Geography of Minnesota "The Cities"), and "Outstate" or "Greater Minnesota". The Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area comprises eleven Minnesota counties centered around Minneapolis, the state's largest city, and adjoining Saint Paul, the capital; plus two Wisconsin counties. About three out of every five residents of the state live in this conurbation. Greater Minnesota is less urbanized than the Twin Cities. It is also geographically more diverse, with farmlands to the south and west, lake country in central Minnesota, and forests in the northern part of the state. Approximately 40% of Minnesotans live in Greater Minnesota. Its major population centers include Duluth, Rochester, Moorhead, St.
Minnesota State Highway 254 defined as Route 254 in the Minnesota Statutes. MN 254 was authorized on July 1, 1949. Originally, it traveled from U.S. Route 16 (US 16) south through Frost to Iowa Highway 322 (renumbered 254 in 1969) at the state line near Rake, Iowa. The route was paved between US 16 and Frost in 1950. The remainder was paved in the mid-1950s. The part of MN 254 south of Frost was removed from statute in 1988 and turned back to Faribault County. It is now marked County Road 17. Minnesota State Highway 254 Minnesota State Highway 254 (MN 254) is a