Duluth MN-WI Metropolitan Area
# Duluth MN-WI Metropolitan Area

46°44′56″N 92°05′24″W﻿ / ﻿46.749°N 92.090°W﻿ / 46.749; -92.090

The Duluth MN-WI Metropolitan Area, commonly called the Twin Ports, is a small metropolitan area centered around the cities of Duluth, Minnesota and Superior, Wisconsin. The Twin Ports are located at the western part of Lake Superior (the westernmost part of North America's Great Lakes) and together are considered one of the larger cargo ports in the United States. The Twin Ports are close to many natural attractions such as the North Shore, the Apostle Islands, and the Superior National Forest.

The area is home to two long bridges: the Richard I. Bong Memorial Bridge (carrying U.S. Highway 2) and the John Blatnik Bridge (carrying I-535 and U.S. Highway 53). Each bridge reaches across more than 1.5 miles (2.5 km) across the mouth of the Saint Louis River. The Aerial Lift Bridge was constructed in 1905 and is on the National Register of Historic Places. It must be raised each time a vessel enters or leaves Duluth's harbor; the inlet on the Wisconsin side is not similarly obstructed.

Together, the cities rank as the 19th-busiest port in the country overall (44.2 million short tons [40.1 million tonnes] per year) as of 2002, though the area is the 7th-busiest port (13.8 million short tons [12.5 million tonnes] per year) when measured on foreign exports alone.

The census bureau's Twin Ports metropolitan statistical area, an area much larger than the Duluth metropolitan area includes all of Wisconsin's Douglas County, and Minnesota's Carlton, Lake, and Saint Louis counties. With a 2020 census population of 291,638, the Duluth MSA ranked as the 170th largest metropolitan area in the United States. A tourist location that boasts many scenic natural amenities, approximately 6.7 million tourists visit The City of Duluth each year.

## Communities

Population as of 2020 Census

### Principal city

* Duluth (86,697)

### Places with 10,000 to 50,000 inhabitants

* Superior, WI (26,751)
* Cloquet (12,568)
* Hermantown (10,221)

### Places with fewer than 10,000 inhabitants

* Rice Lake (4,136)
* Saginaw (3,910) unincorporated
* Proctor (3,120)
* Esko (2,082)
* Scanlon (991)
* Carlton (948)
* Wrenshall (428)
* Oliver, WI (399)

## Infrastructure

The four tallest buildings are in Duluth, the Alworth Building, Historic Old Central High School, Maurices Headquarters, Medical Arts Building. The Bong Bridge leads to from Duluth to Superior. The Bong bridge was built in 1985 and is 11,800 ft (3,600 m) long. The Blatnik Bridge also leads to from Duluth to Superior. The Blatnik Bridge was built in 1965 and is 7,975 feet (2,431 m) long. Canal Park is a heavy tourist area in Downtown Duluth. In Virginia the tallest bridge in Minnesota (Hwy 53 Bridge) connecting Eveleth to Virginia. The Hwy 53 Bridge covers the Rouchleau Mine. The bridge opened in 2017 and is 204 ft. high in the air and spans 1,125 ft.

### Hospitals

* Essentia Health St. Mary's Medical Center - Duluth - (Level 1 Trauma Center)
* St. Luke's Hospital - Duluth - (Level 2 Trauma Center)
* Essentia Health St. Mary's Hospital - Superior - (Level 4 Trauma Center)
* Community Memorial Hospital - Cloquet - (Level 4 Trauma Center)

### Shopping

* Miller Hill Mall

### Attractions

* Aerial Lift Bridge
* AMSOIL Arena
* Bayfront Festival Park
* Blatnik Bridge
* Canal Park
* Enger Tower
* Glensheen Mansion
* Gooseberry Falls
* Great Lakes Aquarium
* Lake Superior Railroad Museum
* Leif Erikson Ship
* Minnesota Point
* Oldest Operating Hockey Arena in Minnesota
* Spirit Mountain Ski Area
* Tallest Bridge in Minnesota
* World's Largest Freestanding Hockey Stick

## Education

### Colleges and universities

* College of St. Scholastica - Duluth
* Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College - Cloquet
* Lake Superior College - Duluth
* Northwood Technical College - Superior, WI
* University of Minnesota Duluth - Duluth
* University of Wisconsin, Superior - Superior, WI

## Transportation

### Major highways

**Interstates**

* I-35
* I-535

**U.S. Highways**

* US 2
* US 53
* US 169

**Minnesota Highways**

* MN 23
* MN 61 – North Shore
* MN 194 – Central Entrance – Mesaba Avenue
* MN 210

**St. Louis County Highways**

* Saint Louis County Road 4 – Rice Lake Road

### Transit

* Duluth Transit Authority
* Indian Trails
* Jefferson Lines

### Airports

* Duluth International Airport - Duluth (DLH)
* Sky Harbor Airport & Seaplane Base - Duluth (KDYT)

## MSA

The Twin Ports metropolitan statistical area, an area much larger than the Duluth MN-WI metropolitan area, includes 4 counties, of which 3 are in Minnesota and 1 in Wisconsin. St. Louis County is Minnesota's largest county by area.

Duluth MN-WI Metropolitan Statistical Area

| County | Seat | 2020 Census | 2010 Census | Change | Area | Density |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| St. Louis | Duluth | 200,231 | 200,226 | 0.00% | 6,860 sq mi (17,800 $km^2)$ | 29/sq mi $(11/km^2)$ |
| Douglas, WI | Superior | 44,295 | 44,159 | +0.31% | 1,480 sq mi (3,800 $km^2)$ | 30/sq mi $(12/km^2)$ |
| Carlton | Carlton | 36,207 | 35,386 | +2.32% | 875 sq mi (2,270 $km^2)$ | 41/sq mi $(16/km^2)$ |
| Lake | Two Harbors | 10,905 | 10,866 | +0.36% | 2,991 sq mi (7,750 $km^2)$ | 4/sq mi $(1/km^2)$ |
| Total | | 291,638 | 290,637 | +0.34% | 12,206 sq mi (31,610 $km^2)$ | 242/sq mi $(93/km^2)$ |
