Stearns has bigger land mass than 29 countries
Stearns County is among Minnesota’s largest in terms of land mass, ranking fourteenth among the 87 counties of the state. It’s also bigger than 29 entire nations.
With approximately 1,390 square miles, Stearns boasts nearly one and a half times the land mass of Rhode Island, and is larger than the likes of Liechtenstein (62 sq. mi.), Singapore (278), Bahrain (301), and Luxembourg (998).
Rare, though, is a county in America that is not larger than a nation somewhere on the globe. The United States ranks third in largest land area at 3,537,455 square miles, trailing only Russia and China.
The smallest county in the U.S. by land area is Kalawao County, Hawaii, at 12 square miles, which is still larger than four countries. Arlington County, Va., comes next at 26 square miles. The largest county outside of Alaska is San Bernardino County, Calif., at 20,105 square miles. Saint Louis County in Minnesota is the 30th-largest county in the nation in land mass.
On a global scale, some of the tiniest nations in the world are also the most notable. The smallest in terms of both area and population is Vatican City, covering only one-sixth of a square mile and with 842 residents, including the Pope.
Next in area is Monaco, at just over three-fourths of a square mile. Its 30,535 residents, though, have plenty to smile about. Not only do they have a per-capita GDP of $78,700, but they have plenty of places to spend it, including lucrative investment opportunities, luxurious hotels and casinos, and glamorous sporting and celebrity events.
Like Monaco, the little South Pacific nations of Nauru (8.1 square mi.) and Tuvalu (10 square mi.) also boast great scenery, but share little of the wealth. The 9,540 residents of Nauru have a per–capita GDP of just $5,000, compared to the $3,300 for the 10,869 people of Tuvalu. In the same region, Palau has the third–smallest population (21,265), the sixteenth-smallest land area (178 sq. mi.) and a healthier economy, a per-capita GDP of $16,300.
Day-to-day life is more prosperous in San Marino (24 square miles), the fifth-smallest nation in size which, like Vatican City, is completely surrounded by Italy. San Marino, which claims itself as the oldest republic in the world, has a robust per-capita GDP of $60,700 and 33,020 residents, the fourth-smallest on the globe.
Still, San Marino manages to field a national soccer team which, not surprisingly, loses most of its games by lopsided scores. -Liechtenstein, which ranks sixth-smallest with its 62 square miles, also has a national soccer program, though the country manages to find Olympic glory every so often, capturing
10 medals in Winter Olympic action – all in alpine skiing.
Liechtenstein is one of the richest nations in the world, with an eye-popping $89,400 per-capita GDP for its 37,624 residents, the fifth-fewest on the globe. Nestled between Austria and Switzerland, the German-speaking nation is united with the latter in a customs and monetary union. Many residents commute to Austria, -Switzerland, or Germany for work.
Other nations that Stearns County dwarfs in size include the Marshall Islands (70 sq. mi.), Saint Kitts and Nevis (104), Maldives (116), Malta (122), Grenada (133), Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (150), Barbados (170), Antigua and Barbuda (171), Seychelles (176), Andorra (181), Saint Lucia (238), Micronesia (271), Tonga (288), Dominica (290), Kiribati (313), Sao Tome and Principe (386), Mauritius (788), Comoros (863), and Samoa (1,097).
In contrast to all of these is the smallest county in Minnesota, Ramsey, which measures just 152 square miles.
Tom Emery is a freelance writer and historical researcher from Carlinville, Ill. He may be reached at (217) 710-8392 or ilcivilwar@yahoo.com.