Faribault County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 13,921. Its county seat is Blue Earth.

History The county was founded in 1855. It was named for Jean-Baptiste Faribault, a settler and French fur trader among the Sioux Indians.

Geography Faribault County lies on the south side of Minnesota. Its southern border abuts the north border of the state of Iowa. The Blue Earth River flows northerly through the west-central part of the county; it enters from Iowa as two branches, West Branch and Middle Branch, merging at into the county. It is joined by East Branch near the city of Blue Earth, thence flows northward into Blue Earth County. The Maple River flows west-northwestward through the upper central part of the county, entering from Freeborn County and exiting to Blue Earth County. The Cobb River also flows through the NE part of the county, from Freeborn to Blue Earth county.

The county terrain consists of semi-arid rolling hills, devoted to agriculture. The SE portion is a glacial moraine near Kiester, and is known as the Kiester Moraine. The county has an area of , of which is land and (1.3%) is water.

Lakes

Source:

Bass Lake (Delavan Twp) Hart Lake Minnesota Lake Rice Lake (Delavan Twp) Rice Lake (Foster Twp) South Walnut Lake Walnut Lake

Airports

Source: Blue Earth Municipal Airport Wells Municipal Airport

Major highways

Interstate 90 U.S. Highway 169 Minnesota State Highway 22 Minnesota State Highway 109

Adjacent counties

Blue Earth County - north Waseca County - northeast Freeborn County - east Winnebago County, Iowa - southeast Kossuth County, Iowa - southwest Martin County - west

Protected areas

Source: Walnut Lake State Wildlife Management Area

Demographics

Racial and ethnic composition +Faribault County, Minnesota – Racial and ethnic compositionRace / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 1980Pop 1990Pop 2000Pop 2010 Pop 2020% 1980% 1990% 2000% 2010% 2020White alone (NH)19,35116,52815,40213,51912,40298.16%97.59%95.19%92.89%89.09%Black or African American alone (NH)4103943550.02%0.06%0.24%0.30%0.40%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)8192941580.04%0.11%0.18%0.28%0.42%Asian alone (NH)61545743450.31%0.32%0.35%0.30%0.32%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 Census600xx0.04%0.00%0.00%Other race alone (NH)12411390.06%0.02%0.01%0.01%0.28%Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)x not an option in the 1980 Censusx not an option in the 1990 Census8189309xx0.50%0.61%2.22%Hispanic or Latino (any race)2783225668171,0131.41%1.90%3.50%5.61%7.28%Total19,71416,93716,18114,55313,921 100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%

2020 census As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 13,921. The median age was 44.9 years. 21.9% of residents were under the age of 18 and 23.5% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 100.7 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 99.7 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 91.5% White, 0.4% Black or African American, 0.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 2.9% from some other race, and 4.3% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 7.3% of the population.

<0.1% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.

There were 6,086 households in the county, of which 25.4% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 47.4% were married-couple households, 20.7% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 24.1% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 32.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 6,916 housing units, of which 12.0% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 77.9% were owner-occupied and 22.1% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.9% and the rental vacancy rate was 8.5%.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 16,181 people, 6,652 households, and 4,476 families in the county. The population density was . There were 7,247 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 97.11% White, 0.24% Black or African American, 0.19% Native American, 0.36% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 1.36% from other races, and 0.69% from two or more races. 3.50% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 45.5% were of German, 21.2% Norwegian and 5.1% Irish ancestry.

There were 6,652 households, out of which 28.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.80% were married couples living together, 6.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.70% were non-families. 29.70% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.93.

The county population contained 24.40% under the age of 18, 6.70% from 18 to 24, 23.20% from 25 to 44, 23.50% from 45 to 64, and 22.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 97.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.50 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $34,440, and the median income for a family was $41,793. Males had a median income of $28,990 versus $20,224 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,193. About 5.50% of families and 8.60% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.40% of those under age 18 and 10.20% of those age 65 or over.

Communities Cities

Blue Earth (county seat) Bricelyn Delavan Easton Elmore Frost Kiester Minnesota Lake (Partly in Blue Earth County) Walters Wells Winnebago

Unincorporated communities

Baroda Brush Creek Clayton (ghost town) Dell Guckeen Homedahl (ghost town) Huntley Marna Pilot Grove

Townships

Barber Township Blue Earth City Township Brush Creek Township Clark Township Delavan Township Dunbar Township Elmore Township Emerald Township Foster Township Jo Daviess Township Kiester Township Lura Township Minnesota Lake Township Pilot Grove Township Prescott Township Rome Township Seely Township Verona Township Walnut Lake Township Winnebago City Township

Government and politics Faribault County has primarily supported Republican Party candidates in presidential elections throughout its history. Only six times since 1892 has a Republican candidate failed to win the county in a presidential election, most recently Bob Dole in 1996.

+County Board of CommissionersPositionNameDistrictNext ElectionCommissionerJohn RoperDistrict 12024CommissionerGreg YoungDistrict 22026Commissioner and Vice ChairBill GroskreutzDistrict 32024CommissionerTom LoveallDistrict 42023Commissioner and ChairpersonBruce AndersonDistrict 52024 +State Legislature (2025-2026)PositionNameAffiliationDistrictSenateRich DraheimRepublicanDistrict 22SenateGene DorninkRepublicanDistrict 23House of RepresentativesBjorn OlsonRepublicanDistrict 22AHouse of RepresentativesPeggy BennettRepublicanDistrict 23A +U.S Congress (2025-2026)PositionNameAffiliationDistrictHouse of RepresentativesBrad FinstadRepublican1stSenateAmy KlobucharDemocratN/ASenateTina SmithDemocratN/A

Education School districts include: - Text list Alden-Conger Public School District Blue Earth Area Public Schools Granada-Huntley-East Chain School District Janesville-Waldorf-Pemberton School District Maple River School District United South Central School District

It also has the following state-operated schools: Minnesota State Academy for the Blind Minnesota State Academy for the Deaf

See also National Register of Historic Places listings in Faribault County, Minnesota

References

External links Faribault County Government's website Faribault County info at Rootsweb