Polk County is a county in Minnesota, United States, along the North Dakota border in the northwestern part of the state. It had a population of 31,192 at the 2020 census and covers 1,998 square miles (5,170 km2), centred near 47°46′N 96°24′W.
Crookston is the county seat, and its postal code is 56716. East Grand Forks is the largest community. The county contains 15 incorporated cities and roughly 40 unincorporated places, hamlets and rural subdivisions. Polk County is part of the Grand Forks, North Dakota–Minnesota metropolitan statistical area and sits in the Central time zone.
Towns & Villages in Polk County
Minnesota law classifies every incorporated municipality as a “city,” so there are no towns or villages in the legal sense — the smaller communities below are unincorporated places, mobile-home parks, and rural subdivisions with no municipal government. Crookston carries the county seat; East Grand Forks is the largest by population. Pop. and ZIP are shown only where independently verified; other cells read —.
| Place | Type | Pop. | ZIP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crookston | City · seat | 7,482 | 56716 |
| East Grand Forks | City | 9,176 | 56721 |
| Fosston | City | — | 56542 |
| Fertile | City | — | 56540 |
| McIntosh | City | — | 56556 |
| Erskine | City | — | 56535 |
| Mentor | City | — | 56736 |
| Fisher | City | — | 56723 |
| Climax | City | — | 56523 |
| Beltrami | City | — | — |
| Gully | City | — | — |
| Lengby | City | — | — |
| Nielsville | City | — | — |
| Trail | City | — | — |
| Winger | City | — | — |
| Anglim | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Angus | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Bartz MH Park | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Benoit | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Burwell | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Bygland | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Carman Terrace | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Countryside MH Park | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Crookston Junction | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Davidson | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Dice Trailer Park | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Dugdale | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Eldred | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Euclid | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Forest Knolls Estates | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Freeman | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Gentilly | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Girard | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Greenview | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Gully MH Park | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Hagens MH Park | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Harold | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Hixon | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Johnsons MH Park | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Key West | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Mallory | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Maple Bay | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Melvin | Unincorp. | — | — |
| North Star MH Park | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Noyes Junction | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Olga | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Riverview Terrace | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Roan | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Ross | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Sherack | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Shirley | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Tabor | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Tilden Junction | Unincorp. | — | — |
| West Side MH Park | Unincorp. | — | — |
| West View Court | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Wilds | Unincorp. | — | — |
Several MH Park entries are named for their operators (Bartz, Countryside, Dice, Gully, Hagens, Johnsons, North Star, West Side) and are small manufactured-home developments rather than historic settlements; they are carried over from the county’s own community list rather than dropped.
Townships
Polk County is organized into dozens of civil townships, the standard rural government unit across much of Minnesota. Confirmed township names include Andover, Angus, Badger, Belgium, Brandsvold, Brandt, Brislet, Bygland, Chester, Columbia, and Crookston — several sharing a name with the community at their center, such as Angus Township around the city of Angus and Bygland Township around the community of Bygland. Reliable per-township 2020 population figures were not available for this rewrite, so the table above lists places without a township column rather than publish unverified assignments.
ZIP Codes
- 56716 — Crookston (also serves surrounding rural townships)
- 56721 — East Grand Forks
- 56542 — Fosston
- 56540 — Fertile
- 56556 — McIntosh
- 56535 — Erskine
- 56736 — Mentor
- 56723 — Fisher
- 56523 — Climax
Smaller cities and unincorporated places without a confirmed ZIP of their own are served by the nearest post office town listed above.
Geography
Polk County lies in the Red River Valley of northwestern Minnesota. The terrain slopes from low rolling hills in the east toward the flat, fertile lake-bed plain of the Red River along the county’s western edge; the highest point, near the southeast corner, reaches 1,519 feet (463 meters) above sea level. Water covers about 27 square miles (70 km2) of the county’s total area. The Red Lake River flows west through Crookston to join the Red River of the North at East Grand Forks, and the county’s western boundary follows the Red River itself.
Polk County borders Marshall County to the north, Pennington County and Red Lake County to the northeast, Clearwater County to the east, Mahnomen County to the southeast, Norman County to the south, and Grand Forks County, North Dakota, across the river to the west.
Demographics
Polk County had 31,192 residents at the 2020 census. East Grand Forks, with 9,176 people, and Crookston, with 7,482, are the two largest communities and together hold more than half the county’s population. Median household income in the county runs below the Minnesota median of $85,086, reflecting the county’s agricultural base. Population density works out to roughly 16 people per square mile across the county’s 1,998 square miles.
Economy & Local Life
Agriculture anchors the county economy — the Red River Valley’s flat, dark soil supports large-scale wheat, sugar beet, soybean and potato farming, and American Crystal Sugar operates a sugar-beet processing plant at East Grand Forks. Crookston, the seat, is home to the University of Minnesota Crookston and serves as the county’s retail, medical and government center. East Grand Forks, across the Red River from Grand Forks, North Dakota, functions as part of that larger metro area’s retail and river-recreation corridor, anchored by the Greenway park system built after the 1997 flood.
History
Polk County was organized on February 27, 1879, and named for James K. Polk, the 11th president of the United States. Crookston, platted along the Red Lake River in the 1870s as a stop on the Great Northern Railway, was chosen as the county seat and grew as a railroad and grain-shipping town. In April 1997, the Red River of the North overtopped its levees and inundated East Grand Forks along with neighboring Grand Forks, North Dakota, forcing a full evacuation and destroying hundreds of homes; the flood led to a major buyout-and-levee rebuilding program along the riverfront that reshaped the city’s low-lying neighborhoods into permanent green space.
Getting There
U.S. Routes 2, 59 and 75 cross the county, along with several state highways linking the smaller cities to Crookston and East Grand Forks.
- Grand Forks, North Dakota — 25 miles west
- Bemidji, Minnesota — 75 miles east
- Fargo, North Dakota — 130 miles south
- Thief River Falls, Minnesota — 45 miles north
Grand Forks International Airport, just across the river in North Dakota, is the nearest commercial airport.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Polk County, Minnesota?
It is in the northwestern part of the state, on the North Dakota border, centred near 47°46′N 96°24′W.
What is the population of Polk County?
31,192 people at the 2020 census.
How big is Polk County?
1,998 square miles (5,170 km2), Minnesota’s 8th-largest county by area.
What is the county seat of Polk County?
Crookston is the county seat.
How many towns and cities are in Polk County?
15 incorporated cities, plus around 40 unincorporated communities and rural subdivisions.
What ZIP codes are in Polk County?
Confirmed ZIPs include 56716 (Crookston), 56721 (East Grand Forks), 56542 (Fosston), 56540 (Fertile), 56556 (McIntosh), 56535 (Erskine), 56736 (Mentor), 56723 (Fisher) and 56523 (Climax).
What is Polk County’s largest city?
East Grand Forks, with 9,176 residents at the 2020 census, is larger than the county seat, Crookston.
More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Minnesota.