Virginia, Minnesota

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Virginia
City
View of Virginia, showing a water tower and a line of wind turbines in the distance
FIPS code		27-67288
GNIS feature ID	0662719[3]
Sales tax	8.375%[6]
Website	www.virginiamn.us

Virginia is a city in

runs through town.

Virginia was founded by Orrin Day Kinney, the original owner of the town site, which was laid out in 1892 and named after Virginia, the home state of many of the lumbermen in the area at the time.^[9] A post office has been in operation at Virginia since 1893.^[10] Virginia was incorporated in 1895. It was a logging community first, then developed as an mining community. The Virginia area mines were prosperous and setting new records consistently by the late 1890s. The main population boom began after mining camps were built for entrepreneurs and financiers including Andrew Carnegie, Leonidas Merritt, Jay Cooke, John D. Rockefeller, William J. Olcott, and James J. Hill. With the use of diamond drills, mules, and a massive labor force, the mines moved millions of tons per year and shipped them out of the Twin Ports of Duluth and Superior, as well as Two Harbors.

The City of Franklin was consolidated into the City of Virginia.^[11]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has an area of 19.18 square miles (49.68 km²); 18.85 square miles (48.82 km²) is land and 0.33 square miles (0.85 km²) is water.^[12] Lakes in Virginia include Silver Lake and Bailey Lake. An Ojibwe tribe originally named the area Qeechaquepagem, which roughly means "lake of the north birds".

Virginia is part of the Quad Cities, along with Eveleth, Gilbert, and Mountain Iron.

The

" (Warm Summer Continental Climate). Summers are warm, sometimes hot, and winters are severely cold.

Climate data for Virginia, Minnesota
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	−9 (16)	−4 (24)	2 (36)	11 (51)	19 (66)	23 (74)	25 (77)	24 (75)	18 (64)	11 (52)	1 (33)	−6 (21)	9 (49)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	−21 (−6)	−17 (2)	−10 (14)	−3 (27)	4 (39)	9 (48)	12 (53)	11 (51)	6 (43)	0 (32)	−8 (17)	−17 (1)	−3 (27)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	20 (0.8)	13 (0.5)	28 (1.1)	41 (1.6)	69 (2.7)	120 (4.6)	99 (3.9)	94 (3.7)	86 (3.4)	64 (2.5)	36 (1.4)	18 (0.7)	690 (27.1)
Source: Weatherbase [13]

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1900	2,962		—
1910	10,473		253.6%
1920	14,022		33.9%
1930	11,963		−14.7%
1940	12,264		2.5%
1950	12,486		1.8%
1960	14,034		12.4%
1970	12,450		−11.3%
1980	11,056		−11.2%
1990	9,410		−14.9%
2000	9,157		−2.7%
2010	8,712		−4.9%
2020	8,423		−3.3%
2022 (est.)	8,332	[5]	−1.1%
U.S. Decennial Census[14] 2020 Census[4]

2010 census

As of the

Latino

of any race were 1.5% of the population.

There were 4,242 households, of which 21.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 31.7% were married couples living together, 12.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.0% had a male householder with no wife present, and 52.4% were non-families. 46.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.95 and the average family size was 2.74.

The median age in the city was 44.9 years. 18.9% of residents were under the age of 18; 9.3% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 21.8% were from 25 to 44; 27.9% were from 45 to 64; and 22% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 47.9% male and 52.1% female.

As of the

ancestry.

There were 4,333 households, out of which 22.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.4% were married couples living together, 10.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 47.6% were non-families. 42.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 19.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.00 and the average family size was 2.73.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 19.0% under the age of 18, 9.4% from 18 to 24, 25.0% from 25 to 44, 23.3% from 45 to 64, and 23.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females, there were 88.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.9 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $28,873, and the median income for a family was $43,419. Males had a median income of $38,834 versus $22,473 for females. The

, including 16.6% of those under age 18 and 10.0% of those age 65 or over.

Virginia is on the Mesabi Range, one of the sub-regions of Minnesota's Iron Range. It is considered the Mesabi Range's commerce center. Virginia is a shopping, industrial, educational, and medical hub for surrounding communities.

