# Waseca County, Minnesota *County in Minnesota, United States* Waseca County is a county in southern [[Minnesota]]. Its county seat is the city of Waseca, and the 2020 census counted 18,968 residents.[^1] The legislature of [[Minnesota Territory]] authorized the county on February 27, 1857, from the western part of Steele County, and its borders have stayed as first drawn.[^2] The terrain is low rolling hills, cut by drainages and dotted with lakes, and the land is farmed wherever possible.[^3] The county has a long Republican voting record. As of 2024 its voters had chosen the Democratic presidential candidate in three elections since 1936.[^4] ## History The Minnesota Territory legislature was newly organized in 1849, and that year it authorized nine counties across the territory. In 1853 part of one of them, [[Dakota]] County, was split off to form Blue Earth, Le Sueur and Rice counties. In 1855 portions of those counties went to form Steele County.[^2] Waseca County came next, by act of the territorial legislature on February 27, 1857, which took the western part of Steele County. The seat was placed at Wilton, a settlement dating from 1854.[^2] The name came from the area's first farming settlement, begun in 1855 close to where the city of Waseca now stands. That settlement took its name from a Dakota word for "rich," referring to the fertile soil.[^2] The Winona and Saint Peter Railroad finished its line past the town of Waseca in the second half of the 1860s, and the town grew. By 1870 a vote was held to move the county seat there. The county's borders have not been altered since 1857.[^2] ## Geography The [[Le Sueur River]] crosses the county from east to west on its way to join the [[Blue Earth River]] in Blue Earth County. The Little Le Sueur drains the county's southeast and feeds it.[^3] Bull Run Creek runs west from Silver Lake across the lower central part of the county into Blue Earth County. The Little Cobb River rises in the south of the county and runs west into Blue Earth County, where it meets the [[Cobb River (Minnesota)|Cobb River]].[^3] The land falls toward the north and west. Its high point, 1,240 ft (380 m) above sea level, lies near the southeast corner. Of the county's 433 square miles (1,120 km²), 423 square miles are land and 9.6 square miles (2.2%) are water.[^3] Waseca is among seven counties in southern Minnesota with prairie and savanna soils only and no forest ecosystems.[^3] [[Southern Minnesota Area Rural Transit]] serves the county. Its highways are U.S. Highway 14, [[Minnesota State Highway 13]], [[Minnesota State Highway 30]], [[Minnesota State Highway 83]] and Minnesota State Highway 230. [[Minnesota State Highway 60]] runs only along the northern border.[^3] The neighboring counties are Rice to the northeast, Steele to the east, Freeborn to the southeast, Faribault to the southwest, Blue Earth to the west and Le Sueur to the northwest.[^3] The county contains seven state wildlife management areas: Findley, Kanne, Moonan, Mueller, Senn-Rich, Teal and Waseca. Its lakes include Buffalo Lake, Clear Lake, Everson Lake and Goose Lake.[^3] ## Demographics ### 2020 census The 2020 census recorded 18,968 residents, with a median age of 40.6 years. Of these residents, 23.3% were younger than 18 and 18.4% were 65 or older. There were 94.0 males for every 100 females, and 90.0 males for every 100 females aged 18 and over.[^5] By race, 89.8% of residents were White, 1.9% Black or African American, 0.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 2.1% some other race, and 4.8% two or more races. Residents of Hispanic or Latino origin, of any race, were 6.7% of the total.[^5] Rural residents made up 51.4% of the population and urban residents 48.6%.[^5] The county had 7,387 households, and 29.3% of them included children under 18. Married couples headed 51.2% of households. A male householder without a spouse or partner headed 18.5%, and a female householder without one headed 22.1%.[^5] About 27.8% of households were a single person, and 12.7% had a person 65 or older living alone.[^5] There were 7,895 housing units, and 6.4% of them stood vacant. Owners occupied 77.5% of the occupied units and renters 22.5%. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.4% and the rental vacancy rate 5.4%.[^5] ### 2000 census The 2000 census counted 19,526 people in 7,059 households and 4,990 families. Population density was 46.2 per square mile (17.8/km²). The county had 7,427 housing units, an average of 17.6 per square mile (6.8/km²). The population was 94.65% White and 2.26% Black or African American.[^5] ## Communities The county has five cities: Waseca, which is the county seat, Janesville, New Richland, Waldorf and part of Elysian.[^6] Its unincorporated communities are Alma City, Lake Elysian, Matawan, Otisco, Palmer, Saint Mary, Smiths Mill, Vista and Wilton.[^6] It has twelve townships: Alton, Blooming Grove, Byron, Freedom, Iosco, Janesville, New Richland, Otisco, St. Mary, Vivian, Wilton and Woodville.[^6] ## Politics Republican candidates have usually carried Waseca County. In presidential voting from 1936 through 2024, the county backed the Democratic nominee three times.[^4] ## Notes [^1]: Wikipedia contributors, *Waseca County, Minnesota* (revision 1378407005, retrieved 2026-10-25), lead section — county status, county seat, and 2020 census population of 18,968. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waseca_County,_Minnesota [^2]: Wikipedia contributors, *Waseca County, Minnesota* (revision 1378407005, retrieved 2026-10-25), "History" section — territorial county formation (1849, 1853, 1855), creation on February 27, 1857, Wilton seat, name origin, railroad, 1870 seat vote, unchanged boundaries. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waseca_County,_Minnesota [^3]: Wikipedia contributors, *Waseca County, Minnesota* (revision 1378407005, retrieved 2026-10-25), "Geography" section — rivers, terrain, area figures, soils, transit, highways, adjacent counties, protected areas, lakes. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waseca_County,_Minnesota [^4]: Wikipedia contributors, *Waseca County, Minnesota* (revision 1378407005, retrieved 2026-10-25), "Politics" section — Republican voting history and three Democratic presidential selections since 1936 (as of 2024). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waseca_County,_Minnesota [^5]: Wikipedia contributors, *Waseca County, Minnesota* (revision 1378407005, retrieved 2026-10-25), "Demographics" section — 2020 and 2000 census figures. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waseca_County,_Minnesota [^6]: Wikipedia contributors, *Waseca County, Minnesota* (revision 1378407005, retrieved 2026-10-25), "Communities" section — cities, unincorporated communities, townships. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waseca_County,_Minnesota