Otter Tail County, Minnesota

Otter Tail County is a county in Minnesota, United States, in the west-central part of the state along the Otter Tail River and Otter Tail Lake. It had a population of 60,081 at the 2020 census and covers 2,224 square miles (5,761 km2), centred near 46°24′21″N 95°42′52″W.

Fergus Falls is the county seat, and its postal code is 56537. The county has 22 incorporated cities, 11 unincorporated communities, and 60 organized townships. It sits in the Central time zone (FIPS code 27111).

Towns & Villages in Otter Tail County

Otter Tail County has 22 incorporated cities plus a number of small unincorporated communities scattered among its many lakes. Two of the incorporated places, Rothsay and Wadena, straddle the county line and are shared with neighboring Wilkin and Wadena counties. CDP/Unincorp. below marks places with no city government of their own.

Rothsay’s city limits lie mostly in Wilkin County with only a small part in Otter Tail, and Wadena’s city limits lie mostly in Wadena County with a small part here — both are counted primarily under their namesake counties elsewhere on this site. A handful of names from older lists (Amor, Basswood, Davies, Edwards, French, Grand View Heights, Hillview, Inglewood, Lyman, Maine, Nirvana, Norwegian Grove, Phelps, Squier, Topelius, Western, and several named mobile-home/trailer courts such as Almora, Clear View, Clitherall Lake MH Park, Country Manor MH Park, Dalton Trailer Court, Green Acres Mobile Park, Lakes MH Park, Lakeview Estates, Mavis Frazier Trailer Park, Mills Manor MH Park, Pelican Hills MH Park, Pelican Rapids MH Park, Pine Cone Court, River Bluff Estates, Rothsay MH Park, Star Hills MH Park, and West Wind Estates) are unincorporated place names or private developments without a confirmed current ZIP or population and have been omitted rather than guessed.

ZIP Codes

• 56537 — Fergus Falls (also serves outlying townships)
• 56538 — Fergus Falls (PO Box only)
• 56573 — Perham
• 56572 — Pelican Rapids
• 56567 — New York Mills
• 56515 — Battle Lake
• 56361 — Parkers Prairie
• 56551 — Henning
• 56586 — Underwood
• 56571 — Ottertail
• 56528 — Dent
• 56587 — Vergas
• 56534 — Erhard
• 56324 — Dalton
• 56527 — Deer Creek
• 56576 — Richville
• 56524 — Clitherall
• 56518 — Bluffton
• 56588 — Vining
• 56533 — Elizabeth

Small unincorporated places such as Butler, Carlisle, and Wall Lake use a neighboring town’s ZIP rather than one of their own.

Geography

Otter Tail County sits on the edge of Minnesota’s prairie-pothole and hardwood-transition zones, where rolling glacial moraine gives way to open farmland further west. Of its 2,224 square miles, 252 square miles — better than 11 percent — are water, the result of 1,048 lakes, more than in any other county in the United States. The Otter Tail River, which drains many of those lakes on its way to the Red River of the North, and Otter Tail Lake itself gave the county its name.

Otter Tail County borders Becker County to the north, Wadena County to the northeast, Todd County to the southeast, Douglas County to the south, Grant County to the southwest, Wilkin County to the west, and Clay County to the northwest. Live pages: Becker County, Wadena County, Todd County, Douglas County, Grant County, Wilkin County, and Clay County.

Demographics

At the 2020 census, Otter Tail County had 60,081 residents, up modestly from the 2010 count. Fergus Falls, the seat, is by far the largest city at 13,138; Perham is second at 3,378. Median household income runs below the Minnesota median of $85,086, typical of a rural western Minnesota county, though lakeshore property values keep the tax base stronger than income figures alone suggest. Population density works out to about 30 people per square mile of land.

Economy & Local Life

Agriculture — corn, soybeans, sugar beets, and dairy — anchors the county’s economy alongside a large tourism sector built around its lakes; Battle Lake, Pelican Rapids, Vergas, and Ottertail all cater heavily to summer cabin owners and anglers. Fergus Falls is home to Lake Region Healthcare and a Minnesota State Community and Technical College campus, and Perham hosts Barrel O’ Fun Snack Foods and Tuffy’s Pet Foods, two of the county’s larger private employers. West Central Steel and several turkey and dairy operations round out the manufacturing and agribusiness base.

History

Otter Tail County was created on March 18, 1858, and formally organized on September 12, 1868, as settlement followed the Otter Tail and Red River valleys. Fergus Falls grew up around a water-power site on the Otter Tail River and became the seat as the county filled in through the late 19th century. During the Great Depression, Finnish immigrant farming communities around New York Mills and Leaf Lake saw notable cooperative and left-leaning political organizing, a chapter of the county’s history that faded after Finland’s 1939 Winter War with the Soviet Union shifted local sympathies.

Getting There

U.S. Highway 59 and Minnesota Highways 78, 108, and 210 cross the county, with Interstate 94 clipping its southeastern corner near Fergus Falls.

• Fargo, North Dakota — 55 miles west
• Alexandria, Minnesota — 30 miles south
• Detroit Lakes, Minnesota — 25 miles north
• St. Cloud, Minnesota — 95 miles southeast

Fergus Falls Municipal Airport offers general aviation service; the nearest commercial airport is Hector International Airport in Fargo.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Otter Tail County?
It is in Minnesota’s west-central region, along the Otter Tail River and Otter Tail Lake, bordering Wilkin and Clay counties near the North Dakota line.

What is the population of Otter Tail County?
60,081 at the 2020 census.

How big is Otter Tail County?
2,224 square miles (5,761 km2), of which about 11 percent is water.

What is the county seat of Otter Tail County?
Fergus Falls is the county seat.

How many towns are in Otter Tail County?
22 incorporated cities plus 11 unincorporated communities.

What ZIP codes are in Otter Tail County?
Codes include 56537 (Fergus Falls), 56573 (Perham), 56572 (Pelican Rapids), 56567 (New York Mills), and 56515 (Battle Lake), among others listed above.

Why does Otter Tail County have so many lakes?
Retreating glaciers left 1,048 lakes across the county, more than any other county in the United States.

More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Minnesota.