Freeborn County is a county in the state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 30,895. Its county seat is Albert Lea. Freeborn County comprises the Albert Lea Micropolitan Statistical Area.

History Freeborn County was created on February 20, 1855, the territory being separated from Blue Earth and Rice Counties. Twelve other Minnesota counties were created the same day by the Minnesota Territorial Legislature. Freeborn County was named for William Freeborn, an early Minnesota pioneer, merchant, and territorial legislator.

Geography Freeborn County lies on Minnesota's border with Iowa. The Shell Rock River flows southward from Albert Lea Lake in central Freeborn County, crossing into Iowa. Turtle Creek flows eastward through the upper eastern part of the county, crossing into Mower County. The terrain is hilly and etched with drainages and gullies. The Le Sueur River, a tributary of the Minnesota River, begins in the northern part of the county and flows northward into Waseca County. The Cobb River and the Maple River, two other small rivers, begin in the extreme northwest corner of the county, the Cobb from Freeborn Lake and the Maple from Penny Lake. Both run generally northwest, emptying into the LeSueur River, just upstream from where the LeSueur empties into the Minnesota River, on the western edge of Mankato. Most of the available land is devoted to agriculture.Freeborn County MN Google Maps (accessed March 8, 2019) The terrain generally slopes to the south and east, although the highest point is near the northeast corner, at ASL."Find an Altitude/Freeborn County MN" Google Maps (accessed March 8, 2019) The county has an area of , of which is land and (2.1%) is water.

Lakes

Source:

Albert Lea Lake Bear Lake Church Lake Everhart Lake Fountain Lake Freeborn Lake Geneva Lake Goose Lake Halls Lake Hickory Lake Lower Twin Lake Penny Lake Pickerel Lake School Section Lake State Line Lake Sugar Lake Trenton Lake (part) Upper Twin Lake White Lake

Protected areas

Source:

Bear Lake State Wildlife Management Area Carex State Wildlife Management Area Halls Lake State Wildlife Area Moscow State Game Refuge Myre-Big Island State Park White Woods County Park

Transit Southern Minnesota Area Rural Transit

Major highways

Interstate 35 Interstate 90 U.S. Highway 65 U.S. Highway 69 Minnesota State Highway 13 Minnesota State Highway 109 Minnesota State Highway 251

Adjacent counties

Steele County - northeast Mower County - east Worth County, Iowa - south Winnebago County, Iowa - southwest Faribault County - west Waseca County - northwest

Demographics

Racial and ethnic composition +Freeborn County, Minnesota – Racial and ethnic compositionRace / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 1980Pop 1990Pop 2000Pop 2010 Pop 2020% 1980% 1990% 2000% 2010% 2020White alone (NH)35,25231,77130,06127,70125,07197.04%96.10%92.26%88.63%81.15%Black or African American alone (NH)211652004600.01%0.03%0.20%0.64%1.49%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)35615955760.10%0.18%0.18%0.18%0.25%Asian alone (NH)761261712321,1350.21%0.38%0.52%0.74%3.67%Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)x included in the Asian category in the 1980 Censusx included in the Asian category in the 1990 Census2105xx0.01%0.03%0.02%Other race alone (NH)1315417790.04%0.05%0.01%0.05%0.26%Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)x not an option in the 1980 Censusx not an option in the 1990 Census173290886xx0.53%0.93%2.87%Hispanic or Latino (any race)9511,0762,0492,7503,1832.62%3.25%6.29%8.80%10.30%Total36,32933,06032,58431,25530,895 100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%

2020 census As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 30,895. The median age was 43.7 years. 22.2% of residents were under the age of 18 and 22.9% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 99.9 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 97.5 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 84.1% White, 1.6% Black or African American, 0.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 3.7% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 4.1% from some other race, and 6.0% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 10.3% of the population.

58.2% of residents lived in urban areas, while 41.8% lived in rural areas.

There were 13,076 households in the county, of which 26.2% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 47.2% were married-couple households, 19.4% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 24.8% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 31.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 14,114 housing units, of which 7.4% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 75.1% were owner-occupied and 24.9% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.4% and the rental vacancy rate was 6.9%.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 32,584 people, 13,356 households, and 9,015 families in the county. The population density was . There were 13,996 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 95.22% White, 0.24% Black or African American, 0.20% Native American, 0.55% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 2.92% from other races, and 0.85% from two or more races. 6.29% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 34.8% were of Norwegian, 26.2% German and 5.8% Danish ancestry.

There were 13,356 households, of which 29.1% had children under age 18 living with them, 56.5% were married couples living together, 7.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.5% were non-families. 28.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.0% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 2.92.

The county population contained 24.0% under 18, 7.5% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 24.1% from 45 to 64, and 18.9% who were 65 or older. The median age was 40. For every 100 females there were 96.6 males. For every 100 females 18 and older, there were 95.0 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $36,964, and the median income for a family was $45,142. Males had a median income of $31,491 versus $21,799 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,325. About 5.6% of families and 8.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.0% of those under 18 and 9.1% of those over 64.

Communities Cities

Albert Lea (county seat) Alden Clarks Grove Conger Emmons Freeborn Geneva Glenville Hartland Hayward Hollandale Manchester Myrtle Twin Lakes

Unincorporated communities

Armstrong Corning (partial) Gordonsville Mansfield Maple Island Moscow Oakland Petran

Townships

Albert Lea Township Alden Township Bancroft Township Bath Township Carlston Township Freeborn Township Freeman Township Geneva Township Hartland Township Hayward Township London Township Manchester Township Mansfield Township Moscow Township Newry Township Nunda Township Oakland Township Pickerel Lake Township Riceland Township Shell Rock Township

Government and politics From 1932 to 2012, Freeborn County voted for the Democratic candidate in all but five elections, four of which were nationwide Republican landslides (1952, 1956, 1972, and 1980), and the fifth was in 1960 in one of the closest elections in American history. After voting for Bill Clinton by at least 15% in both 1992 and 1996, against George W. Bush by at least 10% in both 2000 and 2004, and for Barack Obama by at least 14% in both 2008 and 2012, the 2016 election saw a dramatic swing to the right, as Donald Trump won the county by more than 17%. Though his margin of victory slightly shrank to 16% in 2020, his vote share of nearly 57% was the best for a Republican in the county since 1928. In 2024, Trump won the county with nearly 60% of the vote and by a margin of over 21%, the largest margin of victory for a Republican presidential candidate since Herbert Hoover 1928.

+County Board of CommissionersPositionNameDistrictNext ElectionCommissioner and ChairmanBrad EdwinDistrict 12028CommissionerDawn KaasaDistrict 22026CommissionerLukas SeversonDistrict 32028CommissionerChristopher ShoffDistrict 42026CommissionerNicole EckstromDistrict 52028 +State Legislature (2025-2027)PositionNameAffiliationDistrictSenateGene DorninkRepublican23House of RepresentativesPeggy BennettRepublican23AHouse of RepresentativesPatricia MuellerRepublican23B +U.S Congress (2025-2027)PositionNameAffiliationDistrictHouse of RepresentativesBrad FinstadRepublican1stSenateAmy KlobucharDemocratN/ASenateTina SmithDemocratN/A

See also National Register of Historic Places listings in Freeborn County, Minnesota Peter Lund Creek

References

External links Freeborn County website