Buchanan County is a former county in the U.S. state

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of Minnesota

Minnesota

Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...

. It was established May 23, 1857, as a county in the Minnesota Territory

Minnesota Territory

The Territory of Minnesota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 3, 1849, until May 11, 1858, when the eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Minnesota.-History:...

, named after President James Buchanan

James Buchanan

James Buchanan, Jr. was the 15th President of the United States . He is the only president from Pennsylvania, the only president who remained a lifelong bachelor and the last to be born in the 18th century....

. It comprised the 24 northern township

Township (United States)

A township in the United States is a small geographic area. Townships range in size from 6 to 54 square miles , with being the norm.The term is used in three ways....

s, now forming the northern half of Pine County, Minnesota

Pine County, Minnesota

As of the census of 2000, there were 26,530 people, 9,939 households, and 6,917 families residing in the county. The population density was 19 people per square mile . There were 15,353 housing units at an average density of 11 per square mile...

. The Buchanan County seat was Fortuna (known today as Sandstone

Sandstone, Minnesota

As of the census of 2000, there were 1,549 people, 580 households, and 359 families residing in the city. The population density was 292.5 people per square mile . There were 634 housing units at an average density of 119.7 per square mile...

). This county was dissolved and incorporated with Pine County in 1861.

In recent years, residents of Pine County proposed dividing the county in half, re-introducing Buchanan County. The referendum for this proposal went to ballot in 2000 and was rejected.