Welcome to Lester Prairie ...

The city of Lester Prairie is located in McLeod County<1>.

Google driving directions from your current location to Lester Prairie

While we don't have a date for the founding of Lester Prairie, you might consider that their post office opened in 1888.

A typical abbreviation for Lester Prairie: Lester Pr.

From the Census Estimates for 2019, Lester Prairie has a population of 1,730 people<2> (see below for details).

Lester Prairie is 980 feet [299 m] above sea level.<3>.

Time Zone: Lester Prairie lies in the Central Time Zone (CST/CDT) and observes daylight saving time

Area Code for Lester Prairie: 320

The ZIP code for Lester Prairie: 55354<4>

Population Details ...

Taken from the 2019 Census Estimates, Lester Prairie had an population of 1,730 people (or an increase of 25.64% since the 2000 Census).

At the time of the 2010 Census, Lester Prairie had a population of 1,730 people. This makes Lester Prairie the county's 4th most populous community.

The population of Lester Prairie represents 0.03% of the population of Minnesota (which has 5,303,925 people), making it the state's 281st most populous community.

With a 2010 count of 1,730 people, the population of Lester Prairie increased 25.64% from the 2000 Census (with a count of 1,377 people).

More information can be found on the Census Page for Lester Prairie.

Communities near Lester Prairie ...

We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Lester Prairie.

Hutchinson
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hutchinson
- Hutchinson is located in McLeod County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 13,977 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hutchinson <5>
Waconia
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Waconia have been provided by the GNIS.<6> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waconia
- Waconia is located in Carver County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 12,415 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Waconia <5>
Victoria
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Victoria have been provided by the GNIS.<6> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Victoria
- Victoria is located in Carver County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 10,667 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Victoria <5>
Mound
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mound have been provided by the GNIS.<6> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mound
- Mound is located in Hennepin County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 9,404 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mound <5>
Minnetrista
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Minnetrista. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<7>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minnetrista
- Minnetrista is located in Hennepin County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 8,505 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Minnetrista <5>
Delano
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Delano have been provided by the GNIS.<6> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delano
- Delano is located in Wright County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,353 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Delano <5>
Glencoe
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glencoe
- Glencoe is located in McLeod County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 5,499 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Glencoe <5>
Watertown
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Watertown
- Watertown is located in Carver County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,608 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Watertown <5>
Norwood Young America
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Norwood Young America have been provided by the GNIS.<6> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norwood Young America
- Norwood Young America is located in Carver County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,794 people
Independence
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Independence have been provided by the GNIS.<6> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Independence
- Independence is located in Hennepin County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,786 people

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 Lester Prairie. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Lester Prairie.

Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Lester Prairie. 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 Lester Prairie.

We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Lester Prairie. See our Newspapers Page for Lester Prairie.

TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Lester Prairie ...

Looking for more information about Lester Prairie? 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 Lester Prairie, there are neighboring communities that also have Tourism pages. More information about those communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for Lester Prairie.

Adding Lester Prairie to Our Gazetteer ...

We originally found mention of Lester Prairie 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 Lester Prairie was in the document titled List of Post Offices from Cameron Blevins and Richard Helbock.<8>

From that list, the Lester Prairie post office opened in 1888.

We also found Lester Prairie in the book titled Business Atlas and Shippers' Guide (1895).

For more details, see References and Mentions for Lester Prairie.

Off-the-Road Links ...

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Lester Prairie. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for McLeod County: www.co.mcleod.mn.us/

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 McLeod, 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 Lester Prairie.
<3>	The elevation is an estimate for the area around Lester Prairie - 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 Lester Prairie). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether Lester Prairie 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>	An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<8>	A copy of their list with background information can be found at: https://cblevins.github.io/us-post-offices/data-biography/