Dunn County, North Dakota

On March 9, 1883, the Dakota Territory legislature authorized the creation of a new county, using territory partitioned from Howard County (which is now extinct). The county organization was not affected at that time, but the county was not attached to another county for judicial purposes. The county boundaries were altered in 1883, and on November 3, 1896, the legislature ordered Dunn dissolved, with its territory assigned to Stark County. However, the state supreme court overturned the legislature's act on May 24, 1901; in effect re-creating Dunn County. The county was still not assigned to another county. This was resolved on March 10, 1903, when the county was assigned to Stark County for judicial purposes. On March 13, 1903, the legislature again voted to dissolve Dunn County, but again (during the 1905 session) the state supreme court voided the act. Dunn County continued to be attached to Stark County. However, on January 18, 1908, the county organization was affected, and Dunn became a standalone county. In the process, Dunn gained a tract of previously unattached land from Stark County, enlarging its boundary. The configuration thus created has remained to the present. The county was named for John Piatt Dunn, who opened the first drugstore in North Dakota, and who was a civic and commercial leader during the early history of Bismarck. ==Geography==

The Missouri River flows southeasterly along the northeastern boundary of Dunn County, and the Little Missouri River flows eastward across the center part of the county, to its confluence with the Missouri in the northeastern part of the county. The county terrain consists of semi-arid rolling hills, which are etched in the north and east by gullies and drainages to the river valleys. The terrain slopes to the east and north; its highest point is a hill at the southwestern corner, at ASL. According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (3.53%) is water. It is the 6th largest county in North Dakota by total area. Dunn County is somewhat unusual among western North Dakota counties. Like other counties in the region, it has both prairie and badlands areas. Located in the northwest part of the county are the Killdeer Mountains, which are more accurately described as hills. These hills help create a mini-ecosystem on the southern edge of the Little Missouri badlands, which has a greater abundance of aspen forests and wildlife than is typically found in southwestern North Dakota. The Killdeer Mountains' highest point, and the highest point in Dunn County, is 3281 feet above sea level. The northwest corner of the county, northwest of the Killdeer Mountains, features many square miles of bur oak forest, mainly on the north-facing slopes of the hills. Bur oak and quaking aspen, though native to North Dakota, are sparse in western North Dakota, with Dunn County being a notable exception. Major highways • North Dakota Highway 8 • North Dakota Highway 22 • North Dakota Highway 200 Adjacent counties • Mountrail County – north • McLean County – northeast • Mercer County – east • Stark County – south • Billings County – southwest • McKenzie County – northwest Protected areas • Lake Ilo National Wildlife Refuge • Little Missouri Public Use Area • Kildeer Mountain State Game Preserve • Badlands Trail Rides • Little Mountain State Park Lakes • Moffet Slough • Lake Sakakawea (part) ==Demographics==

