Swift County, Minnesota

Swift County, Minnesota
The Swift County Courthouse is one of several buildings in Benson on the National Register of Historic Places.
Map of Minnesota highlighting Swift County
Location in the U.S. state of Minnesota
Map of the United States highlighting Minnesota
Minnesota's location in the U.S.
Founded February 18, 1870[1]
Named for Henry Adoniram Swift[2]
Government
• Board Chair
Peter Peterson
Seat Benson
Largest city Benson
Area
 • Total 752 sq mi (1,948 km2)
 • Land 742 sq mi (1,922 km2)
 • Water 8.82 sq mi (23 km2), 1.3%
Population (est.)
 • (2016) 9,419
 • Density 10/sq mi (4/km2)
Congressional district 7th
Time zone Central: UTC−6/−5
Website www.swiftcounty.com

Swift County is a county located in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2010 census, the population was 9,783.[3] Its county seat is Benson.[4]

History

Swift County was established February 18, 1870. This county was named after Henry Adoniram Swift, the governor of Minnesota in 1863. It is located in the west central part of Minnesota and consists of 757 square miles (2,000 km2) with 3 tiers of 7 townships each. The Swift County Courthouse was built in 1897 and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976. The City of Benson is the County seat of Swift County. The railroad tracks run through the center of the town of Benson and divide the downtown business districts with parks on each side of the tracks.

The Indians had grievances against the government including delays in sending annuities which caused near starvation several times. In August, 1862, an Indian rebellion broke out in Minnesota. The warfare reached the settlements just getting started in the northeastern part of Swift County. By the latter part of September, 1862, the Indian War was almost over but the settlers hesitated to venture back to the prairie country of Swift County until 1865 when all danger was apparently over. Scandinavians and Germans were in decided majority among the early settlers. A number of them came with the honor and privileges of Civil War veterans.

In 1869, the St. Paul & Pacific Railroad had reached Willmar and the following year it arrived in Benson. The railroad company determined the number of future trading centers (Kerkhoven, DeGraff, Benson, Randall) in the county by locating sites at intervals of approximately 8 miles (13 km).

Historic buildings

Historical building in Swift County include:

Politics

Swift County was traditionally a Democratic stronghold, with the last Republican to win it before 2016 being Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1952.[5] A dramatic swing against the Democrats in the Rust Belt saw Donald Trump win the county over Hillary Clinton by 26%.

Presidential elections results
Presidential Elections Results[6]
Year Republican Democratic Third Parties
2016 59.3% 2,963 33.8% 1,686 6.9% 345
2012 43.9% 2,248 53.7% 2,751 2.3% 120
2008 41.7% 2,184 55.4% 2,907 2.9% 153
2004 43.3% 2,481 55.2% 3,165 1.6% 89
2000 43.7% 2,376 49.6% 2,698 6.7% 363
1996 28.9% 1,541 57.3% 3,054 13.8% 735
1992 26.8% 1,603 49.7% 2,980 23.5% 1,408
1988 37.2% 2,156 61.7% 3,579 1.1% 63
1984 44.6% 2,893 54.4% 3,531 1.0% 64
1980 43.1% 2,943 47.6% 3,245 9.3% 635
1976 32.4% 2,190 65.5% 4,428 2.1% 144
1972 40.4% 2,673 57.8% 3,823 1.8% 121
1968 38.4% 2,476 57.6% 3,716 4.0% 259
1964 32.7% 2,132 67.1% 4,380 0.2% 12
1960 41.1% 2,848 58.6% 4,062 0.3% 18
1956 41.4% 2,637 58.4% 3,720 0.1% 8
1952 51.4% 3,532 47.9% 3,291 0.7% 48
1948 32.6% 2,109 63.1% 4,082 4.3% 277
1944 42.9% 2,519 56.3% 3,310 0.8% 47
1940 41.6% 2,815 57.6% 3,899 0.8% 54
1936 27.0% 1,618 62.6% 3,749 10.3% 619
1932 22.6% 1,308 75.0% 4,339 2.3% 135
1928 49.7% 2,791 48.7% 2,733 1.6% 89
1924 33.6% 1,654 6.8% 334 59.6% 2,934
1920 70.2% 3,553 19.5% 985 10.3% 522
1916 50.2% 1,335 44.4% 1,181 5.4% 143
1912 16.9% 442 35.9% 937 47.2% 1,234
1908 56.2% 1,343 38.5% 921 5.3% 127
1904 76.4% 1,784 19.8% 462 3.9% 90
1900 55.3% 1,378 41.2% 1,028 3.5% 88
1896 49.8% 1,273 47.8% 1,222 2.4% 62
1892 37.4% 762 34.9% 712 27.7% 564

