjoining the river, on March 5, 1853, the territorial legislature partitioned off the lower portion of Dakota County to form a separate entity. It was named for Joseph Nicolas Nicollet (1786-1843), a French explorer whose maps of the area had been instrumental in the territory's development. The county seat was established at Saint Peter.

Significant fighting occurred in the county during the 1862 Dakota War, most notably at the Battle of Fort Ridgely.

Geography
The Minnesota River flows eastward along the southern border of Nicollet County, from its northwestern corner to its northeastern corner, defining the county's southern line. The county terrain consists of low rolling hills, completely devoted to agriculture where possible. The terrain slopes to the east. The county has an area of 467 sqmi, of which 448 sqmi is land and 18 sqmi (3.9%) is water.

Nicollet County's highest point is the lowest high point of all Minnesota counties, with an elevation of 1,065 feet. The county's high point is east of Clear Lake and west of the town of Lafayette.

Major highways

 * [[Image:US 14.svg|20px]] US Highway 14
 * [[Image:US 169 (MN).svg|20px]] US Highway 169
 * [[Image:MN-4.svg|20px]] Minnesota State Highway 4
 * [[Image:MN-15.svg|20px]] Minnesota State Highway 15
 * [[Image:MN-22.svg|20px]] Minnesota State Highway 22
 * [[Image:MN-60.svg|20px]] Minnesota State Highway 60
 * [[Image:MN-99.svg|20px]] Minnesota State Highway 99
 * [[Image:MN-111.svg|20px]] Minnesota State Highway 111
 * List of county roads

Adjacent counties

 * Sibley County - north
 * Le Sueur County - east
 * Blue Earth County - (southeast)
 * Brown County - southwest
 * Renville County - northwest

Protected areas

 * Fort Ridgely State Park (part)
 * Minneopa State Park (part)
 * Seven Mile Creek County Park

Lakes

 * Annexstad Lake
 * Erickson Lake
 * Middle Lake
 * Oak Leaf Lake
 * Overson Lake
 * Rice Lake
 * Sand Lake
 * Swan Lake

2000 census
As of the 2000 census, there were 29,771 people, 10,642 households, and 7,311 families in the county. The population density was 66.5 /mi2. There were 11,240 housing units at an average density of 25.1 /mi2. The racial makeup of the county was 96.37% White, 0.80% Black or African American, 0.26% Native American, 1.14% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.65% from other races, and 0.75% from two or more races. 1.80% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 49.2% were of German, 13.3% Norwegian, 6.8% Swedish and 5.4% Irish ancestry.

There were 10,642 households, out of which 35.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.50% were married couples living together, 7.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.30% were non-families. 24.00% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.56 and the average family size was 3.05.

The county population contained 24.70% under the age of 18, 16.40% from 18 to 24, 26.90% from 25 to 44, 21.20% from 45 to 64, and 10.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.90 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $46,170, and the median income for a family was $55,694. Males had a median income of $36,236 versus $25,344 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,517. About 4.30% of families and 7.50% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.70% of those under age 18 and 8.00% of those age 65 or over.

Cities

 * Courtland
 * Lafayette
 * Mankato (partly in Blue Earth County)
 * Nicollet
 * North Mankato (partly in Blue Earth County)
 * St. Peter (county seat)

Unincorporated communities

 * Bernadotte
 * Klossner
 * New Sweden
 * Norseland
 * North Star
 * Oshawa
 * St. George
 * Traverse

Ghost town

 * West Newton

Townships

 * Belgrade Township
 * Bernadotte Township
 * Brighton Township
 * Courtland Township
 * Granby Township
 * Lafayette Township
 * Lake Prairie Township
 * New Sweden Township
 * Nicollet Township
 * Oshawa Township
 * Ridgely Township
 * Traverse Township
 * West Newton Township

Government and politics
Nicollet County has been politically balanced in past decades. Since 1976 the county has selected the Democratic and Republican Party candidates in equal measure in national elections (as of 2020). It has backed the nationwide winner in every election since 1980 except for 2004, and even then, losing Democrat John Kerry only beat incumbent Republican George W. Bush in the county by just 108 votes.