Ramsey County, North Dakota


Ramsey County is a county in the U.S. state of North Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 11,605, and was estimated to be 11,510 in 2024. The county seat and the largest city is Devils Lake.
WWW co.ramsey.nd.us

History

The Dakota Territory legislature created the county on January 4, 1873, with areas partitioned from Pembina County. The county was named for Alexander Ramsey, a U.S. Senator from Minnesota and the first Minnesota Territorial Governor. The county government was not completed at that time, and the county was not attached to another county for administrative or judicial purposes. This situation continued until January 25, 1883, when the county government was affected.
The county's boundaries were altered twice in March 1883, twice more in 1885, and again in 1890. Its present boundaries have remained unchanged since 1890.

Geography

The southwest boundary of Ramsey County is defined by Devils Lake. The county terrain consists of rolling hills, dotted with lakes and ponds. The area is largely devoted to agriculture. The terrain slopes to the lake, with its highest point at the NE county corner, at ASL.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and is water. It is the 26th largest county in North Dakota by total area.

Major highways

Transit

Adjacent counties

National protected areas

Lakes

Source:
  • Chain Lake
  • Creel Bay
  • Dry Lake
  • East Devils Lake
  • Lake Alice
  • Lake Irvine
  • Mikes Lake
  • Morrison Lake
  • Sixmile Bay
  • Sweetwater Lake

Demographics

As of the fourth quarter of 2024, the median home value in Ramsey County was $209,156.
As of the 2023 American Community Survey, there are 5,185 estimated households in Ramsey County with an average of 2.14 persons per household. The county has a median household income of $61,319. Approximately 12.4% of the county's population lives at or below the poverty line. Ramsey County has an estimated 67.7% employment rate, with 27.6% of the population holding a bachelor's degree or higher and 93.1% holding a high school diploma.
The top five reported ancestries were English, Spanish, Indo-European, Asian and Pacific Islander, and Other.
The median age in the county was 40.2 years.
Ramsey County, North Dakota – racial and ethnic composition
Race / ethnicity Pop. 1980Pop. 1990Pop. 2000Pop. 2010
White alone 12,662
12,001
11,112
9,980
9,354
Black or African American alone 5
20
22
41
73
Native American or Alaska Native alone 331
577
639
964
1,227
Asian alone 15
29
31
45
72
Pacific Islander alone ——3
5
10
Other race alone 6
5
4
4
8
Mixed race or multiracial ——192
275
587
Hispanic or Latino 29
49
63
137
274
Total13,048
12,681
12,066
11,451
11,605

2024 estimate

As of the 2024 estimate, there were 11,510 people and 5,185 households residing in the county. There were 5,899 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the county was 82.7% White , 1.1% African American, 11.8% Native American, 1.1% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, _% from some other races and 3.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 3.0% of the population.

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 11,605 people, 4,947 households, and 2,883 families residing in the county. The population density was. There were 5,843 housing units at an average density of ; 15.3% were vacant, the homeowner vacancy rate was 2.0%, and the rental vacancy rate was 13.4%.
Of the residents, 23.1% were under the age of 18 and 20.8% were 65 years of age or older; the median age was 40.6 years. For every 100 females there were 101.1 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 100.3 males.
The racial makeup of the county was 81.3% White, 0.6% Black or African American, 11.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% Asian, 0.6% from some other race, and 5.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 2.4% of the population.
There were 4,947 households in the county, of which 26.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 25.4% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 35.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
Among occupied housing units, 64.0% were owner-occupied and 36.0% were renter-occupied.

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 11,451 people, 4,955 households, and 3,008 families residing in the county. The population density was. There were 5,615 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the county was 87.72% White, 0.36% [African Americans|American (U.S. census)|African American], 8.68% Native American, 0.39% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.24% from some other races and 2.57% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 1.20% of the population.
In terms of ancestry, 41.9% were German, 37.7% were Norwegian, 7.0% were Irish, 5.7% were Swedish, 5.2% were English, and 2.9% were American.
There were 4,955 households, 27.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.0% were married couples living together, 9.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 39.3% were non-families, and 34.5% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.21 and the average family size was 2.82. The median age was 43.0 years.
The median income for a household in the county was $41,792 and the median income for a family was $56,632. Males had a median income of $41,274 versus $25,171 for females. The per capita income for the county was $24,130. About 8.7% of families and 11.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.7% of those under age 18 and 15.4% of those age 65 or over.

Population by decade


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Communities

Cities

Unincorporated communities

Source:

Townships

  • Bartlett
  • Cato
  • Chain Lakes
  • Coulee
  • Creel
  • De Groat
  • Dry Lake
  • Fancher
  • Freshwater
  • Grand Harbor
  • Hammer
  • Harding
  • Highland Center
  • Hope
  • Klingstrup
  • Lawton
  • Lillehoff
  • Minnewaukan
  • Morris
  • Newbre
  • Newland
  • Noonan
  • North Creel
  • Northfield
  • Odessa
  • Ontario
  • Overland
  • Pelican
  • Poplar Grove
  • Prospect
  • Royal
  • South Minnewaukan
  • Stevens
  • Sullivan
  • Triumph
  • Webster

Politics

Ramsey County voters have traditionally voted Republican. In only two national elections since 1944 has the county selected the Democratic Party candidate.

Education

School districts include: