|
Minnesota [miniso u ʹtə], abbreviated MN, State of the
Midwest, USA; 225 182 km2, 5.6 million inhabitants (2018).The capital
is Saint Paul.
Minnesota. State Map.
Nature
Minnesota can be said to have two main areas. To the west of the Upper Lake,
several mountain ridges move in a southwesterly direction to the central parts
of the state, such as the famous Mesabi Range for its iron ore fields. The
Urbergsberg foundation here is covered by an often rather rough-looking
moraine. To the west and south of this area, a gently rolling prairie landscape
is spreading with fertile loose soils, which overlay sedimentary rocks. The
state is rich in lakes.
The climate in Minnesota is continental and strongly variable. Saint Paul in
the southeast has an average temperature of −11 °C in January and +22 °C in
July. The annual rainfall in this area is around 700 mm, but falls in the
northwestern part of the state to 500 mm.
Population
Minnesota has slightly slower population growth than the nation as a
whole. About 85 percent of the population is white and 6 percent black. The
great wave of colonization began in the 1880s with immigrants from Germany,
Sweden and Norway. Swedish kittens are found mainly in the metropolitan
Minneapolis-Saint Paul area and the area north of it. About 70 percent of the
population lives in metropolitan areas, the majority in Minneapolis – Saint Paul
– Bloomington (3.6 million, 2016).
Business
The fertile soil and favorable climate for cultivation made the state one of
the leading food producers in the United States. However, the once dominant
wheat crop has largely been replaced by other crops (maize, soybeans and sugar
beets), and agriculture has also become more versatile with dairy products and
meat as important sources of income.
Minnesota's iron ore production has been a leader in the United States during
the 20th century. However, the high-quality ore in the Mesabi Range has run out
and been replaced by low-grade taconite.
Minnesota. Hull Rust Mahoning in the Mesabi Range
is one of the world's largest mining ore mines.
Traditionally, the food industry has played a major role, but the industrial
sector, which is mainly located in Minneapolis-Saint Paul, is versatile and
includes, for example, the graphic and chemical industry as well as the
engineering industry. Electronics and other high-tech industries (computers,
measuring and control equipment and instruments) are also of great importance.
Tourism and gastronomy
The state lacks major well-known attractions but still has relatively
extensive tourism. The main tourist destination is the Twin Cities (Minneapolis
and Saint Paul), with its wide selection of museums, theaters and sports events.
Minnesota. The Weisman Art Museum in Minneapolis
was founded in 1934 as a teaching museum for the University of
Minnesota. Today's spectacular museum building was completed in 1993 and
designed by Frank O Gehry.
The thousands of lakes and rivers attract sports fishing and boating. At the
border with Canada, the Grand Portage, once an important fur trading station, is
today a major tourist destination. The fur trade was the first major industry
when colonization began. It was succeeded by agriculture, forestry and
mining. In the iron ore district in the north, tourists can now see the oldest
and deepest iron mine (closed in 1962), and in the "Lumbertown USA" in Brainerd
(100 km north of Saint Cloud) the 1870s forest industry is revived. The
colonization's "national" history of origin is most often reminded of a tour of
the state, for example through the city names. The Scandinavian influence is
evident.
In terms of food, Minnesota does not differ significantly from other inland
states; here, too, you can eat powerful steaks, turnips, potato gratin, apple
pies and corn cakes. Meatballs just like they taste in Sweden, thin bread like
in Norway and cheese that in Germany gossip about where the settlers came
from. Turkey, but also other larger birds, is often filled with wild
rice; otherwise the wild rice is often served in arrow form. Other accessories
are pickled green beans (pickled green beans), sauerkraut salad or
stewed mayonnaise. Fried perch is popular, and the large production of beans
makes it possible to find hamburgers made from ground soybeans.
History
During the 17th century, French fur hunters and missionaries were the first
Europeans in the area. In 1763, Minnesota came east of Mississippi under British
sovereignty and in 1783 became part of the United States. Through the Louisiana
acquisition in 1803, western Minnesota was also incorporated. In 1849, Minnesota
became territory and in 1858 the state. The first permanent settlement was
founded in 1819, after which immigration increased, mainly from New England, and
the economy developed through extensive grain and timber trade. After the Civil
War (1861–65) came large crowds of immigrants from Norway, Sweden and
Germany. Industrialization, based on large iron ore assets, began at the turn of
the century.
Republicans have long dominated politics, but power was taken over by The
Farmer-Labor Party in the 1930s. This coincided in 1944 with the hitherto
insignificant Democratic Party, which then dominated from time to time.
|
