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County · code 27035

Crow Wing CountyMinnesota

Crow Wing County is in Minnesota, with its seat in Brainerd. It was created on May 23, 1857 from Ramsey County and named after the Crow Wing River.

  • Founded1857
  • County seatBrainerd
  • Named forCrow Wing River, Minnesota
  • Land area998 sq mi + 158 sq mi water
  • Population66,123 2020 Census
  • Parcels mapped79,243 checked 16 October 2026
Open the free map Click any parcel in Crow Wing County: acreage, parcel id, address and who publishes the map. No sign-in.

Updated

MorrisonCassAitkinMille Lacs Brainerd Census outline · seat marked

Where it is

Crow Wing on the map of Minnesota

Minnesota has 87 counties and county equivalents, each with its own records office. Shapes with a page are links.

Aitkin CountyAnoka CountyBecker CountyBeltrami CountyBenton CountyBig Stone CountyBlue Earth CountyBrown CountyCarlton CountyCarver CountyCass CountyChippewa CountyChisago CountyClay CountyClearwater CountyCook CountyCottonwood CountyDakota CountyDodge CountyDouglas CountyFaribault CountyFillmore CountyFreeborn CountyGoodhue CountyGrant CountyHennepin CountyHouston CountyHubbard CountyIsanti CountyItasca CountyJackson CountyKanabec CountyKandiyohi CountyKittson CountyKoochiching CountyLac qui Parle CountyLake CountyLake of the Woods CountyLe Sueur CountyLincoln CountyLyon CountyMcLeod CountyMahnomen CountyMarshall CountyMartin CountyMeeker CountyMille Lacs CountyMorrison CountyMower CountyMurray CountyNicollet CountyNobles CountyNorman CountyOlmsted CountyOtter Tail CountyPennington CountyPine CountyPipestone CountyPolk CountyPope CountyRamsey CountyRed Lake CountyRedwood CountyRenville CountyRice CountyRock CountyRoseau CountySt. Louis CountyScott CountySherburne CountySibley CountyStearns CountySteele CountyStevens CountySwift CountyTodd CountyTraverse CountyWabasha CountyWadena CountyWaseca CountyWashington CountyWatonwan CountyWilkin CountyWinona CountyWright CountyYellow Medicine CountyCrow Wing County Crow Wing
Counties of Minnesota · Crow Wing highlighted

History

Formed in 1857 from Ramsey County

An old deed may name a county that no longer exists, or a boundary that has since moved.

Crow Wing County was created from Ramsey County in 1857. Between 1858 and 1867, the county experienced multiple boundary adjustments as other counties were attached and detached, initially for judicial purposes. The county was organized for county government on March 3, 1870, and became fully independent of Morrison County on February 24, 1871. Wadena County detached and organized separately in 1881, followed by Aitkin County in 1885.

Boundary changes from the Newberry Library, Atlas of Historical County Boundaries; the 5 that matter most are shown first.

