Ransom County, North Dakota


Ransom County is a county in the U.S. state of North Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 5,703, and was estimated to be 5,590 in 2024. The county seat and the largest city is Lisbon.
WWW Official Site

History

The Dakota Territory legislature created Ransom County on January 4, 1873. It was so named due to its military fort, which had been named Fort Ransom for Civil War veteran Major General Thomas E.G. Ransom. The fort had operated between 1867 and 1872. The county was not organized at that time, nor was it attached to another county for administrative or judicial purposes. Its proposed boundaries were altered two times during 1881. On April 4, 1881, the county government was affected. The county's area was again reduced in 1883 when Sargent County was created. Ransom County has retained its present configuration since that time.

Geography

The Sheyenne River meanders through Ransom County. The county terrain consists of rolling hills, dotted with lakes and ponds in its western part. The area is largely devoted to agriculture. The terrain slopes to the east and south; its highest point is on the north boundary line near its northwestern 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 46th largest county in North Dakota by total area.

Major highways

Adjacent counties

Protected areas

Lakes

Demographics

As of the fourth quarter of 2024, the median home value in Ransom County was $185,210.

American Community Survey

As of the 2023 American Community Survey, there are 2,305 estimated households in Ransom County with an average of 2.32 persons per household. The county has a median household income of $74,521. Approximately 9.3% of the county's population lives at or below the poverty line. Ransom County has an estimated 62.5% employment rate, with 21.0% of the population holding a bachelor's degree or higher and 90.6% 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 41.1 years.
Ransom County, North Dakota – racial and ethnic composition
Race / ethnicity Pop. 1980Pop. 1990Pop. 2000Pop. 2010
White alone 6,647
5,872
5,749
5,285
5,363
Black or African American alone 3
4
11
19
36
Native American or Alaska Native alone 7
13
19
21
18
Asian alone 14
7
14
20
24
Pacific Islander alone ——0
0
0
Other race alone 13
1
4
1
10
Mixed race or multiracial ——45
45
123
Hispanic or Latino 14
24
48
66
129
Total6,698
5,921
5,890
5,457
5,703

2024 estimate

As of the 2024 estimate, there were 5,590 people and 2,305 households residing in the county. There were 2,553 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the county was 94.8% White , 0.9% African American, 1.0% Native American, 1.2% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, _% from some other races and 2.0% 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, the county had a population of 5,703. There were 2,246 households and 1,420 families residing in the county. Of the residents, 24.3% were under the age of 18 and 21.6% were 65 years of age or older; the median age was 42.4 years. For every 100 females there were 110.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 108.8 males.
The racial makeup of the county was 94.7% White, 0.7% Black or African American, 0.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% Asian, 0.9% from some other race, and 3.0% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 2.3% of the population.
The population density was.
There were 2,246 households in the county, of which 28.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 20.7% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 31.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 2,536 housing units at an average density of ; 11.4% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 72.5% were owner-occupied and 27.5% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.0% and the rental vacancy rate was 12.8%.

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 5,457 people, 2,310 households, and 1,466 families residing in the county. The population density was. There were 2,656 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the county was 97.82% White, 0.35% African American, 0.42% Native American, 0.37% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.13% from some other races and 0.86% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 1.21% of the population.
In terms of ancestry, 54.2% were German, 36.6% were Norwegian, 9.0% were Irish, 6.9% were Swedish, 5.1% were English, and 1.6% were American.
There were 2,310 households, 27.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.8% were married couples living together, 5.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 36.5% were non-families, and 32.9% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.28 and the average family size was 2.89. The median age was 45.2 years.
The median income for a household in the county was $46,044 and the median income for a family was $59,973. Males had a median income of $42,380 versus $28,209 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,995. About 7.5% of families and 9.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.2% of those under age 18 and 11.6% of those age 65 or over.

Population by decade


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Communities

Cities

Census-designated places

Townships

Politics

Ransom County is a swing county in presidential elections, having voted for both parties an equal number of times between 1976 and 2020. It voted for the Democrat in the 2000 and 2012 gubernatorial elections, and for the Republican in 2004, 2008, and 2016. It is also a bellwether county at the presidential level, having voted for the winner in every presidential election between the 1964 and 1984 and again from 1992 to 2016. The county broke its bellwether streak in 1988 and 2020, voting for the Democratic nominee Michael Dukakis in 1988 and Republican nominee Donald Trump in 2020, who both would lose the general election.
Ransom County is one of the most Democratic counties in North Dakota. In the 2018 election for U.S. Senate, it gave Heidi Heitkamp her 4th-highest total, behind only Sioux, Rolette, and Benson counties.

Education

School districts include:
In 1905 it had 22 school districts, with 16 not having a bond. Circa 1905 the county had 2,431 students in its three high schools, five grade schools, and 75 schoolhouses.