Minnesota - Twin Cities, the Iron Range, and 5.7 Million Residents
Minnesota covers 86,936 square miles and holds about 5.7 million people, more than half of them concentrated in the Twin Cities metropolitan area around Minneapolis and St. Paul. The state markets itself as the Land of 10,000 Lakes, though the actual number of lakes larger than ten acres is closer to 11,800. The Mississippi River begins at Lake Itasca in the north-central part of the state and flows south through Minneapolis and St. Paul before leaving for Iowa. Duluth, on the western tip of Lake Superior, is the furthest inland saltwater-capable port in North America, accessible from the Atlantic through the St. Lawrence Seaway.
The Twin Cities economy is unusually diversified for an inland metro area. Minneapolis and St. Paul together host the headquarters of 3M, Target, Best Buy, General Mills, U.S. Bancorp, Ecolab, Xcel Energy, and UnitedHealth Group. Rochester, 85 miles southeast of Minneapolis, is built around the Mayo Clinic, which employs more than 40,000 people in the city and treats more than a million patients a year. The Mayo complex drives a concentration of medical research and specialty care that serves patients from across the country and internationally.
The Iron Range in the northeastern part of Minnesota was once the world's leading source of iron ore. The Mesabi Range still produces taconite pellets for steelmaking, though employment has declined sharply from mid-century peaks. Agriculture dominates the southern and western counties, with corn, soybeans, sugar beets, dairy, and turkeys as the main products. Minnesota is the leading turkey-producing state in the country.
The North Shore of Lake Superior from Duluth to the Canadian border is a tourism draw built around state parks, waterfalls, and the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. The BWCAW spans more than a million acres along the Ontario border and is one of the most visited wilderness areas in the National Forest system.
Show more
Minnesota covers 86,936 square miles and holds about 5.7 million people, more than half of them concentrated in the Twin Cities metropolitan area around Minneapolis and St. Paul. The state markets itself as the Land of 10,000 Lakes, though the actual number of lakes larger than ten acres is closer to 11,800. The Mississippi River begins at Lake Itasca in the north-central part of the state and flows south through Minneapolis and St. Paul before leaving for Iowa. Duluth, on the western tip of Lake Superior, is the furthest inland saltwater-capable port in North America, accessible from the Atlantic through the St. Lawrence Seaway.
The Twin Cities economy is unusually diversified for an inland metro area. Minneapolis and St. Paul together host the headquarters of 3M, Target, Best Buy, General Mills, U.S. Bancorp, Ecolab, Xcel Energy, and UnitedHealth Group. Rochester, 85 miles southeast of Minneapolis, is built around the Mayo Clinic, which employs more than 40,000 people in the city and treats more than a million patients a year. The Mayo complex drives a concentration of medical research and specialty care that serves patients from across the country and internationally.
The Iron Range in the northeastern part of Minnesota was once the world's leading source of iron ore. The Mesabi Range still produces taconite pellets for steelmaking, though employment has declined sharply from mid-century peaks. Agriculture dominates the southern and western counties, with corn, soybeans, sugar beets, dairy, and turkeys as the main products. Minnesota is the leading turkey-producing state in the country.
The North Shore of Lake Superior from Duluth to the Canadian border is a tourism draw built around state parks, waterfalls, and the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. The BWCAW spans more than a million acres along the Ontario border and is one of the most visited wilderness areas in the National Forest system.
Country selected
Region selected
Optional — select or proceed