Geography

Soils of Swift County[7]
Soils of Monson Lake State Park area

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 752 square miles (1,950 km2), of which 742 square miles (1,920 km2) is land and 10 square miles (26 km2) (1.3%) is water.[8]

Swift County is primarily an agriculture community. It is a vast, flat monotonous stretch of land, unbroken by trees. The following example shows savanna and prairie soils: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Monson_Lake_SP_Master_New_Wiki_Version.JPG Besides farming, the county is home to agriculture equipment manufacturers, an ethanol plant, and the Fibrominn Combined Heat & Power (CHP) Plant which burns turkey litter mixed-with wood chips and mulch.

Swift County is home to a total of 24 lakes. Lake Oliver is one of the biggest in the county at 416 acres (1.7 km2). The lakes in Swift County are great for fishing. There are 9 rivers and streams in this county.

Major highways

Adjacent counties

Demographics

Historical population
CensusPop.%±
18807,473—
189010,16136.0%
190013,50332.9%
191012,949−4.1%
192015,09316.6%
193014,735−2.4%
194015,4695.0%
195015,8372.4%
196014,936−5.7%
197013,177−11.8%
198012,920−2.0%
199010,724−17.0%
200011,95611.5%
20109,783−18.2%
Est. 20169,419[9]−3.7%
U.S. Decennial Census[10]
1790-1960[11] 1900-1990[12]
1990-2000[13] 2010-2016[3]

As of the 2000 census,[14] there were 11,956 people, 4,353 households, and 2,881 families residing in the county. The population density was 16 people per square mile (6/km²). There were 4,821 housing units at an average density of 6 per square mile (2/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 90.67% White, 2.69% Black or African American, 0.50% Native American, 1.43% Asian, 1.52% Pacific Islander, 1.40% from other races, and 1.79% from two or more races. 2.68% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. Swift County has the highest percentage of Pacific Islander natives out of any U.S. county outside Hawaii. 34.4% were of German, 30.5% Norwegian, 5.2% Swedish and 5.1% Irish ancestry.

There were 4,353 households out of which 30.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.90% were married couples living together, 6.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.80% were non-families. 30.90% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 3.00.

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

In the county, the population was spread out with 23.00% under the age of 18, 7.30% from 18 to 24, 29.60% from 25 to 44, 21.60% from 45 to 64, and 18.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 120.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 124.60 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $34,820, and the median income for a family was $44,208. Males had a median income of $29,362 versus $21,667 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,360. About 5.30% of families and 8.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.90% of those under age 18 and 13.80% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

Townships

Unincorporated communities

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Minnesota Place Names". Minnesota Historical Society. Archived from the original on June 20, 2012. Retrieved March 19, 2014.
  2. ↑ Upham, Warren (1920). Minnesota Geographic Names: Their Origin and Historic Significance. Minnesota Historical Society. p. 539.
  3. 1 2 "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 1, 2013.
  4. ↑ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved 2011-06-07.
  5. ↑ Sullivan, Robert David; ‘How the Red and Blue Map Evolved Over the Past Century’; America Magazine in The National Catholic Review; June 29, 2016
  6. ↑ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved 2018-10-10.
  7. ↑ Nelson, Steven (2011). Savanna Soils of Minnesota. Minnesota: Self. pp. 65 - 67. ISBN 978-0-615-50320-2.
  8. ↑ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Archived from the original on October 6, 2014. Retrieved October 25, 2014.
  9. ↑ "Population and Housing Unit Estimates". Retrieved June 9, 2017.
  10. ↑ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved October 25, 2014.
  11. ↑ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved October 25, 2014.
  12. ↑ "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved October 25, 2014.
  13. ↑ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Retrieved October 25, 2014.
  14. ↑ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.

Coordinates: 45°17′N 95°41′W / 45.29°N 95.68°W / 45.29; -95.68

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