🦆Minnesota

The North Star State · Land of 10,000 Lakes

Minnesota is the northernmost U.S. state outside Alaska and contains the headwaters of the Mississippi River at Lake Itasca. The state's nickname understates the case — there are actually more than 11,000 lakes of ten acres or larger. The Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul form the cultural and economic anchor, and the state's Scandinavian and German heritage still shapes its politics, food, and Midwestern nice.

Sioux and Ojibwe Lands

The Dakota (Sioux) peoples occupied the prairies and forests of what is now Minnesota for centuries. The Ojibwe (Anishinaabe) migrated into the region from the east in the 1600s, contesting territory with the Dakota. French fur traders reached the area in the 1600s, giving Minnesota many of its French place names. The region was variously French, British, and Spanish before becoming U.S. territory.

Mississippi Headwaters

The Mississippi River begins as a shallow stream flowing out of Lake Itasca in Minnesota's northern woods — a spot first identified as the headwaters in 1832. From Itasca, the river flows 2,340 miles to the Gulf of Mexico. Visitors can walk across the infant Mississippi on stepping stones at Itasca State Park.

Iron Range and Flour

The Mesabi Range in northeastern Minnesota has been one of the most productive iron ore regions in the world. At its peak it supplied most of the iron used in American steel. Further south, Minneapolis became the flour-milling capital of the world in the late 1800s, with mills along St. Anthony Falls grinding wheat from the northern plains. Gold Medal Flour and Pillsbury both originated at those mills.

Lakes, Loons, and Winter

Minnesota's official nickname is the North Star State, but "Land of 10,000 Lakes" appears on the license plates. The state's climate is famously cold — International Falls often records the lowest temperature in the lower 48 in winter — and winter recreation (ice fishing, cross-country skiing, hockey) is central to Minnesota identity. The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness preserves more than a million acres of lakes and forests along the Canadian border.

Minnesota Facts

• Minnesota is the only U.S. state with a French motto.
• The Mall of America in Bloomington is the largest shopping mall in the country.
• Hubert Humphrey and Walter Mondale — both U.S. vice presidents and Democratic presidential nominees — represented Minnesota in the Senate.
• The state produces roughly 90% of the American sugar beet crop.
• The Peanuts comic strip was created by Minnesota native Charles M. Schulz.

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