Welcome to Benson ...
The city of Benson is located in Swift County<1> and is the County Seat for Swift County.
While we don't have a date for the founding of Benson, you might consider that their post office opened in 1870.
From the Census Estimates for 2019, Benson has a population of 3,044 people<2> (see below for details).
Benson is 1,040 feet [317 m] above sea level.<3>.
Time Zone: Benson lies in the Central Time Zone (CST/CDT) and observes daylight saving time
The area code for Benson: (320)
The ZIP code for Benson: 56215<4>
Websites for Benson ...
Official Website: www.bensonmn.org/
Population Details ...
Taken from the 2019 Census Estimates, Benson had an population of 3,044 people. This is a decrease of 6.05% since the 2010 Census (or a decrease of 9.83% since the 2000 Census).
At the time of the 2010 Census, Benson had a population of 3,240 people (or 33.12% of the total population of Swift County). This makes Benson the county's most populous community.
The population of Benson represents 0.06% of the population of Minnesota (which has 5,303,925 people), making it the state's 200th most populous community.
With a 2010 count of 3,240 people, the population of Benson decreased 4.03% from the 2000 Census (which had a count of 3,376 people).
More information can be found on the Census Page for Benson.
Communities Also Named Benson ...
Using our Gazetteer, we found that there are 28 communities that are also named Benson - they are located in Alabama (3), Arizona, Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland (2), Michigan (2), Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Saskatchewan, South Carolina, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia and Wisconsin.
For more information, see our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Benson.
Communities near Benson ...
We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Benson.
- Hancock
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hancock
- Hancock is located in Stevens County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 744 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hancock <5>
- Kerkhoven
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kerkhoven have been provided by the GNIS.<6> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kerkhoven
- Kerkhoven is located in Swift County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 696 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Kerkhoven <5>
- Murdock
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Murdock
- Murdock is located in Swift County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 260 people
- Clontarf
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clontarf have been provided by the GNIS.<6> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clontarf
- Clontarf is located in Swift County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 158 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Clontarf <5>
- De Graff
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast) - Sunburg
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east) - Danvers
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west) - Holloway
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west) - Swift Falls
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Swift Falls have been provided by the GNIS.<6> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swift Falls
- Swift Falls is located in Swift County
- Big Bend City
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Big Bend City have been provided by the GNIS.<6> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Bend City
- Big Bend City is located in Chippewa County
To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.
We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Benson. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Benson.
Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Benson. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around Benson.
We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Benson. Our list includes 7 papers. See our Newspapers Page for Benson.
TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Benson ...
Looking for more information about Benson? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.
In addition to the Tourism page for Benson, there are neighboring communities that also have Tourism pages. More information about those communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for Benson.
Adding Benson to Our Gazetteer ...
We originally found mention of Benson in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.
From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found for Benson was in the document titled List of Post Offices from Cameron Blevins and Richard Helbock.<7>
From that list, the Benson post office opened in 1870.
We also found Benson in the book titled Business Atlas and Shippers' Guide (1895).
For more details, see References and Mentions for Benson.
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for Benson: www.bensonmn.org/
The official website for Swift County: www.swiftcounty.com/
The official website for State of Minnesota: https://mn.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | If you're interested in how the shape of Minnesota's counties, including Swift, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. |
| <2> | Population counts have been provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. For more detail, please visit our Census Page for Benson. |
| <3> | The elevation is an estimate for the area around Benson - it will be higher in some places and lower in others. |
| <4> | ZIP Codes have been created by the United States Postal Service (USPS) as a way of grouping addresses to make delivery more efficient. The boundaries of the ZIP Code can be changed, re-assigned, eliminated or overlapped with other ZIP Codes. So keep in mind that any given ZIP Code is only 'loosely' associated with a city (such as Benson). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether Benson or elsewhere, it's always best to check the website of the United States Postal Service (USPS). |
| <5> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <6> | The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required. |
| <7> | A copy of their list with background information can be found at: https://cblevins.github.io/us-post-offices/data-biography/ |