Other estimates As of the fourth quarter of 2024, the median home value in Dunn County was $258,531. As of the 2023 American Community Survey, there are 1,513 estimated households in Dunn County with an average of 2.60 persons per household. The county has a median household income of $94,688. Approximately 11.2% of the county's population lives at or below the poverty line. Dunn County has an estimated 63.0% employment rate, with 20.6% of the population holding a bachelor's degree or higher and 92.7% holding a high school diploma. The top five reported ancestries (people were allowed to report up to two ancestries, thus the figures will generally add to more than 100%) were English (89.9%), Spanish (2.7%), Indo-European (2.4%), Asian and Pacific Islander (0.6%), and Other (4.3%). The median age in the county was 40.8 years. Dunn County, North Dakota – racial and ethnic composition 2024 estimate As of the 2024 estimate, there were 4,031 people and 1,513 households residing in the county. There were 2,158 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 83.5% White (80.5% NH White), 1.9% African American, 9.2% Native American, 1.7% Asian, 0.0% Pacific Islander, _% from some other races and 3.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 4.3% of the population. 2020 census As of the 2020 census, there were 4,095 people, 1,558 households, and 1,055 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 2,105 housing units at an average density of in the county. Of the residents, 25.4% were under the age of 18 and 17.0% were 65 years of age or older; the median age was 38.8 years. For every 100 females there were 109.7 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 112.7 males. The racial makeup of the county was 80.0% White, 0.6% Black or African American, 11.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% Asian, 1.0% from some other race, and 6.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 2.6% of the population. There were 1,558 households in the county, of which 32.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 14.8% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 26.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. There were 2,105 housing units, of which 26.0% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 73.0% were owner-occupied and 27.0% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.5% and the rental vacancy rate was 18.9%. 2010 census As of the 2010 census, there were 3,536 people, 1,401 households, and 977 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 2,132 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 84.93% White, 0.23% African American, 12.70% Native American, 0.28% Asian, 0.00% Pacific Islander, 0.17% from some other races and 1.70% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 1.07% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 57.6% were German, 20.3% were Norwegian, 8.5% were Czech, 6.0% were Russian, 5.7% were Irish, 5.3% were English, and 1.8% were American. There were 1,401 households, 28.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.7% were married couples living together, 6.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 30.3% were non-families, and 26.5% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 2.93. The median age was 44.4 years. The median income for a household in the county was $48,707 and the median income for a family was $65,122. Males had a median income of $37,270 versus $23,599 for females. The per capita income for the county was $24,832. About 6.2% of families and 8.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.5% of those under age 18 and 12.1% of those age 65 or over. Population by decade Colors= id:lightgrey value:gray(0.9) id:darkgrey value:gray(0.8) id:sfondo value:rgb(1,1,1) id:barra value:rgb(0.55,0.0,0.0) ImageSize = width:700 height:350 PlotArea = left:50 bottom:50 top:30 right:30 DateFormat = x.y Period = from:0 till:9568 TimeAxis = orientation:vertical AlignBars = late ScaleMajor = gridcolor:darkgrey increment:2392 start:0 ScaleMinor = gridcolor:lightgrey increment:1196 start:0 BackgroundColors = canvas:sfondo BarData= bar:1890 text:1890 bar:1900 text:1900 bar:1910 text:1910 bar:1920 text:1920 bar:1930 text:1930 bar:1940 text:1940 bar:1950 text:1950 bar:1960 text:1960 bar:1970 text:1970 bar:1980 text:1980 bar:1990 text:1990 bar:2000 text:2000 bar:2010 text:2010 bar:2020 text:2020 bar:2025 text:present PlotData= color:barra width:25 align:left bar:1890 from: 0 till:159 bar:1900 from: 0 till:0 bar:1910 from: 0 till:5302 bar:1920 from: 0 till:8828 bar:1930 from: 0 till:9566 bar:1940 from: 0 till:8376 bar:1950 from: 0 till:7212 bar:1960 from: 0 till:6350 bar:1970 from: 0 till:4895 bar:1980 from: 0 till:4627 bar:1990 from: 0 till:4005 bar:2000 from: 0 till:3600 bar:2010 from: 0 till:3536 bar:2020 from: 0 till:4095 bar:2025 from: 0 till:4058 color:darkblue PlotData= bar:1890 at:159 fontsize:M text:159 shift:(-16,6) bar:1900 at:0 fontsize:M text:0 shift:(-16,6) bar:1910 at:5302 fontsize:M text:5,302 shift:(-16,6) bar:1920 at:8828 fontsize:M text:8,828 shift:(-16,6) bar:1930 at:9566 fontsize:M text:9,566 shift:(-16,6) bar:1940 at:8376 fontsize:M text:8,376 shift:(-16,6) bar:1950 at:7212 fontsize:M text:7,212 shift:(-16,6) bar:1960 at:6350 fontsize:M text:6,350 shift:(-16,6) bar:1970 at:4895 fontsize:M text:4,895 shift:(-16,6) bar:1980 at:4627 fontsize:M text:4,627 shift:(-16,6) bar:1990 at:4005 fontsize:M text:4,005 shift:(-16,6) bar:2000 at:3600 fontsize:M text:3,600 shift:(-16,6) bar:2010 at:3536 fontsize:M text:3,536 shift:(-16,6) bar:2020 at:4095 fontsize:M text:4,095 shift:(-16,6) bar:2025 at:4058 fontsize:M text:4,058 shift:(-16,6) TextData= fontsize:S pos:(20,20) text:Data from U.S. Census Bureau ==Sites of interest==

• Killdeer Mountains • Killdeer Mountain National Battlefield ==Communities==

Cities • Dodge • Dunn Center • Halliday • Killdeer Census-designated place • Manning (county seat) Unincorporated communities • Emerson • Fayette • Hirschville • Marshall • Medicine Hole • New Hradec • Oakdale • Twin Buttes • Werner ==Politics==

Dunn County has voted Republican in every election since 1976. ==Education==

School districts include: K-12: • Beulah Public School District 27 • Dickinson Public School District 1 • Halliday Public School District 19 (now closed) • Hebron Public School District 13 • Killdeer Public School District 16 • Mandaree Public School District 36 • Richardton-Taylor Public School District 34 • South Heart Public School District 9 Elementary: • Twin Buttes Public School District 37 ==See also==