Ransom County, North Dakota
Template:Short description Template:Use American English Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox U.S. county
Ransom County is a county in the U.S. state of North Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 5,703,<ref name="2020 Census (City)">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and was estimated to be 5,590 in 2024.<ref name="QF"/> The county seat and the largest city is Lisbon.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
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.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

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.<ref name="RCND">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The terrain slopes to the east and south; its highest point is on the north boundary line near its northwestern corner, at Template:Convert ASL.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of Template:Convert, of which Template:Convert is land and Template:Convert (0.16%) is water.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> It is the 46th largest county in North Dakota by total area.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
File:Ransom Co ND Pie Chart No Text 3-7-17 Version.pdf
Major highways
Adjacent counties
- Cass County - northeast
- Richland County - east
- Sargent County - south
- Dickey County - southwest
- LaMoure County - west
- Barnes County - northwest
Protected areas
- Browns Ranch<ref name=WTD/>
- Fort Ransom State Historic Site
- Fort Ransom State Park
- Nature Conservancy's Sheyenne Delta<ref name=WTD/>
- North Country Trail
- Pigeon Point Reserve<ref name=WTD/>
- Sheyenne National Grassland (part)
- Sheyenne State Forest<ref name=WTD>What to do</ref>
Lakes
- Lone Tree Lake<ref name=RCND/>
Demographics
As of the fourth quarter of 2024, the median home value in Ransom County was $185,210.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
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.<ref name="QF">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
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 (94.1%), Spanish (1.1%), Indo-European (3.9%), Asian and Pacific Islander (0.8%), and Other (0.1%).
The median age in the county was 41.1 years.
Ransom County, North Dakota – racial and ethnic composition
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White alone (NH) | 6,647 (99.24%) |
5,872 (99.17%) |
5,749 (97.61%) |
5,285 (96.85%) |
5,363 (94.04%) | |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 3 (0.04%) |
4 (0.07%) |
11 (0.19%) |
19 (0.35%) |
36 (0.63%) | |
| Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) | 7 (0.10%) |
13 (0.22%) |
19 (0.32%) |
21 (0.38%) |
18 (0.32%) | |
| Asian alone (NH) | 14 (0.21%) |
7 (0.12%) |
14 (0.24%) |
20 (0.37%) |
24 (0.42%) | |
| Pacific Islander alone (NH) | — | — | 0 (0.00%) |
0 (0.00%) |
0 (0.00%) | |
| Other race alone (NH) | 13 (0.19%) |
1 (0.02%) |
4 (0.07%) |
1 (0.02%) |
10 (0.18%) | |
| Mixed race or multiracial (NH) | — | — | 45 (0.76%) |
45 (0.82%) |
123 (2.16%) | |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 14 (0.21%) |
24 (0.41%) |
48 (0.81%) |
66 (1.21%) |
129 (2.26%) | |
| Total | 6,698 (100.00%) |
5,921 (100.00%) |
5,890 (100.00%) |
5,457 (100.00%) |
5,703 (100.00%) |
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 Template:Convert. The racial makeup of the county was 94.8% White (92.2% NH 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.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, there were 5,703 people, 2,246 households, and 1,420 families residing in the county.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The population density was Template:Convert. There were 2,536 housing units at an average density of Template:Convert. The racial makeup of the county was 94.69% White, 0.67% African American, 0.32% Native American, 0.44% Asian, 0.00% Pacific Islander, 0.93% from some other races and 2.96% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 2.26% of the population.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
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 Template:Convert. There were 2,656 housing units at an average density of Template:Convert. 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
- Elliott
- Enderlin (partly in Cass County)
- Fort Ransom
- Lisbon (county seat)
- Sheldon
Census-designated places
Townships
- Aliceton
- Alleghany
- Bale
- Big Bend
- Casey
- Coburn
- Elliott
- Fort Ransom
- Greene
- Hanson
- Island Park
- Isley
- Liberty
- McLeod
- Moore
- Northland
- Owego
- Preston
- Rosemeade
- Sandoun
- Scoville
- Shenford
- Springer
- Sydna
- Tuller
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 (60.6%), behind only Sioux, Rolette, and Benson counties.
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Education
School districts include:<ref>Template:Cite map - Text list</ref>
- Enderlin Area Public School District 24
- Fort Ransom Public School District 6
- Kindred Public School District 2
- LaMoure Public School District 8
- Litchville-Marion Public School District 46
- Lisbon Public School District 19
- Milnor Public School District 2
- North Sargent Public School District 3
- Oakes Public School District 41
- Wyndmere Public School District 42
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.<ref>Template:Cite news - Clipping from Newspapers.com.</ref>
See also
References
External links
- Ramson County – official website
- Ransom County map, North Dakota DOT
Template:Ransom County, North Dakota Template:US state navigation box Template:Authority control