Virginia is the home of the Land of the Loon festival, an annual event in June.^[16]

• B'nai Abraham Synagogue
• Laurentian Divide
• Lyric Center for the Arts (Historic Lyric Opera House)
• Mesabi Trail
• Olcott Park Greenhouse

Virginia's urban area is relatively large, with a 30-mile radius. The major cities are Virginia, Hibbing, Mountain Iron, Eveleth, Gilbert, Fayal, and Chisholm. Virginia is the area's commercial hub, while Hibbing has a large residential population. Duluth, a significantly larger city, is 45 miles south. Virginia is also part of the Duluth MN-WI Metropolitan Area. The Duluth Metro is Minnesota's second-largest metro.

, for decades the Iron Range's largest mining company.

Education

The public high school is

Mesabi Range Community and Technical College

. The Virginia Public Library is also an educational place for people of all ages. Marquette Catholic School is a private elementary school operated by the Duluth Diocese. Northland Learning Center, a cooperative alternative school for students with disciplinary problems or other special circumstances, operates in the former James Madison Elementary School, which is owned by ISD No. 706.

Sports

Virginia High School is the home of the Blue Devils. In the 2022–23 school year, Virginia and Eveleth-Gilbert High Schools combined into a new high school, Rock Ridge High School, with new mascot the Wolverines (a blend of the Virginia Blue Devils and the Eveleth-Gilbert Bears).^[17]

Virginia's main high school sport is ice hockey. The main hockey arena is the Miners Memorial Building. A new complex, the Miners Event and Convention Center (MECC), with two planned ice arenas, is under construction. The MECC will incorporate many elements from the Miners Building, such as its ice arena seats.^[18]

• The
  Mesabi Tribune
  , newspaper published in Virginia and Hibbing

Stations serving Virginia are received from the Duluth television market:

• 3
  KDLH
  – CBS
• 6 / 11
  KBJR
  – NBC
• 8 / 31 WDSE – PBS
• 10 / 13
  WDIO
  – ABC
• 21 KQDS – Fox

Virginia is a regional transportation hub within the Mesabi Range. Major roadways include U.S. routes 53 and 169 and State Highway 135 (MN 135). Other main routes include 2nd Avenue West, 9th Avenue West, 12th Avenue West, 13th Street South, 8th Street South, and 9th Street North. Downtown Virginia is centered along Chestnut Street. Arrowhead Transportation also allows for city bussing through the Virginia Metro area.

In 2017, the U.S. 53 Bridge was built. It is Minnesota's tallest bridge and the main bridge from the freeway from southern Minnesota to the north. In 2021, it was renamed the Thomas Rukavina Memorial Bridge.

• W. T. Bailey, lumber industrialist
• Daniel Berrigan, peace activist
• Luke F. Burns, lawyer and Minnesota state legislator
• Jack Carlson, professional hockey player
• Jeff Carlson, professional hockey player^[20]
• Steve Carlson, professional hockey player
• Mark Cullen, professional hockey player
• Matt Cullen, professional hockey player
• Peter X. Fugina, educator and Minnesota state legislator
• John Gruden, professional hockey player
• Frank Haege, professional and collegiate football coach
• John Harrington, hockey player, member of the 1980 Miracle on Ice team that won the Olympic gold medal
• Edwin H. Hoff, Minnesota state legislator
• Kurt Johnson, auto racer
• Warren Johnson, auto racer, member of Motorsports Hall of Fame of America
• Vic Kulbitski, football player
• Pete LoPresti, professional hockey player
• Robert W. Mattson, Sr.
  , Minnesota attorney general
• Robert Mondavi, winemaker
• Matt Niskanen, professional hockey player^[21]
• Johnny Norlander, professional basketball player
• Chris Pratt, actor^[19]
• Alex Rozier, journalist
• Tom Rukavina, Minnesota state legislator
• Sherman Walt, bassoonist
• Brigadier General
• Thomas D. Yukelich, Minnesota state legislator

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Virginia, Minnesota.

Wikisource has the text of a 1921 Collier's Encyclopedia article about Virginia, Minnesota.

• City of Virginia – Official Website