Geography
The northeastern/eastern boundary of Oliver County is delineated by the Missouri River as it flows southeastward after leaving Lake Sakakawea. The county terrain consists of rolling hills, mostly devoted to agriculture. [6] The terrain slopes to the east, with the highest point a hill near its southwestern corner, at 2,382 ft (726 m) ASL. [7]
According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 731.082 square miles (1,893.49 km2), of which 722.404 square miles (1,871.02 km2) is land and 8.678 square miles (22.48 km2) (1.19%) is water. [8] It is the 49th largest county and the fifth-smallest county in North Dakota by total area. [9]
By sheer coincidence, the county seat, Center, named for being near the geographical center of the county, has also been calculated to be the geographic center of North America. [10]
Protected areas
- Cross Ranch State Park [6]
Lakes
- Mandan Lake [6]
- Nelson Lake [6]
Demographics
Historical population| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|
| 1890 | 464 | | — |
|---|
| 1900 | 990 | | 113.4% |
|---|
| 1910 | 3,577 | | 261.3% |
|---|
| 1920 | 4,425 | | 23.7% |
|---|
| 1930 | 4,262 | | −3.7% |
|---|
| 1940 | 3,859 | | −9.5% |
|---|
| 1950 | 3,091 | | −19.9% |
|---|
| 1960 | 2,610 | | −15.6% |
|---|
| 1970 | 2,322 | | −11.0% |
|---|
| 1980 | 2,495 | | 7.5% |
|---|
| 1990 | 2,381 | | −4.6% |
|---|
| 2000 | 2,065 | | −13.3% |
|---|
| 2010 | 1,846 | | −10.6% |
|---|
| 2020 | 1,877 | | 1.7% |
|---|
| 2024 (est.) | 1,882 | [11] | 0.3% |
|---|
|
As of the fourth quarter of 2024, the median home value in Oliver County was $229,923. [16]
As of the 2023 American Community Survey, there are 727 estimated households in Oliver County with an average of 2.50 persons per household. The county has a median household income of $76,953. Approximately 10.8% of the county's population lives at or below the poverty line. Oliver County has an estimated 61.3% employment rate, with 20.5% of the population holding a bachelor's degree or higher and 94.6% 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 (0.9%), Asian and Pacific Islander (0.3%), and Other (0.0%).
The median age in the county was 46.1 years.
Oliver 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.
| Race / ethnicity (NH = non-Hispanic) | Pop. 1980 [17] | Pop. 1990 [18] | Pop. 2000 [19] | Pop. 2010 [20] | Pop. 2020 [21] |
|---|
| White alone (NH) | 2,452
(98.28%) | 2,338
(98.19%) | 2,005
(97.09%) | 1,782
(96.53%) | 1,755
(93.50%) |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 2
(0.08%) | 0
(0.00%) | 1
(0.05%) | 3
(0.16%) | 3
(0.16%) |
| Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) | 36
(1.44%) | 39
(1.64%) | 25
(1.21%) | 26
(1.41%) | 23
(1.23%) |
| Asian alone (NH) | 1
(0.04%) | 0
(0.00%) | 2
(0.10%) | 4
(0.22%) | 5
(0.27%) |
| Pacific Islander alone (NH) | — | — | 0
(0.00%) | 0
(0.00%) | 3
(0.16%) |
| Other race alone (NH) | 0
(0.00%) | 0
(0.00%) | 0
(0.00%) | 0
(0.00%) | 1
(0.05%) |
| Mixed race or multiracial (NH) | — | — | 19
(0.92%) | 12
(0.65%) | 59
(3.14%) |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 4
(0.16%) | 4
(0.17%) | 13
(0.63%) | 19
(1.03%) | 28
(1.49%) |
| Total | 2,495
(100.00%) | 2,381
(100.00%) | 2,065
(100.00%) | 1,846
(100.00%) | 1,877
(100.00%) |
2024 estimate
As of the 2024 estimate, there were 1,882 people and 727 households residing in the county. The population density was 2.61 inhabitants per square mile (1.0/km2). There were 922 housing units at an average density of 1.28 per square mile (0.5/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 94.5% White (92.7% NH White), 0.5% African American, 3.1% Native American, 0.4% Asian, 0.0% Pacific Islander, _% from some other races and 1.5% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 2.1% of the population. [22]
2010 census
As of the 2010 census, there were 1,846 people, 756 households, and 554 families residing in the county. The population density was 2.56 inhabitants per square mile (1.0/km2). There were 905 housing units at an average density of 1.25 per square mile (0.5/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 97.29% White, 0.16% African American, 1.52% Native American, 0.22% Asian, 0.00% Pacific Islander, 0.16% from some other races and 0.65% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 1.03% of the population.
In terms of ancestry, 66.8% were German, 19.3% were Norwegian, 7.6% were Russian, 6.3% were English, and 4.4% were American.
There were 756 households, 25.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.5% were married couples living together, 4.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 26.7% were non-families, and 22.6% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.84. The median age was 47.6 years.
The median income for a household in the county was $62,308 and the median income for a family was $75,069. Males had a median income of $60,592 versus $28,409 for females. The per capita income for the county was $29,348. About 6.5% of families and 9.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.0% of those under age 18 and 19.6% of those age 65 or over.
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