Mercer County, North Dakota Explained

County:Mercer County
State:North Dakota
Founded:January 14, 1875 (created)
November 6, 1883 (organized)
Seat Wl:Stanton
Largest City Wl:Beulah
Area Total Sq Mi:1112
Area Land Sq Mi:1043
Area Water Sq Mi:70
Area Percentage:6.3
Population As Of:2020
Population Total:8350
Pop Est As Of:2022
Population Est:8333
Population Density Sq Mi:auto
Named For:W. H. H. Mercer
Time Zone:Central
Web:www.mercercountynd.com
Ex Image Size:250
Ex Image:Mercer, ND.jpg
Ex Image Cap:Cities of Mercer, left-to-right, up-to-down; Beulah, Golden Valley, Hazen, Pick City, Stanton, and Zap
District:At-large

Mercer County is a county in the U.S. state of North Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 8,350.[1] Its county seat is Stanton.[2]

History

The Dakota Territory legislature enacted an January 8, 1873 law to create a county named Mercer, whose boundaries would be identical to Pratt (a now-extinct county). This county did not come into existence, as the 1873 act was nullified on January 14, 1875, by the legislature. On that date the legislature created another Mercer County, from previously unorganized territory. The county was named for William Henry Harrison Mercer,[3] (1844–1901), a rancher who settled north of Bismarck in 1869. The unorganized county was not attached to another county for judicial or administrative purposes; this condition continued until November 6, 1883, when the county government was organized.

The county boundaries were altered in 1879, 1881, 1885, 1892, and 1901. Its boundaries have remained unchanged since 1901.[4] [5]

Geography

The northern boundary of Mercer County is delineated by Lake Sakakawea, created in 1956 on the Missouri River. The county's eastern boundary is delineated by the river as it flows southeastward from the dam that created the lake. The county terrain consists of rolling hills, largely devoted to agriculture.[6] The terrain slopes to the north and east; its highest point is near the midpoint of its southern boundary, at 2451feet ASL.[7] The county has a total area of, of which is land and (6.3%) is water.[8]

The southwestern corner counties of North Dakota (Adams, Billings, Bowman, Golden Valley, Grant, Hettinger, Slope, Stark) observe Mountain Time. The counties of McKenzie, Dunn, and Sioux counties are split, with their northern portions observing Central Time and the southern portions observing Mountain Time.

Prior to [9] November 7, 2010, the western portion of Mercer County was in Mountain Time. But it was all moved into the Central Time on that date.

Major highways

Adjacent counties

Protected areas[6]

Lake

Demographics

2020 census

As of the census of 2020, there were 8,350 people.

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 8,424 people, 3,625 households, and 2,500 families in the county. The population density was 8.08/mi2. There were 4,450 housing units at an average density of 4.27adj=preNaNadj=pre. The racial makeup of the county was 95.6% white, 2.3% American Indian, 0.3% Asian, 0.2% black or African American, 0.1% Pacific islander, 0.4% from other races, and 1.1% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.4% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 64.7% were German, 21.5% were Norwegian, 6.6% were Russian, 6.2% were Irish, and 2.2% were American.

Of the 3,625 households, 26.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.1% were married couples living together, 5.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 31.0% were non-families, and 27.3% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.29 and the average family size was 2.76. The median age was 46.3 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $60,191 and the median income for a family was $71,075. Males had a median income of $63,321 versus $32,294 for females. The per capita income for the county was $30,616. About 4.1% of families and 6.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.2% of those under age 18 and 11.2% of those age 65 or over.

Population by decade

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bar:1890 from: 0 till:428 bar:1900 from: 0 till:1778 bar:1910 from: 0 till:4747 bar:1920 from: 0 till:8224 bar:1930 from: 0 till:9516 bar:1940 from: 0 till:9611 bar:1950 from: 0 till:8686 bar:1960 from: 0 till:6805 bar:1970 from: 0 till:6175 bar:1980 from: 0 till:9404 bar:1990 from: 0 till:9808 bar:2000 from: 0 till:8644 bar:2010 from: 0 till:8424 bar:2020 from: 0 till:8350 bar:2022 from: 0 till:8333 color:darkblue

PlotData=

bar:1890 at:428 fontsize:S text:428 shift:(14,5) bar:1900 at:1778 fontsize:S text:1778 shift:(-14,5) bar:1910 at:4747 fontsize:S text:4747 shift:(-14,5) bar:1920 at:8224 fontsize:S text:8224 shift:(-14,5) bar:1930 at:9516 fontsize:S text:9516 shift:(-14,5) bar:1940 at:9611 fontsize:S text:9611 shift:(-14,5) bar:1950 at:8686 fontsize:S text:8686 shift:(-14,5) bar:1960 at:6805 fontsize:S text:6805 shift:(-14,5) bar:1970 at:6175 fontsize:S text:6175 shift:(-14,5) bar:1980 at:9404 fontsize:S text:9404 shift:(-14,5) bar:1990 at:9808 fontsize:S text:9808 shift:(-14,5) bar:2000 at:8644 fontsize:S text:8644 shift:(-14,5) bar:2010 at:8424 fontsize:S text:8424 shift:(-14,5) bar:2020 at:8350 fontsize:S text:8350 shift:(-14,5) bar:2022 at:8333 fontsize:S text:8333 shift:(-14,5)

TextData= fontsize:S pos:(20,20) text:Data from U.S. Census Bureau

Communities

Cities

Politics

Mercer County voters have traditionally voted Republican. In no national election since 1936 has the county selected the Democratic Party candidate (as of 2020).

Education

School districts include:[10]

Elementary:

Stanton previously had a separate school district, but it merged with Center's in 2004.[11]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: State & County QuickFacts . United States Census Bureau . April 2, 2023.
  2. Web site: Find a County. June 7, 2011. National Association of Counties.
  3. Book: Gannett, Henry. The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. 1905. U.S. Government Printing Office. 205.
  4. Web site: County History. Official Portal for North Dakota State Government. May 4, 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20150202151843/http://www.nd.gov/content.htm?parentCatID=83&id=County%20History. February 2, 2015. dead.
  5. https://publications.newberry.org/ahcbp/documents/DAKs_Individual_County_Chronologies.htm Dakota Territory, South Dakota, and North Dakota: Individual County Chronologies/Mercer County ND (accessed February 26, 2019)
  6. Web site: Mercer County · North Dakota . 2024-04-27 . Google Maps . en.
  7. Web site: "Find an Altitude/Mercer County ND" Google Maps (accessed February 26, 2019) . February 27, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190521043409/https://www.daftlogic.com/sandbox-google-maps-find-altitude.htm . May 21, 2019 . dead .
  8. Web site: 2010 Census Gazetteer Files. United States Census Bureau. February 1, 2015. August 22, 2012. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20150129045530/http://www.census.gov/geo/maps-data/data/docs/gazetteer/counties_list_38.txt. January 29, 2015.
  9. Web site: Mercer County, North Dakota Current Local Time and Time Zone . January 23, 2023 . www.timetemperature.com.
  10. Web site: 2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Mercer County, ND. https://web.archive.org/web/20210814051210/https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st38_nd/schooldistrict_maps/c38057_mercer/DC20SD_C38057.pdf . August 14, 2021 . live. United States Census Bureau. July 24, 2022. - Text list - 2010 map and 2010 text list
  11. Web site: Donovan. Lauren. Stanton, Center to join together. Bismarck Tribune. November 12, 2003. August 14, 2021.