Norwegian Minnesotan facts for kids

A Norwegian Minnesotan is a person living in Minnesota who has Norwegian family roots. Many people in Minnesota have Norwegian heritage. In 2009, about 868,361 Minnesotans said they had Norwegian ancestors. That's about 16.5% of everyone living in Minnesota! It also means that almost one-fifth of all Norwegian Americans in the United States live in Minnesota.

History

Where Norwegians Settled

Many Norwegian settlers arrived and lived in various other locations in the United States before permanently settling in Minnesota.

Minneapolis has the largest concentration of Norwegians outside Norway, at 42,469.

Many Norwegian settlers first came to the United States. They often lived in other parts of the Midwest. The very first Norwegian settlement in Minnesota was called Norwegian Ridge. This area is now known as Spring Grove, Minnesota.

As more Norwegians arrived in America, the first settlements grew very quickly. Because of this, many Norwegian families started moving west. They looked for new places where land was easy to find and not too expensive. This led to the creation of many new Norwegian communities.

Norwegian settlement in Minnesota grew a lot after the American Civil War. It also increased after the U.S.-Dakota War of 1862. This was especially true in the Minnesota River Valley. Land became available there through the Treaty of Traverse des Sioux. After the war, most of the Dakota people moved from Minnesota. This allowed more European settlers to move in quickly.

Because land in Minnesota was available, it was cheap for European immigrants. Soon, the number of immigrants in Minnesota grew very fast. Norwegians settled all over the state. Their first permanent homes were in the southeast.

The first Norwegian settlement was Norwegian Ridge. This is in Spring Grove, Minnesota, in Houston County, Minnesota. Another early settlement was in Goodhue County, Minnesota in 1851. They also settled in Fillmore County, Minnesota.

By 1860, about half of Minnesota's 12,000 Norwegians lived in Goodhue, Fillmore, and Houston Counties. Ten years later, these three counties were home to almost 25,000 of Minnesota's 50,000 Norwegian residents. By 1880, Norwegians had also settled in Freeborn, Steele, and Waseca counties.

Norwegians also made homes in Blue Earth, Brown, and Watonwan counties. They also settled in Lac qui Parle County, the Park Region in west-central Minnesota, and the prairies of southwestern Minnesota.

Immigrants also moved to the Red River Valley in northwestern Minnesota. They settled in Clay, Marshall, Norman, and Polk counties. In the early 1870s, the St. Paul and Pacific Railroad helped more people move to the Red River Valley. By 1875, Norwegian immigrants made up 30% of the total population in Polk and Clay counties. Later, immigrants also settled in Grant, Pennington, Red Lake, Roseau, and Kittson counties.

Duluth was a popular spot for Norwegian immigrants. Its location on Lake Superior offered many jobs for Norwegian fishermen. Because of this, the number of Norwegians in Duluth grew a lot between 1870 and 1900. In 1870, there were 242 Norwegians in Duluth. By 1900, there were 7,500 people of Norwegian background.

By the mid-1880s, more Norwegians started moving to cities in Minnesota. Many Norwegian immigrants came to Minneapolis from the 1880s to the early 1900s. A smaller number also moved to St. Paul.

Who Are Norwegian Minnesotans?

In 2000, about 850,742 people in Minnesota said they had Norwegian ancestry. About 48.8% of them were male, and 51.2% were female. The average age for Norwegian Minnesotans was 36. This was similar to the average age for all Minnesotans.

The table below shows how the number of Norwegian Minnesotans has changed over the years. It also shows what percentage they make up of Minnesota's total population and of all Norwegian Americans.

Where Do They Live?

Norwegian Minnesotans live all over the state. Some towns and counties have a very high percentage of people with Norwegian roots.

Top Towns with Norwegian Ancestry

Here are the 25 Minnesota towns with the highest percentage of people who say they have Norwegian ancestry:

• Fertile, Minnesota 54.4%
• Spring Grove, Minnesota 52.0%
• Twin Valley, Minnesota 49.9%
• Rushford, Minnesota 46.5%
• Starbuck, Minnesota 45.0%
• Hawley, Minnesota 44.5%
• Ada, Minnesota 42.9%
• Ulen, Minnesota 42.2%
• Dawson, Minnesota 42.2%
• Fosston, Minnesota 42.1%
• Bagley, Minnesota 41.0%
• Karlstad, Minnesota 39.4%
• Thief River Falls, Minnesota 39.0%
• Dane Prairie Township, Otter Tail County, Minnesota 39.0%
• Madison, Minnesota 38.8%
• Harmony, Minnesota 38.4%
• Sparta Township, Minnesota 38.1%
• Clarkfield, Minnesota 38.0%
• Wanamingo, Minnesota 38.0%
• Lake Park, Minnesota 37.2%
• Montevideo, Minnesota 35.9%
• Dunn Township, Minnesota 35.2%
• Cormorant Township, Minnesota 34.9%
• Oakport, Minnesota 34.3%
• Houston, Minnesota 34.1%

Top Counties with Norwegian Ancestry

These are the 25 Minnesota counties with the highest percentage of residents claiming Norwegian ancestry:

• Norman County, Minnesota 58.9%
• Pennington County, Minnesota 50.6%
• Lac qui Parle County, Minnesota 47.9%
• Marshall County, Minnesota 46.9%
• Grant County, Minnesota 43.8%
• Polk County, Minnesota 43.3%
• Clearwater County, Minnesota 42.6%
• Roseau County, Minnesota 42.3%
• Clay County, Minnesota 42.2%
• Pope County, Minnesota 39.7%
• Chippewa County, Minnesota 39.4%
• Fillmore County, Minnesota 39.0%
• Yellow Medicine County, Minnesota 38.9%
• Freeborn County, Minnesota 37.1%
• Kittson County, Minnesota 35.4%
• Red Lake County, Minnesota 33.9%
• Houston County, Minnesota 33.4%
• Swift County, Minnesota 33.4%
• Otter Tail County, Minnesota 32.9%
• Wilkin County, Minnesota 32.2%
• Becker County, Minnesota 28.7%
• Dodge County, Minnesota 28.6%
• Kandiyohi County, Minnesota 28.6%
• Douglas County, Minnesota 27.1%
• Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota 27.0%

Notable People