Rice County, Minnesota

Rice County is a county in Minnesota, United States, on the Cannon River in the south-central part of the state. It had a population of 67,097 at the 2020 census and covers 516 square miles (1,340 km2), with 496 square miles (1,280 km2) of land and 20 square miles (52 km2) of water, centred near 44°22′N 93°18′W.

Faribault is the county seat and its postal code is 55021. The county has seven incorporated cities, roughly a dozen unincorporated communities, and 15 townships that together cover the remainder of its land. Rice County sits in the Central time zone and is part of the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area.

Towns & Villages in Rice County

Rice County has seven incorporated cities — Faribault, Northfield, Dundas, Lonsdale, Morristown, Nerstrand, and Dennison — plus a scatter of small unincorporated communities that survive mainly as crossroads, churches, and rural post-office names. Faribault and Northfield anchor the county’s population; the rest are villages of a few hundred people or fewer.

Dennison sits on the Rice–Goodhue county line, and most of the community’s built-up area is actually across the line in Goodhue County; the small Rice County portion is still counted as part of the city.

Townships

Fifteen townships cover the farmland outside the incorporated cities. Populations for individual townships are not separately verified here; the table lists the townships and the settlements associated with each.

ZIP Codes

• 55021 — Faribault
• 55057 — Northfield
• 55046 — Lonsdale
• 55019 — Dundas
• 55052 — Morristown
• 55053 — Nerstrand
• 55088 — Webster
• 55087 — Warsaw
• 56052 — Kilkenny (also serves the county’s southwest corner)

Small unincorporated places such as Cannon City, Shieldsville, Veseli, Wheatland, and Millersburg have no ZIP code of their own and are served by the nearest listed post office.

Geography

Rice County sits astride the Cannon River, which flows northeast through Faribault and Northfield on its way to the Mississippi River. The Straight River and Cannon Lake also drain the county, and the terrain is a mix of rolling farmland, wetlands, and remnant hardwood forest in the Big Woods region that once covered south-central Minnesota. The county is bordered by Dakota County to the north, Goodhue County to the east, Dodge County to the southeast, Steele County to the south, Waseca County to the southwest, Le Sueur County to the west, and Scott County to the northwest.

Demographics

Rice County had 67,097 residents at the 2020 census, spread over about 496 square miles of land for a density of roughly 135 people per square mile. Faribault and Northfield together account for more than two-thirds of the county’s population; the remainder lives in the smaller cities and townships. Median household income in the county runs close to the Minnesota median of $85,086, with Northfield — home to Carleton College and St. Olaf College — skewing somewhat higher than the county’s rural townships.

Economy & Local Life

Higher education and health care are the county’s largest employers: Carleton College and St. Olaf College in Northfield, and Allina Health’s Faribault-area hospital, anchor thousands of jobs between them. Manufacturing has a long history in Faribault, including woolen mills and food processing, while agriculture — corn, soybeans, and dairy — still dominates the townships. The Rice County Fair, held in Faribault each July, is the county’s biggest annual event, and Northfield’s Defeat of Jesse James Days each September draws visitors from across the region.

History

Rice County was organized on March 5, 1853, and named for Henry Mower Rice, a fur trader and politician who helped shape the Minnesota Territory and later served as one of the state’s first two U.S. senators. Faribault, the county seat, is itself named for fur trader Alexander Faribault and grew around a 19th-century trading post at the confluence of the Cannon and Straight rivers. Northfield’s most famous historical episode came on September 7, 1876, when the James-Younger Gang attempted to rob the First National Bank and were driven off by armed townspeople — an event the city still commemorates annually.

Getting There

Interstate 35 runs north–south through the county, connecting Faribault and Lonsdale directly to Minneapolis-St. Paul. Minnesota State Highways 3, 19, 21, and 60 link the smaller cities and townships to the interstate.

• Minneapolis — 50 miles north
• Rochester — 40 miles southeast
• Mankato — 35 miles southwest
• Owatonna — 15 miles south

The nearest commercial airport is Minneapolis–St. Paul International Airport, about an hour’s drive north of Faribault.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Rice County, Minnesota?
It is in the south-central part of Minnesota, about 50 miles south of Minneapolis-St. Paul, centred on the Cannon River.

What is the population of Rice County?
Rice County had a population of 67,097 at the 2020 census.

How big is Rice County?
The county covers 516 square miles (1,340 km2), of which 496 square miles is land and 20 square miles is water.

What is the county seat of Rice County?
Faribault is the county seat.

How many towns are in Rice County?
Rice County has seven incorporated cities — Faribault, Northfield, Dundas, Lonsdale, Morristown, Nerstrand, and Dennison — plus about a dozen unincorporated communities across its 15 townships.

What ZIP codes are in Rice County?
Rice County’s main ZIP codes are 55021 (Faribault), 55057 (Northfield), 55046 (Lonsdale), 55019 (Dundas), 55052 (Morristown), 55053 (Nerstrand), 55088 (Webster), 55087 (Warsaw), and 56052 (Kilkenny).

Is Northfield entirely in Rice County?
No. Northfield straddles the Rice–Dakota county line, with most of the city in Rice County.

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