Tower Fire Hall · National Register of Historic Places
Tower’s story
143 years in pictures
The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1937.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
- 1883Tower is settled
TowerMN
2 bordering townsMap →
Duluth and Iron Range Railroad Company Passenger Station · Photo: McGhiever · CC BY-SA 4.0
Population
422
2025 Census estimate · −0.7% since 2020
Typical home
$365K
+7.5% in a year
Household income
$66K
median
Median age
55.4
years
Jobs based here
338
A job hub
Is Tower a good place to live?
Tower has 2 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Tower Fire Hall. Tower has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
What makes Tower stand out
Where Tower beats most towns.
Small town
422 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Nearby towns
Breitung TownshipKugler TownshipTower
Getting set up
The full setup list →Moving to Tower: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Tower, and how to reach them.
PowerMinnesota Power15.9¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterTower water systemNo health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet6 providers97% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & dumpNot on file yetWe don’t have Tower’s trash rules yet
Register to voteOnlineIn Minnesota you can register online until 21 days before Election Day, in person up to and including Election Day, or by mail (received 21 days before).vote.govWho runs elections hereSt. Louis County AuditorSt. Louis County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Sep 2017
ZIP code5579055790 100%Census 2020
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Tower.
Work & commute
Tower has 2.6 jobs for every working resident, and 318 people commute in
Tower’s income of the median household stands at $66,000. Most people who work leave Tower to do it: just 15% work in town. Its typical journey to work stands at 27 minutes, above both the Minnesota town median (23 minutes) and the median of U.S. towns (25 minutes). Between 2013 and 2023, jobs in the town rose by 156, to 338.
15%work in town
| Tower | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 15% | 9.8% | 8% |
| Median household income | $66,000 | $90,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 27 minutes | 23 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 9.8% | 7% | 9.6% |
Where working residents work
In Tower15%
Virginia16%
Greenwood Township14%
Duluth8%
Mountain Iron5%
23 mi
median commute distance
338
jobs based in Tower
A job hub
jobs vs. working residents
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Schools
The schools Tower’s kids attend
Its two schools are below. The public schools here belong to the St. Louis County School District. The 2 public schools in Tower teach 145 students between them.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tower-Soudan ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 95 | B− |
| Vermilion Country SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 7–12 | Grades 7–12 | 50 | C− |
NCES · EDFacts
69″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter-1–21°
Spring25–51°
Summer51–76°
Fall31–51°
+2.0°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Health
Tower stands out in Minnesota and nationally, with more of its adults who have diabetes
In Tower, 17% of adults binge drink. 37% of Tower adults have high blood pressure, against 31% in Minnesota’s towns and 35% across U.S. towns. CDC measures, 32 in all: Tower beats Minnesota on 3 and trails on 8.
| Tower | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 10% | 12% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 37% | 31% | 35% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 16% | 17% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 30% | 36% |
32 measures vs. Minnesota
3 better21 too close to call8 worse
| What stands out | Tower | MN |
|---|---|---|
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 81.9% | 76.1% |
| More adults getting a yearly checkup | 78.4% | 74.8% |
| More adults with heart disease | 8.4% | 5.9% |
Cook Hospital
19 mi away · emergency room
1 of 3
care shortages: mental health
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Outdoors
Tower has set aside 6.4% of its land for conservation
2.8 miles of trail. In Tower, the density of trails is 1.0 miles per square mile.
6.4%conserved
| Tower | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 1.0 miles per square mile | 0.5 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 6.4% | 4.7% | 4.3% |
6.4%
conserved · 118 of 1,855 acres
2.8 mi
of trails · 1 per sq mi
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Natural hazards
The biggest natural risk in Tower is cold waves, at a moderate overall level
55% of Tower’s expected losses from natural hazards come from cold waves, followed by inland flooding at 37%. Compared with 57% of U.S. communities, expected storm and flood damage in the town is lower. Households locally have drawn federal disaster aid once, in 2024.
43risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Cold wavesInland flooding
1
federal disasters paid out here
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Housing
Compared with most of Minnesota and the rest of the country, the median rent in Tower is lower
Typical home values rose 7.5% in the year to September 2026. For households in Tower, the share who are owner-occupiers is 83%.
$365KZillow home value
| Tower | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $586 a month | $1,196 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 83% | 75% | 73% |
Typical home value
Tower$365K
Minnesota$349K
+7.5%
value change, 1 year
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Tower
19pages on Tower
The big questions
Out and about
The story
After high school
Colleges nearby
None within 15 miles of Tower; the nearest are
Minnesota North CollegeCommunity college · Public · Hibbing40.6 mi$6,022 in-state tuitionUniversity of Minnesota-DuluthUniversity or college · Public · Duluth69.6 mi$14,610 in-state tuition
About 3 of every 100 Tower residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Minnesota.
A job hub
Every workday, about 318 people come to Tower for work
Where Tower’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
338jobs based in Tower
15%of working residents work in town
23 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
Landmarks
2 places in Tower on the National Register of Historic Places.
About Tower
City in Minnesota, United States
Tower is a city located in Saint Louis County, Minnesota, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 430. State Highways 1 (MN 1), 169 (MN 169), and 135 (MN 135) are three of the main routes in Tower. Tower is located on the southern shore of Lake Vermilion.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Established
- 1889
- Area
- 3.4 sq mi
- Elevation
- 1,394 ft
- ZIP code
- 55790
- Area code
- 218
Questions about Tower
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Tower, MN a good place to live?
Tower has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.