Ward County is a county in the U.S. state of North Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 69,919, making it the fourth most populous county in North Dakota. Its county seat is Minot. Ward County is part of the Minot, ND Micropolitan Statistical Area.

History

The Dakota Territory legislature created the county on April 14, 1885, with areas partitioned from Renville, Stevens, and Wynn counties (Stevens and Wynn counties are now extinct). The county government was not organized at that date; the organization was effected on November 23 of that year. The county was named for Mark Ward, chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Counties during the session. Burlington was the county seat; this was changed to Minot in 1888. The boundaries of Ward County were altered two times in 1887, and in 1892, 1909 and 1910. The present county boundaries have been in place since 1910. Until 1908, Ward County included what is now Burke, Mountrail, and Renville counties; this landmass often being referred to as 'Imperial Ward' County and which was the largest county in the state at the time. In 1908, voters took up measures to partition the county. The results for that portion forming Mountrail County were accepted but the results for the portions that would become Burke and Renville counties were disputed in court, which resulted in favorable rulings in 1910. When the proposed county lines for Burke and Renville counties were drawn, neither group wanted to include Kenmare and risk that city's becoming the county seat, so Kenmare was left in Ward County at the end of a narrow strip of land, commonly referred to as the 'gooseneck'. One of the options reportedly considered around this time was to create a fifth county, Lake, with Kenmare as its seat.

Geography

The Des Lacs River flows southeasterly through the northeast part of the county before doubling to the northeast on its journey to Lake Winnipeg. The county terrain consists of low rolling hills, dotted with ponds and lakes in its southern part, and carved by drainage gullies. The area is largely devoted to agriculture. The terrain slopes to the east and north, with its highest point near the southwest corner, at 2,175 ft ASL. The county has a total area of 2056 sqmi, of which 2013 sqmi is land and 43 sqmi (2.1%) is water. It is the fifth-largest county in North Dakota by land area.

Major highways

Transit

Adjacent counties

Protected areas

Lakes

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 69,919 people, 28,847 households, and 17,323 families in the county. The population density was 34.7 PD/sqmi There were 32,176 housing units.

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 61,675 people, 25,029 households, and 15,597 families in the county. The population density was 30.6 /mi2. There were 26,744 housing units at an average density of 13.3 /mi2. The racial makeup of the county was 90.3% white, 2.6% American Indian, 2.5% black or African American, 0.9% Asian, 0.1% Pacific islander, 0.7% from other races, and 2.7% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 3.0% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 44.4% were German, 30.8% were Norwegian, 11.6% were Irish, 5.7% were English, and 2.3% were American. Of the 25,029 households, 30.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.9% were married couples living together, 8.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 37.7% were non-families, and 30.0% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.95. The median age was 32.7 years. The median income for a household in the county was $48,793 and the median income for a family was $60,361. Males had a median income of $37,569 versus $28,415 for females. The per capita income for the county was $25,326. About 6.7% of families and 9.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.0% of those under age 18 and 10.3% of those age 65 or over.

Population by decade

Communities

Cities

Census-designated places

Unincorporated communities

Historical areas

Townships

Politics

Ward County voters are traditionally and increasingly Republican. The Democratic Party presidential candidate has only won the county once since 1944, during Lyndon B. Johnson's landslide victory in 1964. In 2024, Donald Trump received 72.3% of the vote in this county, the highest for any candidate since Theodore Roosevelt.