Elm Point, Minnesota, is a small uninhabited cape and a practical

exclave An enclave is a territory (or a small territory apart of a larger one) that is entirely surrounded by the territory of one other state or entity. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is sometimes used improperly to deno ...

of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

in Lake Township,

Roseau County Roseau County () (pronounced row - so) is a county in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Minnesota, along the Canada–US border. As of the 2020 census, the population was 15,331. Its county seat is Roseau. Roseau County borders ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the List of U.S. states and territories by population, 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minne ...

. It is surrounded on the west, south, and east by Lake of the Woods, and on the north by the Canadian First Nation community of Buffalo Point in southeastern

Manitoba , image_map = Manitoba in Canada 2.svg , map_alt = Map showing Manitoba's location in the centre of Southern Canada , Label_map = yes , coordinates = , capital = Win ...

. Part of Elm Point is privately owned and part of it is state land managed by the

Department of Natural Resources This article lists subnational environmental agencies in the United States, by state. Agencies with a variety of titles and responsibilities are included, e.g. Department of Environment, Department of Environmental Conservation, Department of ...

as part of the Border Wildlife Management Area. It is located southwest of the much larger exclave known as the

Northwest Angle The Northwest Angle, known simply as the Angle by locals, and coextensive with Angle Township, is a pene-exclave of northern Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota. Except for surveying errors, it is the only place in the contiguous United Sta ...

. There is a line of felled trees marking the international border, which runs nominally along the 49th parallel, although in this area it runs slightly to the south due to 19th-century

surveying Surveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, art, and science of determining the terrestrial two-dimensional or three-dimensional positions of points and the distances and angles between them. A land surveying professional is ...

errors. In addition to Elm Point, there are a few small parcels of land located west of Elm Point but east of the contiguous land mass of Minnesota that extend up to south of the border, making them U.S. territory. One such area is Buffalo Bay Point.

Jurisdictional Confusion

There is some confusion as to whether Elm Point lies within Lake of the Woods County or

. The

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy An economy is an area of th ...

's block maps place it in Lake of the Woods County, as do many maps published by the

Minnesota Department of Transportation The Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT, ) oversees transportation by all modes including land, water, air, rail, walking and bicycling in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The cabinet-level agency is responsible for maintaining the state ...

. However, property taxes in the area are assessed by

, while the Lake of the Woods County

GIS A geographic information system (GIS) is a type of database containing geographic data (that is, descriptions of phenomena for which location is relevant), combined with software tools for managing, analyzing, and visualizing those data. In a ...

does not show any parcel data for the area. A 1916 state plat book shows it as part of

. The confusion appears to result from the wording of Governor

David Marston Clough David Marston Clough (December 27, 1846 – August 28, 1924) was an American lumberman and politician. He served in the Minnesota State Senate from January 1887 to January 1893. He served as the state's Lieutenant Governor, January 9, 1893 ...

's proclamation dated February 10, 1896, which annexed the area to

. The boundary of the area to be annexed ran easterly along the Canadian border "to the Lake of the Woods; thence easterly, following the south meandered shore of said Lake of the Woods." From the point where the Canadian border intersects Lake of the Woods, the shoreline first runs west around Elm Point and then south before turning east, making the wording of the proclamation infelicitous. The proclamation, however, states that the territory annexed includes the area of Township 164 North, Range 36 West, and that its boundaries "followed and conformed to the United States Survey lines of townships," as was required by law at the time. Elm Point is within T164N R36W (see image at right).

Notes

{{coord, 48, 59, 45, N, 095, 17, 24, W, region:US, display=title Canada–United States border Exclaves in the United States Geography of Minnesota Geography of Roseau County, Minnesota Border irregularities of the United States Borders of Minnesota Headlands of the United States Landforms of Roseau County, Minnesota

Jurisdictional Confusion

See also

Notes