Dunn County, North Dakota

Dunn County, North Dakota
Dunn County is a county in the U.S. state of North Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 4,095. Its county seat is Manning.
History
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 effected 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 effected, 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. The county has a total area of , of which is land and (3.5%) is water. It is the fifth-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
Demographics
2020 census
As of the census of 2020, there were 4,095 people.
2010 census
As of the census of 2010, there were 3,536 people, 1,401 households, and 977 families 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 84.9% white, 12.7% American Indian, 0.3% Asian, 0.2% black or African American, 0.2% from other races, and 1.7% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.1% 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.
Of the 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
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
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
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
National Register of Historic Places listings in Dunn County, North Dakota
References
External links
Killdeer Mountain Scenic Byway
Little Missouri State Park
Dunn County maps, Sheet 1 (northern) and Sheet 2 (southern), North Dakota DOT
North Dakota counties on the Missouri River
1908 establishments in North Dakota
Populated places established in 1908
Counties in multiple time zones