# Nobles County, Minnesota *County in southwestern Minnesota, United States* Nobles County lies in southwestern [[Minnesota]], with Worthington as its county seat. The 2020 census counted 22,290 residents, and the county makes up the Worthington Micropolitan Statistical Area.[^1] Its southern boundary runs along the northern border of Iowa.[^2] The county takes its name from William H. Nobles, who sat in the Minnesota territorial legislature in 1854 and 1856. In 1856 he started building a wagon road for the federal government across the southwest of the territory.[^3] The county was established in 1857 but was not organized until 1870.[^3] It rests on the Buffalo Ridge, a glacial upland that divides the Mississippi and Missouri watersheds and carries more than 200 wind turbines.[^4] ## History Before settlement, the Sisseton Sioux occupied the land. In 1838 Joseph Nicolas Nicollet mapped the area. He named Lake Okabena, Lake Ocheda, East and West Graham Lake, and the Kanaranzi Creek.[^3] Settlement began near the Graham Lakes in 1846.[^3] Nobles's road was planned to run from Fort Ridgely to South Pass in the Rocky Mountains. Work continued into 1857, but the road was never finished.[^3] The [[Minnesota Territory]] legislature established the county on May 23, 1857, shortly before the Panic of 1857 took full effect. That same year, the Spirit Lake Massacre further deterred settlement; settlers were killed at Spirit Lake and along the Des Moines River in Jackson and Cottonwood counties.[^3] In the summer of 1867 a mail route opened from Blue Earth through the Graham Lakes settlement to Yankton, South Dakota. The source records a post office opening in each settlement in January, without stating the year.[^5] The population stood at 117 in the spring of 1870 and had almost doubled by autumn. County government began that year, and the county was formally organized on October 27, 1870.[^5] The county's first railroad, the St. Paul & Sioux City Railway, was built in 1871. The line passed to the Chicago and North Western Railroad and is now run by the Union Pacific Railroad.[^5] Also in 1871, men from Toledo, Ohio, formed a company to place a colony of settlers in a western county.[^5] ## Economy Agriculture is the county's main economic driver, led by corn, soybeans and hogs. In manufacturing, food processing and fabricated metals are the leading sectors. Tourism, drawing on the county's lakes, parks and historic sites, is expanding.[^6] ## Geography The [[United States Census Bureau]] gives the county a total area of 722.551 square miles (1,871.40 km²). Of that, 715.117 square miles (1,852.14 km²) is land and 7.434 square miles (19.25 km²), or 1.0%, is water.[^2] Major highways serving the county are Interstate 90, U.S. Highway 59, and Minnesota State Highways 60, 91 and 264. Public transit is provided by the Prairieland Transit System.[^7] The neighboring counties are Murray to the north, Cottonwood to the northeast, Jackson to the east, Osceola County, Iowa, to the southeast, Lyon County, Iowa, to the southwest, and Rock to the west.[^7] Lakes in the county include East and West Graham Lake, Fulda First Lake, Indian Lake, Jack Lake, Kinbrae Lake, Lake Bella, Lake Ocheda and Lake Okabena. Parts of Iowa Lake and Willow Lake also lie in the county. Protected areas include Adrian Spring County Park, Compass Prairie Scientific and Natural Area, the Lake Ocheda Game Refuge, and many State Wildlife Management Areas, among them Bigelow, Fulda and Lake Bella.[^8] ## Geology The Buffalo Ridge reaches 1,995 feet (608 m) above sea level and marks the southern limit of the last glaciation. It runs 60 miles (97 km) through Lincoln, Lyon, Pipestone, Murray, Rock and Nobles counties. Its height and steady winds have made it a major wind-energy site.[^4] The ridge belongs to the inner coteau and is the highest point of the Coteau des Prairies in Minnesota. Its bedrock is Cretaceous shale, sandstone and clay overlying the Upper Precambrian Sioux Quartzite. Over most of the area, this bedrock is buried under as much as 800 feet (240 m) of pre-Wisconsin glacial till. A 6–15-foot (1.8–4.6 m) cap of loess produces long, gentle slopes and few lakes or wetlands. It also supports dendritic drainage feeding the Missouri and [[Minnesota River]] systems.[^9] ## Demographics The 2020 census counted 22,290 residents, with a median age of 34.9 years. Of these residents, 28.0% were under 18 and 16.4% were 65 or older. There were 102.9 males for every 100 females, and 103.6 males for every 100 females among adults. Some 61.9% of residents lived in urban areas and 38.1% in rural areas.