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

History

The Dakota Territory legislature enacted a 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, (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.

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. The terrain slopes to the north and east; its highest point is near the midpoint of its southern boundary, at 2,451 ft ASL. The county has a total area of 1112 sqmi, of which 1043 sqmi is land and 70 sqmi (6.3%) is water. 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 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

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 4.27 /mi2. 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

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 2024).

Education

School districts include: Elementary: Stanton previously had a separate school district, but it merged with Center's in 2004. Riverdale School District 89 had portions in Mercer County and in McLean County. The Associated Press described the district as "divided equally" between the counties. In 1993 members of the Riverdale School District school board voted to abolish their school district, with the Underwood and Hazen districts to obtain pieces of it. Zap formerly had its own school district. In 1994 the district voted to dissolve.