Morton County, North Dakota

Early history

The county was created on January 8, 1873, by the Dakota Territory legislature, using territory that had not previously been included in any county. The county organization was not completed at that time, but the new county was not attached to any other county for administrative or judicial matters. Its organization was completed on November 5, 1878. It was named for Oliver Hazard Perry Throck Morton (1823-1877), governor of Indiana during the American Civil War and later a United States Senator. Portions of the county were partitioned off on February 10, 1879, causing the county organization to be not fully organized. This lasted until February 28, 1881, when the organization was again completed. The county's boundaries were adjusted in 1881 and in 1887. In 1916, a portion of Morton County was partitioned off to create Grant County, setting Morton County's boundaries to their present configuration.

After the Northern Pacific Railroad announced the location for the western approach to its Missouri River bridge, a new settlement appeared in December 1878. Initially the US Post Office designated the riverside settlement "Morton" after the corresponding county. The Morton post office later moved to the city center 3 miles west. The county was reorganized in 1881 after the detached land was returned to Morton County by the 1881 legislature. The town, eventually renamed Mandan, was named the county seat.

Recent history

:Further information: Curlew Township

DAPL protests

The 1,172-mile long Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) route submitted in its final permit applications starting in September 2014 would include a 72-mile portion through Morton County. The county became a focus of DAPL protests in April 2016. In August 2016 the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe (SRST) filed an injunction against United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to attempt to halt construction. In his 58-page decision by United States District Judge James E. Boasberg shows that the tribe failed to participate in the process of the USACE and Energy Transfer Partners (ETP) to address the tribes complaints. Furthermore, the tribe did not cite a fear of water contamination in the injunction. The injunction request was denied and also failed on appeal. Amnesty International wrote a letter to Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier on September 28, 2016, requesting that he investigate the use of force by private contractors, remove blockades and discontinue the use of riot gear by Morton County sheriff's deputies when policing protests in order to facilitate the right to peaceful protests in accordance with international law and standards. This letter was written in response to private security guards using guard dogs on advancing protesters on September 3, along with using pepper spray. On Sunday, November 20, 2016, North Dakota police officers fired rubber bullets, tear gas, CS canisters and water from fire hoses at rioting protesters in subfreezing temperatures.

Geography

The Missouri River flows south-southeastward along the east boundary line of Morton County, and Cannonball River flows east-northeastward along the eastern portion of the county's south boundary line. The county terrain consists of low rolling hills, etched by gullies and drainages; the more level areas are devoted to agriculture. The terrain generally slopes to the east and south, but also slopes into the river valleys, with the high point near the midpoint of the north boundary line, at 2,375 ft ASL.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1945.167 sqmi, of which 1925.888 sqmi is land and 19.279 sqmi (0.99%) is water. It is the 7th largest county in North Dakota by total area.

Major highways

• [[Image:I-94.svg|25px]] Interstate 94
• [[Image:ND-6 (2015).svg|25px]] North Dakota Highway 6
• [[Image:ND-21 (2015).svg|25px]] North Dakota Highway 21
• [[Image:ND-25 (2015).svg|25px]] North Dakota Highway 25
• [[Image:ND-31 (2015).svg|25px]] North Dakota Highway 31
• [[Image:ND-49 (2015).svg|25px]] North Dakota Highway 49
• [[Image:ND-1806 (2015).svg|25px]] North Dakota Highway 1806

Transit

• Bis-Man Transit (Capital Area Transit)

Adjacent counties

• Oliver County - north
• Burleigh County - northeast
• Emmons County - east
• Sioux County - southeast
• Grant County - south
• Stark County - west
• Mercer County - northwest

Protected areas

Source:

• Lake Patricia National Wildlife Refuge
• Morton County State Game Management Area
• Storm Creek State Game Management Area
• Sweet Briar Dam State Game Management Area

Lakes

Source:

• Crown Butte Lake
• Fish Creek Lake
• Harmon Lake
• Lake Oahe (part)
• Lake Patricia
• Storm Creek Lake
• Sweet Briar Lake

Demographics

|align-fn=center 1790–1960 1900–1990 1990–2000 2010–2020

As of the fourth quarter of 2024, the median home value in Morton County was $262,128.

As of the 2023 American Community Survey, there are 13,529 estimated households in Morton County with an average of 2.43 persons per household. The county has a median household income of $79,483. Approximately 7.9% of the county's population lives at or below the poverty line. Morton County has an estimated 71.7% employment rate, with 29.3% of the population holding a bachelor's degree or higher and 94.5% 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 (95.3%), Spanish (3.0%), Indo-European (0.9%), Asian and Pacific Islander (0.3%), and Other (0.5%).

Morton County, North Dakota – racial and ethnic composition Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.

2024 estimate

As of the 2024 estimate, there were 34,194 people and 13,529 households residing in the county. There were 15,687 housing units. The racial makeup of the county was 90.6% White (87.0% NH White), 1.7% African American, 4.4% Native American, 0.6% Asian, 0.2% Pacific Islander, _% from some other races and 2.5% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 4.7% of the population.