[^10] The census recorded the following racial makeup: - 58.8% White - 4.4% Black or African American - 2.1% American Indian and Alaska Native - 6.1% Asian - 0.2% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander - 19.6% some other race - 8.8% two or more races Hispanic or Latino residents of any race made up 32.6% of the population.[^10] The 2023 American Community Survey estimated 7,689 households, averaging 2.82 persons each. It put the median household income at $62,973, with about 12.2% of residents at or below the poverty line.[^11] The same survey estimated a 66.2% employment rate. It found that 17.1% of residents held a bachelor's degree or higher and 79.4% a high school diploma. The median home value was $191,780 in the first quarter of 2024.[^11] ## Communities The county's cities are: - Adrian - Bigelow - Brewster (named Hersey until August 1880) - Dundee - Ellsworth - Kinbrae (named Airlie, then DeForest, until August 1883) - Lismore - Round Lake - Rushmore - Wilmont - Worthington, the county seat (its site was named Okabena until autumn 1871) Leota is a census-designated place. The unincorporated communities are Org (Sioux Falls Junction until 1890), Pfingsten, Ransom, Reading and St. Kilian.[^12] The county has twenty townships: - Bigelow - Bloom - Dewald - Elk - Graham Lakes - Grand Prairie - Hersey - Indian Lake - Larkin - Leota - Lismore - Little Rock - Lorain - Olney - Ransom - Seward - Summit Lake - Westside - Wilmont - Worthington ## Politics Over recent decades, county voters have leaned toward the [[Republican Party (United States)]]. As of 2020, the Republican candidate had carried the county in 67% of national elections held since 1980.[^13] ## Notes [^1]: Wikipedia contributors, *Nobles County, Minnesota* (rev. 1375303921, retrieved 2026-10-25) — lead: 2020 population, county seat, micropolitan area. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nobles_County,_Minnesota [^2]: Wikipedia contributors, *Nobles County, Minnesota* (retrieved 2026-10-25) — Geography: Iowa border and Census Bureau area figures. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nobles_County,_Minnesota [^3]: Wikipedia contributors, *Nobles County, Minnesota* (retrieved 2026-10-25) — History: Sisseton Sioux, Nicollet 1838, 1846 settlement, William H. Nobles, establishment May 23, 1857, Panic and Spirit Lake Massacre of 1857. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nobles_County,_Minnesota [^4]: Wikipedia contributors, *Nobles County, Minnesota* (retrieved 2026-10-25) — Geology: Buffalo Ridge elevation, extent, drainage divide, wind turbines. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nobles_County,_Minnesota [^5]: Wikipedia contributors, *Nobles County, Minnesota* (retrieved 2026-10-25) — History: 1867 mail route, 1870 population and organization (October 27, 1870), 1871 railroad, Toledo colony company. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nobles_County,_Minnesota [^6]: Wikipedia contributors, *Nobles County, Minnesota* (retrieved 2026-10-25) — Economy: agriculture, manufacturing sectors, tourism. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nobles_County,_Minnesota [^7]: Wikipedia contributors, *Nobles County, Minnesota* (retrieved 2026-10-25) — Geography: transit, major highways, adjacent counties. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nobles_County,_Minnesota [^8]: Wikipedia contributors, *Nobles County, Minnesota* (retrieved 2026-10-25) — Geography: lakes and protected areas. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nobles_County,_Minnesota [^9]: Wikipedia contributors, *Nobles County, Minnesota* (retrieved 2026-10-25) — Geology: inner coteau, bedrock, glacial till, loess, drainage. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nobles_County,_Minnesota [^10]: Wikipedia contributors, *Nobles County, Minnesota* (retrieved 2026-10-25) — Demographics: 2020 census age, sex ratio, urban/rural, racial and Hispanic composition. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nobles_County,_Minnesota [^11]: Wikipedia contributors, *Nobles County, Minnesota* (retrieved 2026-10-25) — Demographics: 2023 American Community Survey estimates and Q1 2024 median home value. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nobles_County,_Minnesota [^12]: Wikipedia contributors, *Nobles County, Minnesota* (retrieved 2026-10-25) — Communities: cities, former names, census-designated place, unincorporated communities, townships. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nobles_County,_Minnesota [^13]: Wikipedia contributors, *Nobles County, Minnesota* (retrieved 2026-10-25) — Politics: Republican share of national elections since 1980, as of 2020. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nobles_County,_Minnesota