During the election on November 8, 1910, the voters of Williams County determined that the county should be divided into a northern and a southern county. The vote was affirmative; the southern portion retained the Williams name; the newly created county was named "Divide", with Crosby as the seat. The county government was affected on December 9 of that year, and the county's boundaries have remained unchanged since that time. Most histories attribute the county name to its "division" from Williams County,[4] though the county's location on the Laurentian Divide, separating runoff waters between Hudson Bay and Gulf of Mexico, may have been involved.[5]
In 1911, Divide County was the site of one of the deadliest tornadoes in North Dakota's recorded history, causing four known deaths.[6]
Geography
Divide County lies at the northwest corner of North Dakota. Its northern boundary line abuts the south boundary line of Canada, opposite Saskatchewan, and its west boundary line abuts the east boundary line of the state of Montana. The terrain of Divide County consists of semi-arid rolling hills, dotted with lakes and ponds, partially devoted to agriculture.[7] The terrain generally slopes to the east; the northern part also slopes to the north while the southern part slopes to the south.[8]
According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,294.596 square miles (3,352.99km2), of which 1,261.130 square miles (3,266.31km2) is land and 33.466 square miles (86.68km2) (2.59%) is water.[9] It is the 24th largest county in North Dakota by total area.[10]
Divide County is one of several western North Dakota counties with significant exposure to the Bakken Formation in the Williston Basin.
U.S. Decennial Census[12] 1790–1960[13] 1900–1990[14] 1990–2000[15] 2010–2020[2]
As of the fourth quarter of 2024, the median home value in Divide County was $183,409.[16]
As of the 2023 American Community Survey, there are 935 estimated households in Divide County with an average of 2.24 persons per household. The county has a median household income of $89,297. Approximately 9.8% of the county's population lives at or below the poverty line. Divide County has an estimated 59.2% employment rate, with 20.4% of the population holding a bachelor's degree or higher and 88.4% holding a high school diploma.[2]
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 (98.8%), Spanish (0.0%), Indo-European (0.6%), Asian and Pacific Islander (0.3%), and Other (0.2%).
The median age in the county was 47.3 years.
Divide County, North Dakota – racial and ethnic composition Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.
As of the 2024 estimate, there were 2,124 people and 935 households residing in the county. There were 1,399 housing units at an average density of 1.11 per square mile (0.4/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 92.3% White (88.5% NH White), 1.9% African American, 1.1% Native American, 1.9% Asian, 0.2% Pacific Islander, _% from some other races and 2.5% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 4.1% of the population.[22]
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, there were 2,195 people, 965 households, and 597 families residing in the county.[23] The population density was 1.7 inhabitants per square mile (0.7/km2). There were 1,397 housing units at an average density of 1.11 per square mile (0.4/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 93.58% White, 1.05% African American, 0.87% Native American, 0.50% Asian, 0.18% Pacific Islander, 0.23% from some other races and 3.60% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 2.41% of the population.[24]
2010 census
As of the 2010 census, there were 2,071 people, 977 households, and 584 families residing in the county. The population density was 1.6 inhabitants per square mile (0.6/km2). There were 1,324 housing units at an average density of 1.05 per square mile (0.4/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 98.02% White, 0.24% African American, 0.53% Native American, 0.34% Asian, 0.00% Pacific Islander, 0.05% from some other races and 0.82% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 1.45% of the population.
There were 977 households, 19.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.2% were married couples living together, 4.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 40.2% were non-families, and 36.6% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.05 and the average family size was 2.66. The median age was 51.4 years.
The median income for a household in the county was $48,152 and the median income for a family was $65,000. Males had a median income of $42,341 versus $27,596 for females. The per capita income for the county was $28,462. About 9.4% of families and 14.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 40.7% of those under age 18 and 5.7% of those age 65 or over.
Among the population claiming adherence to a particular religious organization, 80.6% claimed adherence to the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) in 2010. This rate is the highest such rate for the ELCA among all counties in the United States.[25]
Divide County, though formerly a swing county, now leans heavily Republican. It has selected the Republican party candidate in every presidential election since 2000.
United States presidential election results for Divide County, North Dakota[26]
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