County · code 27155
Traverse CountyMinnesota
Traverse County is a county in Minnesota with its seat in Wheaton. It was created on February 20, 1862, from Pierce County.
- Founded1862
- County seatWheaton
- Named forLake Traverse, Minnesota and South Dakota
- Land area574 sq mi + 12 sq mi water
- Population3,360 2020 Census
- Parcels mapped6,248 checked 16 October 2026
Where it is
Traverse on the map of Minnesota
Minnesota has 87 counties and county equivalents, each with its own records office. Shapes with a page are links.
History
Formed in 1862 from Pierce County
An old deed may name a county that no longer exists, or a boundary that has since moved.
Traverse County was named after Lake Traverse. When first formed, Traverse County was attached to other counties for judicial and record purposes, including Stearns, Douglas, Pope, and Stevens, until it was fully organized for county government and judicial purposes in 1881.
- 1862Traverse County created Traverse created from Pierce (extinct) and Non-County Areas 6 and 7.from Pierce· Minn. Laws 1862, spec., ch. 22, sec. 6/p. 259
- 1866Changed Traverse attached to Stearns "for judicial purposes." · Minn. Gen. Stat. 1866, ch. 64, title 4, sec. 33/p. 419
- 1867
- 1868Gained territory Traverse gained from Big Stone and lost to creation of Non-County Area 12, in boundary redefinitions of Big Stone and Traverse which were apparently ignored by local residents (boundaries corrected on 2 March 1876 and 14 February 1881); Traverse lost to the creation of Grant; lost to Stevens; Traverse detached from Douglas, attached to Pope "for record and judicial purposes." · HRS Minn., Big Stone, 9-10; Minn. Laws 1868, gen., ch. 109, sec. 3/pp. 155-156
- 1872
- 1876Lost territory Traverse lost to Big Stone; Traverse remained attached to Stevens. · Minn. Laws 1876, spec., ch. 159, sec. 1/pp. 234-235
- 1881Gained territory Traverse fully organized for county government and judicial purposes, detached from Stevens; Traverse gained all of Non-County Area 12, which was eliminated. · HRS Minn., Traverse, 7-8; Minn. Laws 1881, reg. sess., gen., ch. 130, sec. 1/pp. 171-173
Land and parcels
What the maps cover in Traverse
Who publishes each layer, how good it is, and when we last checked.
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Parcels Good enough
Lot lines and tax-map numbers for 6,248 parcels from Traverse County. Drawn for tax purposes: usually within a few feet of a survey, but not a survey.
checked 16 October 2026 -
Address points Good enough
One point per address, 2,467 in all from Traverse County.
checked 13 October 2026 -
Buildings Reference
Roof outlines traced from aerial imagery from FEMA Response Geospatial Office with Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). Good for seeing what is on a lot; not accurate enough to set a fence from.
checked 18 October 2026
- 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
Traverse by the Census
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.
Zoning and code
County government
- County government
The official website of Traverse County.
See your own lot on these maps
Open Traverse 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.
Questions
Common questions about Traverse County
- When was Traverse County founded?
- Traverse County was founded in 1862, formed from Pierce County, and named after Lake Traverse, Minnesota and South Dakota.
- What is the county seat of Traverse County?
- The county seat of Traverse County is Wheaton.
- Is there an online parcel map for Traverse County?
- Yes. Traverse County publishes a parcel map of 6,248 parcels, rated good enough here. You can click any parcel on it in Parcel Chart's free map, no sign-in needed.
- Has Traverse County's boundary or name changed?
- Traverse County was created in 1862 from Pierce County. Since then the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries records 6 later changes, chiefly involving Stevens County, Big Stone County and Douglas County.
- Is my lot in a flood zone?
- We do not have flood maps for Traverse County yet. Look up the address on FEMA's Flood Map Service Center, which shows the effective flood map for any lot.
Nearby