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 Academy for the Deaf Minnesota State Academy for the Deaf The Minnesota State Academy for the Deaf (MSAD) is a public residential school serving deaf children in Minnesota, United States. It is one of two Minnesota State Academies in Faribault and operated by the state for particular student populations. When the school was established in 1863, it was named the Minnesota School for the Deaf (MSD). In 1986, the name was changed to the Minnesota State Academy for the Deaf. Two buildings are listed on the National Register of Historic Places, both designed by state architect Clarence H. Johnston, Sr.: the Administration Building/Girls' Dormitory,