Ortonville Minnesota Map

About Ortonville, Minnesota

Ortonville is a locality in Big Stone County, Minnesota, United States. It has a population of approximately 2,021. The population density is 186.1 people per km². Ortonville is located at 45.3047°N, 96.4448°W. It observes the Central Time (America/Chicago) timezone. Ortonville is an incorporated locality. ZIP code: 56278.

Ortonville commands the confluence where the Minnesota River begins its long, winding journey through the prairie, marking a threshold between the water and the expansive, flat horizon. It lies 65.4 miles southwest of Alexandria, MN (from Alexandria, MN: bearing 233°T), and is situated 11.0 miles east-northeast of Milbank. The landscape surrounding Ortonville remains defined by the presence of Big Stone Lake, a glacial remnant that holds the sky in its deep, blue mirror and offers a sanctuary for migratory birds. High above the valley floor, the air carries a crisp, thin clarity, often sharp enough to suggest the distant, hazy blue outlines of the Antelope Hills far to the west. In the quiet hours of an autumn evening, the light turns a bruised violet, casting long, lean shadows across the fields that stretch toward the Lone Tree Lakebed, where the earth seems to hold the memory of ancient, vanished waters.

Ortonville grew from the rugged ambition of pioneers who recognized the potential in the fertile soil and the strategic advantage of the river’s path, establishing a settlement that has long leaned into the rhythms of agriculture and regional commerce. The local economy persists as a quiet engine of grain and trade, reflecting a heritage where Scandinavian and Ojibwe influences have quietly merged over generations. Life in Ortonville moves with a deliberate, steady pulse, centered on the shared stewardship of Big Stone Lake, which serves as both a recreational retreat and a vital anchor for the spirit of the people. Throughout the seasons, the town remains a place of understated resilience, where the architecture of the main streets and the surrounding farmsteads stand as practical, unadorned witnesses to a history forged by enduring the long, deep winters of the northern plains.

About This Ortonville Map Page

This page provides an embedded street and satellite map of Ortonville, Minnesota. Coordinates: 45.304687, -96.444779. Live weather conditions are sourced directly from the National Weather Service. Real-time local and world news feeds keep the page current.

Detailed location data for Ortonville includes the ZIP code (56278), telephone area code (320), county seat of Big Stone County (Ortonville), and school district assignment (Ortonville Public Schools).

Location data is drawn from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) and cross-verified against 2020 US Census records by coordinate proximity. Population figures are sourced from the 2020 US Census.