Stearns County
is a county
located in the
U.S. state of
Minnesota,
founded in 1855.
As of 2006, the
population was
144,096 (133,166
in 2000). Its
county seat is
St. Cloud. It
was named after
Charles Thomas
Stearns, a local
politician.
According to the
U.S. Census
Bureau, the
county has a
total area of
1,390 square
miles (3,600
km˛), of which,
1,345 square
miles (3,482
km˛) of it is
land and 45
square miles
(118 km˛) of it
(3.27%) is
water.