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 33,291, 13,827 households, and 8,617 families. The population density was 17.3 PD/sqmi, with 15,107 housing units at an average density of 7.84 /sqmi. Of the residents, 23.8% were under the age of 18 and 17.1% were 65 years of age or older; the median age was 38.1 years. For every 100 females there were 101.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 100.8 males.

The racial makeup of the county was 87.6% White, 1.4% Black or African American, 4.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% Asian, 1.5% from some other race, and 4.9% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 3.9% of the population.

Of the 13,827 households, 28.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 23.0% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present; about 30.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 15,107 housing units, of which 8.5% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 70.9% were owner-occupied and 29.1% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.4% and the rental vacancy rate was 9.0%.

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 27,471 people, 11,289 households, and 7,523 families residing in the county. The population density was 14.3 PD/sqmi. There were 12,079 housing units at an average density of 6.27 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the county was 93.64% White, 0.44% African American, 3.64% Native American, 0.20% Asian, 0.09% Pacific Islander, 0.36% from some other races and 1.63% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 1.46% of the population.

There were 11,289 households, 30.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.1% were married couples living together, 9.3% had a female householder with no husband present, 33.4% were non-families, and 27.7% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 2.90. The median age was 39.3 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $50,591 and the median income for a family was $62,713. Males had a median income of $42,044 versus $31,505 for females. The per capita income for the county was $25,303. About 5.4% of families and 8.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.8% of those under age 18 and 9.6% of those age 65 or over.

Population by decade

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

Communities

Cities

• Almont
• Flasher
• Glen Ullin
• Hebron
• Mandan (county seat)
• New Salem

Census-designated place

• Harmon

Unincorporated communities

Source:

• Bluegrass
• Breien
• Eagle Nest
• Fallon
• Fort Rice
• Huff
• Judson
• Rock Haven
• St. Anthony
• Sims
• Solen
• Sweet Briar
• Timmer
• Youngstown

Township

• Captain's Landing

Politics

Morton County voters have been reliably Republican for decades. In only one national election since 1964 has the county selected the Democratic Party candidate.

References

• Morton County – official website
• Morton County maps, Sheet 1 (northeast), Sheet 2 (southeast), and Sheet 3 (western), North Dakota DOT

References

1. "Explore Census Data". [[United States Census Bureau]].
2. "Find a County". [[National Association of Counties]].
3. (2006). "Dakota Territory, South Dakota, and North Dakota: Individual County Chronologies". The [[Newberry Library]].
4. "County History". State of North Dakota.
5. The territorial legislature removed the eastern part of Morton County, including Fort Abraham Lincoln and the adjacent military reservation, attaching it to [[Burleigh County, North Dakota. Burleigh County]]. Lincoln, the civilian settlement north of Fort Abraham Lincoln, was county seat 1878 to 1879 until it was reassigned to Burleigh County.
6. Patera, Alan H.. (1982). "North Dakota Post Offices 1850-1982". The Depot, Burtonsville MD.
7. (2006). "Certification of the 1916 division of Morton County North Dakota Creation of Grant Count". SolbergFarms.
8. (August 18, 2016). "Pipeline route plan first called for crossing north of Bismarck". The Bismarck Tribune.
9. "Dakota Access Order {{!}} Sioux".
10. (October 3, 2016). "Amnesty International to Morton County Sheriff: Investigate Use of Force Against Protectors at DAPL - Indian Country Media Network".
11. "VIDEO: Dakota Access Pipeline Company Attacks Native American Protesters with Dogs and Pepper Spray". Democracy Now!.
12. (November 21, 2016). "Dakota Pipeline: Protesters Soaked With Water in Freezing Temperatures". [[NBC News]].
13. "Morton County, North Dakota". [[Google Maps]].
14. ""Find an Altitude/Morton County ND" Google Maps (accessed February 19, 2019)".
15. "2024 County Gazetteer Files – North Dakota". [[United States Census Bureau]].
16. "U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Morton County, North Dakota".
17. "County Population Totals and Components of Change: 2020-2024".
18. "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau.
19. (2007). "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library.
20. Forstall, Richard L.. (April 20, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau.
21. "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000". United States Census Bureau.
22. (January 8, 2025). "County Median Home Price". [[National Association of Realtors]].
23. "U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Morton County, North Dakota".
24. "Morton County, North Dakota — Population by Race". CensusScope.
25. (October 6, 2022). "1990 Census of Population: General Population Characteristics North Dakota".
26. "P004: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Morton County, North Dakota". [[United States Census Bureau]].
27. "P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Morton County, North Dakota". [[United States Census Bureau]].
28. "P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Morton County, North Dakota". [[United States Census Bureau]].
29. "County Population by Characteristics: 2020-2023". United States Census Bureau.
30. (2021). "2020 Decennial Census Demographic Profile (DP1)". United States Census Bureau.
31. (2021). "2020 Decennial Census Redistricting Data (Public Law 94-171)". United States Census Bureau.
32. Leip, David. "Atlas of US Presidential Elections".
33. "Dakota Access Order {{!}} Sioux".