Regional position
Similar names need all three clues; use Cottage Grove, Minnesota (code 13456, estimate 43,604) with rank 952 and state-place pair 27-13456. The geographic anchor for Cottage Grove, Minnesota (rank 952) is 44 degrees 48 minutes 48 seconds north and 92 degrees 54 minutes 52 seconds west; FIPS 27-13456 identifies the place behind it. Rank 952 is comparison, not geographic footprint; population estimate 43,604 positions Cottage Grove, Minnesota (latitude 44.81333) among listed places. Identifier 27-13456 preserves local identity as the view widens; read Cottage Grove, Minnesota (FIPS 27-13456) against Minnesota's prairie, northern forest, lake country, and the headwaters of the Mississippi.
Water and drainage
Population 43,604 stays a separate scale clue; Cottage Grove, Minnesota (code 13456, estimate 43,604) shares Minnesota's water setting of the Mississippi headwaters, lake country, prairie watersheds, and northern rivers. One state-scale observation behind Cottage Grove, Minnesota (rank 952) is that the Mississippi begins at Lake Itasca; Identifier 27-13456 prevents ambiguous attribution. At 44 degrees 48 minutes 48 seconds north, Cottage Grove, Minnesota (latitude 44.81333) remains a point while the drainage layer offers direction; code 13456 confirms identity. Code 27-13456 prevents a wide system from replacing local identity; the water frame helps Cottage Grove, Minnesota (FIPS 27-13456) connect to neighboring ground.
Relief and elevation
Place Cottage Grove, Minnesota (code 13456, estimate 43,604) inside prairie, lake country, forested uplands, and glacial deposits; the plotted marker becomes more helpful when Minnesota stays in view. Terrain explains why distance need not follow a straight line; Reference 27-13456 fixes Cottage Grove, Minnesota (rank 952) on the page. Identifier 27-13456 holds attribution plain; the wider relief story for Cottage Grove, Minnesota (latitude 44.81333) includes the observation that the Minnesota River enters the Mississippi at Fort Snelling. Land and water meet in the setting of Cottage Grove, Minnesota (FIPS 27-13456); terrain and drainage belong in one reading for rank 952.
Settlement pattern
The incorporated city of Cottage Grove, Minnesota (code 13456) has a defined identity; Settlement continues outside the label and code 13456. Read 43,604 as the reported size of Cottage Grove, Minnesota (rank 952); code 13456 is not a shortcut for jurisdictional shape. Identifier 27-13456 preserves municipal identity; Human geography near Cottage Grove, Minnesota (latitude 44.81333) is connected to water and terrain. Identifier 27-13456 prevents setting from replacing city identity; Cottage Grove, Minnesota (FIPS 27-13456) is part of its Minnesota setting. Together, these layers place Cottage Grove, Minnesota (estimate 43,604) in a wider settlement field while 13456 preserves its named identity.
Reading the city map
Population 43,604 offers comparison but does not define geography; the guide moves from Minnesota to Cottage Grove, Minnesota (code 13456, estimate 43,604). Use 27-13456 as the key for Cottage Grove, Minnesota (rank 952), next use its coordinate to keep position consistent across map scales. The reference keeps those clues attached to rank 952; for Cottage Grove, Minnesota (latitude 44.81333), drainage offers direction and terrain offers shape. This fact adds depth without inventing local detail for Cottage Grove, Minnesota (FIPS 27-13456); the Minnesota entry also notes that the Saint Louis River watershed lies at the head of the Great Lakes system.