Northern Forestry Inc

About forestry service, 56540, Fertile, MN, US, Minnesota

Bemidji ( bə-MIJ-ee) is a city and the county seat of Beltrami County, in northern Minnesota, United States. The population was 14,574 at the 2020 census. According to 2022 census estimates, the city is estimated to have a population of 15,946, making it the largest commercial center between Grand Forks, North Dakota and Duluth. As a central city for three Indian reservations, Bemidji is the site of many Native American services, including the Indian Health Service. Near Bemidji are the Red Lake Indian Reservation, White Earth Indian Reservation, and the Leech Lake Indian Reservation. Bemidji lies on the southwest shore of Lake Bemidji, the northernmost lake feeding the Mississippi River; it is nicknamed "The First City on the Mississippi". Bemidji is also the self-proclaimed "curling capital" of the U.S. and the alleged birthplace of legendary Paul Bunyan. == Etymology == According to Minnesota Geographic Names, its name derives from the Ojibwe Buh-mid-ji-ga-maug (Double-Vowel orthography: bemijigamaag), meaning "a lake with crossing waters". This name stems from the way that the Mississippi River flows directly through the Lake. Shay-now-ish-kung, an Ojibwe leader, moved to the area in 1882 and became the first permanent settler of Bemidji.