Sherburne County recently celebrated their 164th birthday. 

Sherburne County was part of Benton County when it organized as a separate entity Feb. 25, 1856 and was named after Moses Sherburne.

Moses was an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the Minnesota Territory when the Territory applied for admission to the Union as a state. Judge Sherburne took a prominent part in the deliberations that resulted in the adoption of the State Constitution. 

The first two buildings in Sherburne County were constructed in 1846 and were to serve the travelers along the Red River Ox Cart Trail that followed along the Mississippi River; one was a tavern built by Joseph Jerome and the other a trading post built by David Faribault. 

In the decade following, the county nearly tripled in population from 723 to 2,050 people. The first five areas of settlement were Elk River-Orono, Bailey’s Station, Big Lake, Clear Lake and Haven townships.  

The county has changed and grown a lot since then. Sherburne County now boasts more than 96,000 residents.