What is the Minnesota state record walleye?

The Minnesota state record walleye weighed 17 lb 8 oz and was caught in 1979 from Seagull River in Cook County by LeRoy Chiovitte.

What is the largest fish ever caught in Minnesota?

The heaviest verified record fish in Minnesota is the Lake Sturgeon at 94 lb 4 oz, caught in 1994 from Kettle River.

What is the oldest standing fishing record in Minnesota?

The oldest active record is the Northern Pike at 45 lb 12 oz, set in 1929 on Basswood Lake.

Minnesota State Record Fish (2026)

All verified Minnesota record fish from the Minnesota DNR. The heaviest is the Lake Sturgeon at 94 lb 4 oz, caught in 1994 on Kettle River. The oldest standing record is the Northern Pike from 1929.

Minnesota state fishing records — the largest individual fish of each species ever caught and verified in the state — are maintained by the Minnesota DNR. Records have to be witnessed, weighed on a certified scale, and submitted with a clear photograph.

A state record tells you what a species is capable of in Minnesota water; the lakes where records were set tell you which specific basins have produced trophy-class fish historically. Cross-referencing the record-setting lakes against the LakeGrade rubric can be revealing — high-grade lakes tend to dominate the trout and walleye records, while warm-water trophy species sometimes come from lower-grade waters.

Heaviest

Lake Sturgeon

94 lb 4 oz · 1994

Oldest record

Northern Pike

1929 · Basswood Lake

Most recent record

Largemouth Bass

2005 · Auburn Lake

All Minnesota Records

Species	Weight	Length	Year	Water	County	Angler
Walleye	17 lb 8 oz	35.8 in	1979	Seagull River	Cook	LeRoy Chiovitte
Northern Pike	45 lb 12 oz	—	1929	Basswood Lake	Lake	J.V. Schanken
Muskellunge	54 lb	56 in	1957	Lake Winnibigoshish	Cass	Art Lyons
Largemouth Bass	8 lb 15 oz	23.5 in	2005	Auburn Lake	Carver	Mark Raveling
Smallmouth Bass	8 lb	—	1948	West Battle Lake	Otter Tail	John Creighton
Lake Trout	43 lb 8 oz	—	1955	Lake Superior	Cook	Donald Roggenkamp
Brown Trout	16 lb 12 oz	—	1989	Lake Superior	St. Louis	Jerry Anderson
Rainbow Trout	17 lb 6 oz	—	1980	Knife River	Lake	Ortwin Krause
Brook Trout	6 lb 5.6 oz	23 in	2004	Lake Superior tributary	Cook	Huel Anderson
Channel Catfish	38 lb	—	1975	Mississippi River	Hennepin	Donovan Pohlson
Flathead Catfish	70 lb	—	1970	St. Croix River	Washington	Mike Manley
Black Crappie	5 lb	21 in	1940	Vermilion River	Dakota	Tom Christenson
Bluegill	2 lb 13 oz	—	1948	Alice Lake	Hubbard	Allen W. Tetrault
Yellow Perch	3 lb 4 oz	—	1945	Lake Plantaganette	Hubbard	Carl Melin
Lake Sturgeon	94 lb 4 oz	70 in	1994	Kettle River	Pine	James DeOtis
Tiger Muskie	34 lb 12 oz	—	1999	Lake Elmo	Washington	Anthony Stieg

How Minnesota Records Are Verified

Minnesota DNR requires that record-eligible fish be weighed on a certified scale, photographed, and verified by a fisheries biologist. Catch-and-release length records are accepted for some species. Submit a record application within 30 days of the catch.

Targeting a record? Many of these fish came from waters with strong populations of trophy-class fish — see the best fishing lakes ranking and Minnesota lake directory.

Records compiled from the official Minnesota DNR angling records. Updated 2026. New records are submitted year-round; check the source page for the most recent verified entries. LakeQuality is independent and not affiliated with the Minnesota DNR.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.