Mahnomen County

Mahnomen County is an administrative division in Minnesota with gently rolling terrain, scattered lakes, and wooded sections throughout. The landscape combines open spaces and forests crossed by major roadways that link the county's communities together.

The county was established in 1906 when it was separated from Norman County to the west. Its name comes from an Ojibwe word referring to wild rice, an important plant in the region's past.

The county is home to both Native American and non-Native residents who shape daily community life together. This coexistence is visible in local traditions and how people interact in towns and rural areas.

Three main highways serve the area: U.S. Highway 59 and Minnesota State Highways 113 and 200 connect the towns and surrounding communities. It is helpful to know that this is rural territory, so services and supplies are concentrated in small town centers.

It is Minnesota's only county entirely contained within an Indian reservation, the White Earth Reservation, which shapes how governance and community decisions are made. This distinctive arrangement blends tribal and county administration in a way found nowhere else in the state.

Location: Minnesota

Inception: December 27, 1906

Capital city: Mahnomen

Shares border with: Polk County, Becker County, Clearwater County, Norman County

Website: http://co.mahnomen.mn.us

GPS coordinates: 47.33000,-95.81000

Latest update: December 7, 2025 20:48