Dakota County, Minnesota

Dakota County is a located in the southeastern part of the  of. As of 2000, the population was 355,904. Its is. It is part of the of  and.

History
The people ceded land in 1851 at the  and.

Law and government
Dakota County is governed by the Board of Commissioners. The members of the Board as of 2007 are:
 * Joseph Harris, District 1
 * Kathleen Gaylord, District 2
 * Thomas Egan, District 3
 * Nancy Schouweiler, District 4
 * Michael Turner, District 5
 * , District 6
 * Willis Braning, District 7

Dakota County also has an elected (Don Gudmundson) and an elected  (James Backstrom). Additionally there are appointed boards for the library system, community development agency, and several advisory boards. Dakota County is also served by an elected board of their.

Principal employees of Dakota County include (but are not limited to) County Administrator Brandt Richardson, Community Services Director Dave Rooney, Parks Director Steve Sullivan, and Court Administrator Van Bostrom.

Geography
According to the, the county has a total area of 1,519 (586 ). 1,475 km² (570 sq mi) of it is land and 43 km² (17 sq mi) of it (2.86%) is water.

Lakes and rivers
The major lakes are in the northern portion of the county with creeks and rivers running through the southern portion.
 * Chub Lake: in
 * in
 * Lake Byllesby: northern half is in ; southern half is in
 * in
 * Mud Hen Lakes: in
 * Thomas Lake in
 * Thompson Lake in
 * Lake Rebecca in
 * Lake Isabelle in Hastings
 * Spring Lake in Hastings
 * Bullfrog Pond in Hastings
 * Pickerel Lake in
 * Fish Lake in Eagan
 * Blackhawk Lake in Eagan
 * Holland Lake in Eagan
 * Jensen Lake in Eagan

The northern and eastern border of Dakota County is marked by the Minnesota and Mississippi river. Many smaller rivers and creeks in the southern portion are tributaries for the Mississippi.
 * Adjacent to, , , and Hastings.
 * Adjacent to, , and Burnsville.
 * From through Eureka Township to Hastings.

Adjacent counties

 * (north)
 * (northeast)
 * (east, across the )
 * (southeast)
 * (southwest)
 * (west)
 * (northwest)

Economy
Since the county grew as a bedroom community of Minneapolis and St. Paul, just over half of the residents (54%) work outside the county.

Demographics
As of the of 2000, there were 355,904 people, 131,151 households, and 94,035 families residing in the county. The was 241/km² (625/sq mi). There were 133,750 housing units at an average density of 91/km² (235/sq mi). The racial makeup of the county was 91.36%, 2.27% or , 0.38% , 2.89% , 0.05% , 1.29% from , and 1.75% from two or more races. 2.94% of the population were or  of any race. 32.0% were of, 13.0% , 9.7% and 5.9%  ancestry according to. About two thirds of the county's residents live in a cluster of large suburbs in the northwestern corner of the county: Burnsville, Lakeville, Apple Valley, Rosemount and Eagan. There were 131,151 households out of which 40.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.20% were living together, 9.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.30% were non-families. 21.70% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.70 and the average family size was 3.19.

In the county the population was spread out with 29.20% under the age of 18, 7.90% from 18 to 24, 34.30% from 25 to 44, 21.20% from 45 to 64, and 7.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 97.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.70 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $61,863, and the median income for a family was $71,062. Males had a median income of $46,827 versus $32,189 for females. The for the county was $27,008. About 2.40% of families and 3.60% of the population were below the, including 3.90% of those under age 18 and 5.50% of those age 65 or over.

Cities and towns
† Hastings is in Dakota County; a part of the city extends into. ‡ Northfield is mainly in ; a part of the city extends into Dakota County.

Independent school districts
and

Colleges and universities
Dakota County Technical College

Libraries

 * in
 * in
 * in
 * in
 * in
 * in
 * in
 * in
 * in

Parks

 * in Mendota Heights
 * in Cannon Falls
 * in Eagan/Apple Valley
 * in Miesville
 * in Empire Township
 * in Hastings/Rosemount
 * in West St. Paul

Notable people

 * , U.S. Supreme Court justice
 * , Former Governor of Minnesota, Aide to Adm., Aide to President , Participant/Drafter of the Charter
 * , Politician
 * , Politician, Indian agent