# Marshall County, Minnesota *County in northwestern Minnesota; county seat Warren* Marshall County lies in northwestern [[Minnesota]], on the state's border with North Dakota. The 2020 census counted 9,040 residents, and the county seat is Warren.[^1][^3] The [[Minnesota Legislature]] established the county in 1879 from land taken out of Kittson County. It is named for the former [[governor]] [[William Rainey Marshall]].[^2] The county has backed the Republican presidential candidate in every election since 2000 except 2008.[^6] ## History On February 25, 1879, the legislature carved the county out of the southern half of Kittson County. It designated Warren, platted the same year, as the county seat. The county's namesake, William Rainey Marshall, held the governorship of Minnesota from 1866 to 1870.[^2] The county remained dry until May 1965, when county option was eliminated. Until then, beverages containing more than 3.2% alcohol could not be sold there.[^2] In 1979 the county was the site of the Val Johnson incident, a claimed UFO incident.[^2] ## Geography The north-flowing Red River runs along the county's western edge, which is the state line with North Dakota.[^3] The Snake River rises in Polk County and runs north through the western part of Marshall County before joining the Red. The Tamarac River begins inside the county and runs west across its northern area to the Red. The Middle River also begins inside the county. It runs west across the southern part and empties into the Snake a short distance above the point where the Snake meets the Red.[^3] The land is made up of low, rolling hills cut by drainage channels, and it is farmed wherever possible. It falls away toward the west and north. The cached article gives the highest point as 1,194 ft (364 m) above sea level, near the middle of the eastern border. It also reports that CalTopo shows 1,237 ft at 48.5339°N, 96.0167°W, in the northeast of the county.[^3] Of the county's 1,813 square miles (4,700 km²) of total area, 1,775 square miles is land and 38 square miles, or 2.1%, is water. Savanna soils predominate in the county, which is one of 17 such counties in Minnesota's savanna region.[^3] ### Major highways U.S. Highway 59, U.S. Highway 75, and Minnesota State Highways 1, 32, 89, 219, 220 and 317.[^3] ### Airports Stephen Municipal Airport (D41), northeast of Stephen.[^3] ### Adjacent counties The neighboring counties are listed below.[^3] - Kittson County (north) - Roseau County (northeast) - Beltrami County (east) - Pennington County (southeast) - Polk County (south) - Grand Forks County, North Dakota (southwest) - Walsh County, North Dakota (west) - Pembina County, North Dakota (northwest) ### Protected areas Protected areas in the county include the Agassiz National Wildlife Refuge and the Agassiz Wilderness. The cached list is truncated after these entries.[^3] ## Demographics ### 2020 census The 2020 census recorded 9,040 residents with a median age of 42.9 years. Residents under 18 made up 23.6% of the population, and those 65 or older made up 21.3%. There were 105.6 males for every 100 females, and 106.1 for every 100 females among adults 18 and over.[^4] By race, the census recorded the following shares of residents:[^4] - White: 93.7% - Black or African American: 0.1% - American Indian and Alaska Native: 0.4% - Asian: 0.2% - Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander: under 0.1% - Some other race: 1.1% - Two or more races: 4.4% Residents identifying as Hispanic or Latino, of any race, accounted for 4.3%. The census classified 100.0% of residents as rural and under 0.1% as urban.[^4] The county had 3,836 households. Children under 18 lived in 27.0% of them, and 53.8% were married couples. A male householder with no spouse or partner present headed 21.5% of households, and a female householder in the same situation headed 18.7%. About 30.5% of households consisted of one person, and in 12.9% someone aged 65 or older lived alone.[^4] Of 4,416 housing units, 13.1% were vacant. Owners occupied 84.0% of occupied units and renters 16.0%. The vacancy rate was 1.6% for owner housing and 11.3% for rentals.[^4] ### 2000 census The 2000 census counted 10,155 people in 4,101 households, of which 2,837 were families. Population density was 5.72 people per square mile. There were 4,791 housing units, an average of 2.70 per square mile.[^4] ## Communities **Cities:** Alvarado, Argyle, Grygla, Holt, Middle River, Newfolden, Oslo, Stephen, Strandquist, Viking, and Warren (county seat).[^5] **Unincorporated communities:** Big Woods, Englund, Espelie, Florian, Gatzke, Luna, March, Radium, and Rosewood.[^5] **Townships:** The county has more than fifty townships, among them Agder, Alma, Augsburg, Donnelly, Holt, Moose River, Tamarac, Thief Lake, Viking, and Warrenton. Mud Lake is unorganized territory.[^5] ## Government and politics The county has gone Republican in every presidential election from 2000 onward, with one exception. In 2008 Barack Obama carried it by 26 votes, a margin of under one percentage point. In 2024 Donald Trump's share passed three-quarters of the county vote, a level no Republican had reached there since Warren G. Harding in 1920.[^6] ## Notes [^1]: Wikipedia contributors, *Marshall County, Minnesota*, lead section (revision 1378508647, retrieved 2026-10-25) — location, 2020 population, county seat. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marshall_County,_Minnesota [^2]: Wikipedia contributors, *Marshall County, Minnesota*, "History" (revision 1378508647, retrieved 2026-10-25) — creation on February 25, 1879, from Kittson County; namesake; dry-county status until May 1965; Val Johnson incident (1979). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marshall_County,_Minnesota [^3]: Wikipedia contributors, *Marshall County, Minnesota*, "Geography" (revision 1378508647, retrieved 2026-10-25) — rivers, terrain, elevation, area, savanna soils, highways, airport, adjacent counties, protected areas. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marshall_County,_Minnesota [^4]: Wikipedia contributors, *Marshall County, Minnesota*, "Demographics" (revision 1378508647, retrieved 2026-10-25) — 2020 and 2000 census figures. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marshall_County,_Minnesota [^5]: Wikipedia contributors, *Marshall County, Minnesota*, "Communities" (revision 1378508647, retrieved 2026-10-25) — cities, unincorporated communities, townships, unorganized territory. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marshall_County,_Minnesota [^6]: Wikipedia contributors, *Marshall County, Minnesota*, "Government and politics" (revision 1378508647, retrieved 2026-10-25) — presidential voting since 2000; 2008 margin; 2024 result. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marshall_County,_Minnesota