Watonwan County, Minnesota facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Watonwan County
U.S. county
Watonwan County Courthouse
Location within the U.S. state of Minnesota
Minnesota's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Minnesota
Founded	February 25, 1860
Named for	Watonwan River
Seat	St. James
Largest city	St. James
Area
• Total	440 sq mi (1,100 km2)
• Land	435 sq mi (1,130 km2)
• Water	4.8 sq mi (12 km2)  1.1%%
Population  (2020)
• Total	11,253
• Estimate  (2021)	11,135
• Density	25.9/sq mi (10.0/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	1st

Watonwan County is a county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 11,253. Its county seat is St. James.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 440 square miles (1,100 km²), of which 435 square miles (1,130 km²) is land and 4.8 square miles (12 km²) (1.1%) is water. The county is drained by the Watonwan River and its tributaries; the river flows eastwardly through the northern part of the county.

Major highways

• Minnesota State Highway 4
• Minnesota State Highway 15
• Minnesota State Highway 30
• Minnesota State Highway 60

Lakes

• Bergdahl Lake: in Madelia Township
• Bullhead Lake: in Rosendale Township
• Butterfield Lake: in Butterfield Township
• Case Lake: in Fieldon Township
• Cottonwood Lake: in Adrian Township
• Ewy Lake: in Butterfield Township
• Fedji Lake: in Madelia Township
• Irish Lake: in Odin Township
• Long Lake: in Long Lake Township
• Mary Lake: in Long Lake Township
• Mud Lake: in Odin Township
• Kansas Lake: in Long Lake Township
• School Lake: in Odin Township
• St. James Lake: in St. James Township
• Sulem Lake: in Odin Township
• Wilson Lake: in Madelia Township (mistakenly referred to as School Lake by some records)
• Wood Lake: mostly in Adrian Township, but the northern fifth stretches into Brown County

Adjacent counties

• Brown County (north)
• Blue Earth County (east)
• Martin County (south)
• Jackson County (southwest)
• Cottonwood County (west)

Demographics

Age pyramid of county residents based on 2000 U.S. census data

As of the census of 2000, there were 11,876 people, 4,627 households, and 3,141 families residing in the county. The population density was 27 people per square mile (11/km²). There were 5,036 housing units at an average density of 12 per square mile (4/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 88.54% White, 0.37% Black or African American, 0.21% Native American, 0.87% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 8.78% from other races, and 1.21% from two or more races. 15.19% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 40.9% were of German, 17.3% Norwegian and 5.8% Swedish ancestry.

There were 4,627 households out of which 32.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.60% were married couples living together, 7.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.10% were non-families. 28.70% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.10.

In the county, the population was spread out with 27.60% under the age of 18, 7.80% from 18 to 24, 24.30% from 25 to 44, 21.70% from 45 to 64, and 18.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 95.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.50 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $35,441, and the median income for a family was $42,321. Males had a median income of $29,242 versus $19,788 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,413. About 7.80% of families and 9.80% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.50% of those under age 18 and 8.80% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

Townships

Unincorporated communities

• Echols
• Godahl (partial)
• Grogan
• South Branch
• Sveadahl
• Tenmile Corner