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Dakota County is the third-most populous county in the U.S. state of Minnesota, located in the east central portion of the state. As of the 2020 census, the population was 439,882. The population of Dakota County was estimated to be 443,341 in 2022. The county seat is Hastings. Dakota County is named for the Dakota Sioux tribal bands who inhabited the area.The name is recorded as "Dahkotah" in the United States Census records until 1851. Dakota County is included in the Minneapolis–St. Paul–Bloomington, MN–WI Metropolitan Statistical Area, the sixteenth largest metropolitan area in the United States with about 3.64 million residents. The largest city in Dakota County is the city of Lakeville, the eleventh-largest city in Minnesota and sixth-largest Twin Cities suburb. The county is bordered by the Minnesota and Mississippi Rivers on the north, and the state of Wisconsin on the east.

Empire is a city in Dakota County, Minnesota. The population was 2,444 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area.

Gopher Ordnance Works was a smokeless powder production plant near Coates and Rosemount, Minnesota, United States. It was first opened in 1943. The plant was closed soon after the end of World War II. There are some remains still at the original site which is visible from U.S. Route 52 and County Road 46. After the government decided it needed a place to open up another gunpowder factory, they chose Dakota County in East Central Minnesota as their prime spot to put up such a factory, specifically, the city of Rosemount. They soon evicted farmers on 11,000 acres (45 km2) of farmland so that they could build Gopher Ordnance Works, which consisted of 858 buildings.

Coates is a town in the U.S. state of Minnesota located west of the Upper Mississippi River on the exurban fringe in central Dakota County. U.S. Highway 52 connects north to the city of Saint Paul, while County Road 46 draws east–west to nearby suburban cities. The population was 161 at the 2010 census. It is named for Civil War Captain Henry C. Coates who served in the 1st Minnesota Volunteer Infantry. Major employers are in trucking, moving and recycling services. The city is popular among people from the Twin Cities for the House of Coates, a burger restaurant opened in 1962. St. Agatha's Catholic Church serves as city hall. Originally a rural post office hub in the 1900s, the U.S. Postal Service now designates addresses as part of the larger nearby city of Rosemount. The city of Coates was officially incorporated in 1953 at the northwest corner of Vermillion Township.

Dakota County Technical College (DCTC) is a public, two-year technical college in Rosemount, Minnesota, United States. It is located in Dakota County inside the Minneapolis/St. Paul metropolitan area. DCTC belongs to the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities System and is one of five stand-alone technical colleges in the state.

WAJC 88.1 FM is a radio station licensed to Newport, Minnesota, and serving the south central Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area. The station broadcasts a Contemporary Christian music format and is owned by the Maranatha Assembly of God Church. Its transmitter is located in a park near Coates.

Rosemount is a city in Dakota County, Minnesota, United States, on the southern edge of the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area. The population was 25,650 at the 2020 census.

WGVX (105.1 MHz), WLUP (105.3 MHz) and WWWM-FM (105.7 MHz) are three separate radio stations that make up a trimulcast serving the Minneapolis-St. Paul radio market. The three stations are owned by Cumulus Media, along with sister stations KQRS-FM and KXXR. The three stations broadcast an adult contemporary radio format, with the moniker "Love 105." The studios and offices are in Southeast Minneapolis in the Como district. WGVX's transmitter is located southeast of Apple Valley, WLUP's transmitter is located in Cambridge, and WWWM-FM's transmitter is located atop the IDS Center in downtown Minneapolis.

Rosemount High School is a public four-year high school in Rosemount, Minnesota, United States, founded in 1918. The school is one of four four-year high schools in Independent School District 196 (Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan School District). The school competes in the South Suburban Conference of the Minnesota State High School League (MSHSL).Rosemount High School was founded in 1918. Many alumni's children also attend Rosemount High school. The school has a "triple-A" philosophy of academics, arts and athletics. Rosemount offers a comprehensive curriculum and multiple dual enrollment opportunities where students can earn college credit.Rosemount High School has state and nationally recognized band, choir, and dance programs; numerous individual and team state champions in athletics; and a variety of clubs and activities. It is located on a 71-acre (29 ha) campus in a growing suburban city of the Minneapolis–St. Paul metropolitan area with academic, artistic, and athletic facilities. Rosemount High School is located within a short walking distance of Rosemount Elementary School and Rosemount Middle School, two of its feeder schools, as well as along Minnesota Highway 3, which places the school near the downtown area of the city.

Kegan Lake is a lake in Dakota County, in the U.S. state of Minnesota.Kegan Lake was named for Andrew Keegan, a pioneer farmer.

The Pine Bend Refinery is the largest oil refinery in Minnesota, located in the Twin Cities suburbs of Rosemount and Inver Grove Heights next to southern split of U.S. Highway 52 and Minnesota State Highway 55. The refinery is notable for being the largest in the United States to be located in a state without any oil wells. Overall, it ranked 14th in the country as of 2012 by production, with a nameplate capacity of 320,000 barrels (51,000 m3) per day. The facility is owned by Flint Hills Resources (FHR), a subsidiary of Koch Industries.

The Church of the Advent built in 1872 is a historic Carpenter Gothic Episcopal church located at 412 Oak Street, in Farmington, Minnesota, in the United States. On December 31, 1979, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places. The Church of the Advent is still a functioning parish serving Dakota County, Minnesota and surrounding areas. The 1872 church building, which seats only 70 people is used as a wedding chapel, while larger worship services are held in the Michael and Lisbeth Sly Room built in 1976. The rector is the Rev. Elaine Barber.