About St. Louis County

The mission of St. Louis County is to promote health and safety, ensure sound infrastructure, embrace our natural resources, and support an environment where communities prosper.

 We serve the public in a manner that earns trust by incorporating these values: 

• People-focused - County interactions demonstrate caring and respect for our diverse community and workforce.
• Stewardship - County financial, human, and natural resources are used wisely to address the collective needs of the community.

• Integrity - County business is conducted in an open, ethical, and transparent manner that ensures accountability to our stakeholders and the citizens we serve.
• Fairness - County government policies and operations are administered consistently and fairly to ensure equal treatment for all our citizens.
• Innovation - County employees continuously strive to improve our services and anticipate community needs.

St. Louis County conducted strategic planning activities in 2016 which included Commissioners and leadership staff. The Strategic Plan can be used as a management and decision-making tool, to guide resources allocation, and to maintain focus on established priorities. Countywide goals were also established to be used as a guide for individual department planning, budget development, and business improvement initiatives. 

St. Louis County is home to 200,000 people and an abundance of natural resources including lakes, forests, wetlands and minerals. Much of the County's population growth is linked to growth in industries that draw on the County's natural resources, including mining, timber and shipping. The major industries include mining, wood and paper products, shipping, aviation, higher education, health care and tourism. 

We are the gateway to both the Boundary Waters Canoe Area and to Lake superior, the greatest of the Great Lakes. Spanning 7,000 square miles, we are the largest county east of the Mississippi river, and are larger than three states (Rhode Island, Connecticut, and Delaware). We are home to the mineral rich Iron Range, as well as millions of acres of woods used for both timber harvest and recreation. 

To serve the citizens of our vast county, we maintain courthouses in Duluth, Virginia and Hibbing, and a Government Services Center in Ely, plus numerous smaller offices and Public Works facilities in other towns. St. Louis County consists of 27 cities, 72 townships, 75 unorganized townships and portions of two Indian reservations. For a list of City and Township Officers, please click here.

The mission of the St. Louis County is to promote health and safety, ensure sound infrastructure, embrace our natural resources, and support an environment where communities prosper.

St. Louis County History St. Louis County was established by legislative act on March 1, 1856. It is named for the St. Louis River, which flows through the County's southeast corner into Lake Superior.

Click the picture about to learn more about our rich history.