Mercer County, North Dakota

Mercer County is a county in the U.S. state of North Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 8,350. and was estimated to be 8,441 in 2025.

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.

thumb|Outline map of Mercer County, North Dakota, 1918

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 ASL.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (6.28%) is water. It is the 35th largest county in North Dakota by total area.

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

25px North Dakota Highway 31
25px North Dakota Highway 48
25px North Dakota Highway 49
25px North Dakota Highway 200
25px North Dakota Highway 200A
25px North Dakota Highway 1806

Adjacent counties

McLean County - north
Oliver County - east
Morton County - south
Stark County - southwest (observes Mountain Time)
Dunn County - west (observes Mountain Time in southern portion)

Protected areas

Source:

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|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census 1790–1960 1900–1990 1990–2000 2010–2020

As of the 2023 American Community Survey, there are 3,594 estimated households in Mercer County with an average of 2.27 persons per household. The county has a median household income of $79,405. Approximately 8.1% of the county's population lives at or below the poverty line. Mercer County has an estimated 55.5% employment rate, with 22.6% of the population holding a bachelor's degree or higher and 90.4% 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 (93.7%), Spanish (1.1%), Indo-European (3.9%), Asian and Pacific Islander (0.5%), and Other (0.9%).

Mercer County, North Dakota – racial and ethnic composition

{| class="wikitable sortable collapsible" style="font-size: 95%;"

! Race / ethnicity (NH = non-Hispanic)

! Pop. 1980 !! Pop. 1990 !! Pop. 2000 !! Pop. 2010 !!

| White alone (NH)

| 9,090 (96.66%) || 9,493 (96.79%) || 8,280 (95.79%) || 7,996 (94.92%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |7,571 (90.67%)

| Black or African American alone (NH)

| 10 (0.11%) || 12 (0.12%) || 4 (0.05%) || 16 (0.19%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |42 (0.50%)

| Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)

| 207 (2.20%) || 224 (2.28%) || 172 (1.99%) || 174 (2.07%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |193 (2.31%)

| Asian alone (NH)

| 19 (0.20%) || 36 (0.37%) || 22 (0.25%) || 27 (0.32%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |43 (0.51%)

| Pacific Islander alone (NH)

| — || — || 33 (0.38%) || 12 (0.14%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |1 (0.01%)

| Other race alone (NH)

| 33 (0.35%) || 1 (0.01%) || 4 (0.05%) || 0 (0.00%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |18 (0.22%)

| Mixed race or multiracial (NH)

| — || — || 97 (1.12%) || 78 (0.93%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |264 (3.16%)

| Hispanic or Latino (any race)

| 45 (0.48%) || 42 (0.43%) || 32 (0.37%) || 121 (1.44%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |218 (2.61%)

| Total

| 9,404 (100.00%) || 9,808 (100.00%) || 8,644 (100.00%) || 8,424 (100.00%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |8,350 (100.00%)

2024 estimate

As of the 2024 estimate, there were 8,348 people and 3,594 households residing in the county. There were 4,685 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 93.4% White (91.5% NH White), 0.6% African American, 3.0% Native American, 0.8% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, _% from some other races and 2.1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 2.8% of the population.

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 8,350 people, 3,475 households, and 2,339 families residing in the county. Of the residents, 23.9% were under the age of 18 and 20.1% were 65 years of age or older; the median age was 43.9 years. For every 100 females there were 105.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 106.5 males.

The population density was . There were 4,657 housing units at an average density of .

Education

School districts include:

Beulah Public School District 27
Center-Stanton Public School District 1
Glen Ullin Public School District 48
Halliday Public School District 19
Hazen Public School District 3
Hebron Public School District 13
Underwood Public School District 8

Elementary:

Twin Buttes Public School District 37

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.

References

External links

Mercer County – official website
Mercer County maps, Sheet 1 (northern) and Sheet 2 (southern), North Dakota DOT