  1. 1857
    Crow Wing County created Crow Wing created from Ramsey.
    from Ramsey
    · Minn. Terr. Laws 1857, ext. sess., ch. 5, secs. 4, 6/pp. 52-54
  2. 1858
    Changed Cass detached from Stearns, attached to Crow Wing; Itasca detached from Benton, attached to Crow Wing. Both attachments were "for judicial purposes."
    CassStearnsItascaBenton
    · Minn. Laws 1857-1858, spec., ch. 39, sec. 1/p. 151
  3. 1858
    Changed Cass and Itasca detached from Crow Wing, attached to Morrison; Crow Wing attached to Morrison "for judicial and other purposes."
    CassItascaMorrison
    · Minn. Laws 1857-1858, gen., ch. 67, sec. 2/p. 157
  4. 1888
    Gained territory Crow Wing gained from Cass; Cass remained attached to Crow Wing.
    from Cass
    · Minn. Laws 1887, gen., ch. 118, secs. 1-3/pp. 203-204
  5. 1898
    Lost territory Crow Wing lost to Cass when state supreme court ruled boundary change of c. 20 February 1896 unconstitutional.
    to Cass
    · Heilbron, "Variations," 490-491; HRS Minn., Cass, 8; Minn. Reports, 66:519- 535
Show all 19 changes (14 more)
  1. 1857
    Crow Wing County created Crow Wing created from Ramsey.
    from Ramsey
    · Minn. Terr. Laws 1857, ext. sess., ch. 5, secs. 4, 6/pp. 52-54
  2. 1858
    Changed Cass detached from Stearns, attached to Crow Wing; Itasca detached from Benton, attached to Crow Wing. Both attachments were "for judicial purposes."
    CassStearnsItascaBenton
    · Minn. Laws 1857-1858, spec., ch. 39, sec. 1/p. 151
  3. 1858
    Changed Cass and Itasca detached from Crow Wing, attached to Morrison; Crow Wing attached to Morrison "for judicial and other purposes."
    CassItascaMorrison
    · Minn. Laws 1857-1858, gen., ch. 67, sec. 2/p. 157
  4. 1866
    Changed Crow Wing organized for judicial purposes, detached from Morrison; Aiken (now Aitkin), Polk, and Wadena attached to Crow Wing "for judicial purposes"; Andy Johnson (now Wilkin), Becker, Clay, and Otter Tail detached from Stearns, attached to Crow Wing "for judicial purposes"; Cass and Pembina (now Kittson) detached from Morrison, attached to Crow Wing "for judicial purposes."
    MorrisonAikenAitkinPolkWadenaAndy JohnsonWilkinBeckerClayOtter TailStearnsCassPembinaKittson
    · Minn. Gen. Stat. 1866, ch. 64, title 4, sec. 33/p. 419
  5. 1867
    Changed Crow Wing reattached to Morrison; Aiken (now Aitkin), Cass, and Wadena detached from Crow Wing, attached to Morrison; Andy Johnson (now Wilkin), Becker, Clay, Otter Tail, Pembina (now Kittson), and Polk detached from Crow Wing, attached to Douglas. All attachments were "for judicial and record purposes."
    MorrisonAikenAitkinCassWadenaAndy JohnsonWilkinBeckerClayOtter TailPembinaKittsonPolkDouglas
    · Minn. Laws 1867, gen., ch. 113, secs. 1-3/pp. 159-160
  6. 1870
    Changed Crow Wing organized for county government. · Upham, 154
  7. 1871
    Changed Aiken detached from Morrison, attached to Crow Wing "for judicial purposes." (Aiken remained indirectly attached to Morrison, through Crow Wing, until 24 February 1871).
    AikenMorrison
    · Minn. Laws 1871, gen., ch. 96, secs. 1-2, 4/pp. 161-162
  8. 1871
    Changed Crow Wing fully organized, detached from Morrison.
    Morrison
    · Minn. Laws 1871, gen., ch. 85, secs. 1-2/p. 148
  9. 1871
    Changed Cass and Wadena detached from Morrison, attached to Crow Wing; Itasca detached from St. Louis, attached to Crow Wing. All attachments were "for record and judicial purposes."
    CassWadenaMorrisonItascaSt. Louis
    · Minn. Laws 1871, spec., ch. 75, secs. 1-3/p. 285
  10. 1881
    Changed Wadena fully organized, detached from Crow Wing.
    Wadena
    · Minn. Laws 1881, reg. sess., gen., ch. 131, sec. 1/pp. 173- 174
  11. 1883
    Changed Crow Wing authorized to gain from Cass and exchange with Morrison, dependent upon local referendum; change not effected.
    CassMorrison
    · Minn. Gen. Stat. 1894, ch. 8, title 1, sec. 549/p. 158; Minn. Laws 1883, gen., ch. 80, secs. 1-3, 5-6/pp. 110-111
  12. 1885
    Changed Aitkin fully organized, detached from Crow Wing.
    Aitkin
    · Minn. Laws 1885, gen., ch. 142, sec. 1/pp. 132-133
  13. 1885
    Changed Crow Wing authorized to gain area north of Mississippi River from Cass, dependent upon local referendum; change not effected.
    Cass
    · Minn. Gen. Stat. 1894, ch. 8, title 1, sec. 549/p. 158; Minn. Laws 1885, gen., ch. 203, secs. 1-3/pp. 274-275
  14. 1887
    Changed Itasca detached from Crow Wing, attached to Aitkin "for record and judicial purposes."
    ItascaAitkin
    · Minn. Laws 1887, gen., ch. 264, secs. 1-2/pp. 383-384
  15. 1888
    Gained territory Crow Wing gained from Cass; Cass remained attached to Crow Wing.
    from Cass
    · Minn. Laws 1887, gen., ch. 118, secs. 1-3/pp. 203-204
  16. c. 1896
    Gained territory Crow Wing gained from Cass.
    from Cass
    · Crow Wing Co. Hist. Soc., corres., Sep. 1998; Heilbron, "Variations," 490-491; HRS Minn., Cass, 8
  17. 1897
    Changed Cass fully organized, detached from Crow Wing.
    Cass
    · Minn. Laws 1897, gen., ch. 99, secs. 1, 4/pp. 122-124
  18. 1898
    Lost territory Crow Wing lost to Cass when state supreme court ruled boundary change of c. 20 February 1896 unconstitutional.
    to Cass
    · Heilbron, "Variations," 490-491; HRS Minn., Cass, 8; Minn. Reports, 66:519- 535
  19. 1917
    Exchanged territory Crow Wing exchanged with Aitkin.
    with Aitkin
    · Minn. Laws 1917, ch. 135, secs. 1-2/p. 184

Land and parcels

What the maps cover in Crow Wing

Who publishes each layer, how good it is, and when we last checked.

Official
from the office that keeps the record
Good enough
a reliable statewide or national copy
Fallback
a guide only; check the official record
Missing
nothing public found yet

People and land

Crow Wing by the Census

Population
66,123 2020 Census count
Housing units
41,568 2020 Census count
Land area
998 square miles
Water area
158 square miles
People per sq mi
66 population ÷ land area

Source: US Census Bureau, 2020 Census; US Census Bureau, 2020 Gazetteer Files. Not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Rules and offices

Who to ask before you build, dig or sell

Official county pages only. We link to them; we do not copy them, because they change.

Inside a city or town, permits usually come from that city rather than the county.

Permits

Zoning and code

County government

See your own lot on these maps

Open Crow Wing County on Parcel Chart's free map and click your parcel. Save it with a free account; the full record of your place (site map, projects, documents) is Pro, in early access.

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Questions

Common questions about Crow Wing County

When was Crow Wing County founded?
Crow Wing County was founded in 1857, formed from Ramsey County, and named after Crow Wing River, Minnesota.
What is the county seat of Crow Wing County?
The county seat of Crow Wing County is Brainerd.
Is there an online parcel map for Crow Wing County?
Yes. A public source publishes a parcel map of 79,243 parcels, rated good enough here. You can click any parcel on it in Parcel Chart's free map, no sign-in needed.
Has Crow Wing County's boundary or name changed?
Crow Wing County was created in 1857 from Ramsey County. Since then the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries records 18 later changes, chiefly involving Cass County, Morrison County and Aitkin County.
Who issues building permits in Crow Wing County?
The county's page on building permits: Permits. Inside a city or town, ask that city first.
Is my lot in a flood zone?
We do not have flood maps for Crow Wing County yet. Look up the address on FEMA's Flood Map Service Center, which shows the effective flood map for any lot.

Nearby

Counties next door